BECOMING ATLANTIC TECHNOLOGICAL UNIVESIR TY IN 2022
Issue 5 | March 2022
Contents Welcome from Martin Cronin, Chair of the Connacht-Ulster Alliance (CUA)
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Minister Harris Designates the First President of Atlantic Technological University (ATU)
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First Governing Body appointed to ATU
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ATU Launch
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First Students to be enrolled in ATU
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Upcoming ATU Conferences
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France Ireland Culinary Arts, Hospitality and Tourism (FICAHT) Conference
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ATU DigitalEd Conference
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2nd Annual Research Sprint
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Killybegs Marine Cluster Launch
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EDITOR Anne Donnelly LET US KNOW WHAT YOU THINK Email: anne.donnelly@cualliance.ie
EDITORIAL BOARD Dr Seán Duffy Ann Higgins Dr Shirley Wrynn Dr Ciarán Ó hAnnracháin
DESIGN & LAYOUT The Foundation
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Welcome from Martin Cronin, Chair of the Connacht-Ulster Alliance (CUA)
Dear Reader, Nine years ago, the Presidents of GMIT, IT Sligo and LYIT asked me to chair the Connacht-Ulster Alliance (CUA). Since then, I’ve chaired the CUA Steering Committee, Working Group 1, the Joint Governing Body subcommittee and more recently, the new TU President search committee. Looking back over the last nine years, two stand-out moments come to mind. The first was the professionalism and ambition of colleagues when we had the first joint meeting of our executive boards. The second was the positive assessment from the external international evaluation panel last summer.
Martin Cronin Chair of the CUA
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But what has impressed me the most is the enthusiasm and engagement of staff and students in this process of becoming a TU. The most significant factor to the success of the CUA in becoming a technological university (TU) has been the willingness of
everybody to work with each other collaboratively to address issues constructively while maintaining parity of esteem across the three institutes. We have built a collaborative CUA culture, and this is one of the most significant assets we will take into the new TU. From my 25 years working with enterprise in the IDA, I am acutely aware of the role of third-level education in fostering economic development in the region. In this regard, the new TU will be of pivotal importance to the future of the west and northwest region.
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I am very much looking forward to the launch of the new TU on 1 April. We have the opportunity to become Ireland’s leading TU if we continue to work together as we have done over the past nine years.
The benefits of having a TU in the region are immense. It will build faculties of greater scale and academic strength that will enable us to offer a wider range of options to students and attract more of them to study in the region. It will allow us to provide enhanced technological support to enterprises across the region. Our research, incubation activities, and flexible provision will bring growth and opportunities for staff. I am very much looking forward to the launch of the new TU on Friday 1 April. We have the opportunity to become Ireland’s leading TU if we continue to work together as we have done
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over the past nine years. Our track record of dealing with various challenges to date makes me optimistic that we can do this. We are committed to becoming more than the sum of our three proud institutes. The upcoming launch celebrates our achievement in getting to the starting line, but there is still a tremendous amount of work to make us the best TU we can be. I wish you all well, and I’ll be rooting for you from the sidelines after 1 April. Best wishes, Martin Cronin
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Minister Harris Designates the First President of Atlantic Technological University (ATU) On 2 March 2022, Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, Simon Harris designated Dr Orla Flynn as ATU’s first President.
Dr Flynn is the current president of GalwayMayo Institute of Technology (GMIT). Minister Harris said: “I am delighted to designate Dr Flynn as the inaugural president of the new TU serving the west and north-west. She brings a wealth of experience and expertise in the higher education sector. Orla is a passionate advocate for the region and has led GMIT to significant success, particularly in the Science, Maths and Technology sectors. She has forged close relationships with business throughout her career an important part of the TU agenda. I really want to congratulate Orla and wish her every success. Orla’s appointment alongside the appointment of Chairperson Maura McNally will ensure a strong leadership team for ATU.” Last month Minister Harris announced the appointment of the Chairperson and members of the first governing body of the new TU.
Minister Harris added: “A formidable team has been brought together to lead ATU in its crucial formative years. I am confident the new TU will make a huge impact on the region in terms of delivering on its mission, values and regional and national strategic objectives. The designation of Dr Flynn, who will be appointed formally as president by the incoming first governing body on 1 April, is the final vital piece required to ensure the TU drives forward from day one in bringing higher education access, research informed programmes at levels 6-10 of the National Framework of Qualifications, research capacity building, teaching and learning excellence and regional embeddedness and engagement with business, enterprise, industry and local communities across the west and north-west of Ireland.”
I wish Dr Flynn, the incoming governing body and the staff and students of ATU the very best going forward as they take their rightful place in a higher education landscape that has changed immeasurably in the last four years.
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Dr Orla Flynn, President Designate of ATU
Dr Flynn said: “I am extremely privileged to be given the opportunity to lead our new Atlantic Technological University through its formative years. Building on the excellent relationships already in evidence across the three partner institutions, the task ahead will be for us to serve the region as one university. We can only do this by working together, including staff, students, alumni and our many stakeholders and partners.
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I want to acknowledge the enormous leadership to date from the outgoing Presidents of IT Sligo and Letterkenny IT, as well as the support from our Governing Bodies and from our collective University community. I am truly looking forward to the exciting challenges and opportunities ahead.
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First Governing Body appointed to ATU On 11 February 2022, Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, Simon Harris appointed ATU’s first governing body. He also announced the appointment of Maura McNally SC as Chairperson of the governing body. Ms McNally takes up the role on foot of a public process carried out by the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science. Minister Harris said: “I am delighted to announce the appointment of Ms Maura McNally, Chairperson of the Bar Council of Ireland, as the Chairperson of the first governing body of this new TU serving the west and north-west. Ms McNally brings a vast and invaluable wealth of experience to the role, which will be crucial in steering the new technological university through its formation.”
Ms McNally on her appointment and wish her very best wishes in steering the new Atlantic Technological University on its maiden voyage.” The first governing body is now charged with establishing and implementing the requisite election and appointment procedures to fill the remaining posts on the governing body from cohorts including undergraduate and postgraduate students, academic and non-academic staff, and additional external members.
Ms McNally will be assisted by colleagues, Ms Oonagh Monahan, founder and Managing Director of Alpha Omega Consultants Ltd and Felim McNeela, founder of Avenue Presidents of the three institutes; Dr Orla Flynn Mould Solutions, as external members of the governing body, along with Ms Anne McHugh, (GMIT), Dr Brendan McCormack (IT Sligo), Chief Executive of Donegal ETB. Ms McHugh and Paul Hannigan (LYIT), also welcomed the is the nominee of all three Education and announcement in a joint statement: Training Boards in whose areas the TU “On behalf of the Connacht-Ulster Alliance multi-campuses are located. (CUA), we would like to sincerely congratulate
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BECOMING ATLANTIC TECHNOLOGICAL UNIVERSITY
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Ms Maura McNally, Chair of ATU Governing Body and of the Bar Council of Ireland
A native of Dromod, Co. Leitrim, Ms McNally was called to the Bar in 1992 and practised on Circuit until her appointment to the Inner Bar in 2017. Following postgraduate studies at Warwick University (LLM) and UCG (BA and LLB), she completed her Bachelors of Law in King’s Inns and practices civil law, primarily in personal injury, chancery and non-jury. Ms McNally was elected as chair of the Council of The Bar of Ireland in 2020 and is only the second female to hold this prestigious position.
On 11 February 2022, Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, Simon Harris TD, signed the Statutory Instrument legally establishing the Atlantic Technological University (ATU) and set its commencement date as 1 April 2022.
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ATU Launch To mark the establishment of ATU, we will be holding a series of celebratory launch events from 1-8 April. The first meeting of the ATU Governing Body will be held on Friday 1 April. The President of ATU and ATU’s Governing Body Chairperson will also be introduced to all ATU staff and students, marking the official internal launch of the university. On Monday 4 April, an externally focused launch event will be held on the three larger campuses (Galway, Letterkenny and Sligo). The event will be live streamed to all campuses
and will be available to view online by members of the public. A series of other themed launch events are planned for each campus and will be scheduled between 5-8 April. You can find out more about our launch events at ATU.ie
Day/Date
Event
Location
Friday, April 1
ATU First Governing Body Meeting
Streamed to all ATU campuses
Introductions to staff and students from ATU’s President and Governing Body Chairperson Monday, April 4
Official Launch
Across all ATU campuses
Flag raising on each campus
In-person and live stream
Premier of ATU Virtual Choir’s Launch Song Tuesday, April 5 –
Higher Ed 4.0 Launch
Friday April 8
France Ireland Culinary Arts, Hospitality and Tourism (FICAHT) Forum
Events will be held on different ATU campuses
Killybegs Marine Cluster Launch Agtech in Action Creative Waves Project Sustainability Event Healthy Campus/Mental Health Awareness Event
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A Word from our Presidents Dr Brendan McCormack, President, IT Sligo When we first formed the CUA in 2012, we never thought that it would be such a long journey. And it has been a very worthwhile journey! We have taken the time to build trust and to learn more about each of our respective organisations and capabilities. We proceeded with mutual respect and recognition of our differences. This has led to very strong relationships and common understandings across 8 campuses of what type of technological university (TU) we want to establish. On this foundation, we will create a strong TU for the region that will make an immediate impact on the educational, economic, cultural and social landscape of the west, north-west and border region.
Mr Paul Hannigan, President, LYIT As we move towards the designation day and the celebration of the launch of ATU this reflects a huge amount of work by everyone in the three participating institutes to get us to this day. As we look to a very positive future we remember the work done by the founding fathers of these institutes 50 years ago to allow us to progress to this significant milestone. ATU is a hugely positive development for the region and we look forward to a very bright future
Dr Orla Fynn, President, GMIT and President Designate of ATU As we look back over the tremendous changes in the higher education landscape in Ireland over the last decade, and in particular our own journey as the Connacht-Ulster Alliance, we can rightly be proud as together we cross the threshold on 1 April and become ATU. We are looking forward very much to our launch and to the exciting journey ahead.”
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First Students to be enrolled in ATU Under the new Postgraduate Researcher Training Programme (PRTB) initiative, 15 PhD candidates are being enrolled to pursue individual doctorates but in the same discipline area. A call for applications has recently closed and it is expected that the first students will be enrolled in April or May.
Project awards will include: • A student stipend (tax-exempt) valued at €16,000 per annum • Annual waivers of postgraduate registration fees • Support for travel, consumables and dissemination expenses
The first PRTP to be established is called the Modelling and Computation for Health and Society (MOCHAS) PRTP. This is an exciting new interdisciplinary, cohort-based research training programme. It aims to produce highlevel, multidisciplinary research graduates who can develop, communicate, and exploit modelling tools for the solution of real-world problems relevant to societal needs.
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The individual research projects have been developed in tandem with external stakeholders including hospitals, local government and industry, and address problems encompassing environmental sustainability, zero-carbon transport planning, medical devices, and health technologies. The cohort of PhD scholars will share a common core training program which entails development of the discipline specific technical skills required for the project but also the soft skills in the areas of communication, visualization, cost analysis and innovation processes which are key to the successful exploitation and impact of modelling and computational tools. The plans to launch a second PRTP in the area of Operations and Supply Chain Management (OSCM) are also at an advanced stage of development with the recruitment call expected to be announced later this Spring. A further six PRTPs are also expected to be launched as part of the overall initiative.
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Upcoming ATU Conferences France Ireland Culinary Arts, Hospitality and Tourism (FICAHT) 7-8 April 2022 ATU Galway City campus will host the FICAHT Forum and Dairy Chef competition this April with the support of the French embassy. The FICAHT network brings together French and Irish Higher Education Institutions to deliver training in Culinary Arts, Hospitality and Tourism and to exchange good practices. It also encourages student mobility and apprenticeship, and develops EU-wide programmes through the Erasmus+ scheme Every year, members and partners meet and share good practices. The 1st and 3rd Forums took place in the Dublin Institute of Technology. The 2nd took place in the Lycée hôtelier of Biarritz and the 4th in Paris (CFA Médéric, Ferrandi and French Ministry of Higher Education). You can click here for more information and to register for the forum. You can also find out more on the French Embassy in Ireland’s website by clicking here.
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Dairy Chef Competition 6 April 2022 In addition to the FICHAT Forum, ATU Galway City campus will also host the Dairy Chef competition on Wednesday 6 April.
Launched in 2018, Dairy Chef is a competition for French and Irish students in culinary arts. The purpose of this friendly competition is to give students from both countries an opportunity to showcase the skills and knowledge learnt within their home institution. The competition is sponsored by the National Dairy Council of Ireland and its French equivalent, the Cniel. On the evening of Wednesday 6 April, ATU Galway City campus will host the annual ‘Goût de
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France’ dinner, where the prizes of the Dairy Chef competition will be awarded by the French Ambassador to Ireland, H. E. Vincent Guérend. Goût de France – also known as Good France – was inspired by world-renowned chef Alain Ducasse and the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Development, and is a celebration of France’s culinary traditions, values, and its long standing gastronomic authority.
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ATU DigitalEd Conference 3-6 May 2022 Building Digital Teaching and Learning Capabilities in Higher Education The DigitalEd annual conference hosted by Atlantic Technological University (ATU) and organised by ATU Teaching and Learning Office (Galway City) will take place from 3-6 May. It will include a series of keynote addresses exploring various hot topics such as teaching and learning experiences during the pandemic, assessment in the digital world, and the digital transformation journey in higher education. Workshops, information sessions, showcases, and a digital blitz will focus on a variety of teaching and learning themes to include assessment transformation, academic integrity, students as partners, digital badges,
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ePortfolios, online and flexible earning course design, student engagement, Universal Design for Learning (UDL), and technology enhanced tools. An iNOTE Project Symposium Day, scheduled for 3 May will kick off the week’s event and will be hosted by ATU Donegal Letterkenny. It will showcase each of the five work packages delivered under the iNOTE Project (2019-2022). The DigitalEd Conference is planned to be delivered in a hybrid format incorporating both virtual and on-site sessions for all ATU staff and partners and the wider higher education sector. More information will be made available in the coming weeks at: Digitaled.ie
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2nd Annual Research Sprint 18-20 May 2022
Last year IT Sligo held its first Research Sprint. The aim of the event was to support academic colleagues to develop their research careers and help postgraduate students to learn more about conducting research. It was organised by IT Sligo’s Future Digital Organisation Research (FDO) team, who are a multidisciplinary group of researchers across the Faculty of Business and Social Sciences. The event was held over three days. It included 13 workshops given by 16 colleagues who presented talks on various topics, from the
importance of ethics when conducting research to navigating NVivo and everything else in between. The Sprint was a great success, and this year to support its evolution the team applied and were successful in securing funding from the National Forum for Teaching and Learning. The event is open to everyone in the ATU. Colleagues can present workshops or attend sessions and it is an opportunity to build networks, share experiences and learn from each other.
Dr Valerie Taggart Going forward our vision for 2023 is to offer The Sprint nationally and in 2024 to offer the invite internationally. Adopting this phased approach to grow The Sprint into an international event allows us to address any issues and learn each year on how we can make The Sprint ‘a must’ on the academic researcher’s calendar. Part of this growth will also involve the publication of a quarterly journal on new advances in research in business and society. We hope to launch the first edition in January 2024.
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Killybegs Marine Cluster Launch April 11 2022 Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Charlie McConalogue will be in Killybegs on April 11 to launch the Killybegs Marine Cluster. The Cluster was established in 2021. It is one of twelve on the Island of Ireland and part of Enterprise Ireland’s National Clustering programme which is 100% funded under the Regional Technology Cluster Fund (RTCF). The Killybegs Marine Cluster is the only dedicated Blue Economy cluster on the Island and is unique in several ways: 1. The Killybegs Marine Cluster has organically developed from natural resources, with commercial fishing being the base industry. Due to the geographical position of Killybegs on the north-west coast of Ireland, the port provides easy access to the richest fishing grounds in Europe. Killybegs also has the highest and most sustained wind speeds in Europe. 2. Killybegs is internationally renowned for its marine engineering capabilities which are revered throughout Europe. 3. Killybegs Marine Cluster has a unique ecosystem given the proximity of the members who are all within 1 square kilometre of each other.
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The Cluster currently comprises of 20 members across a broad range of blue economy related industries, including but not limited to Commercial Fishing, Fish Processing, Aquaculture, Marine Engineering, Marine Services, Renewable Energies and Marine Tourism. You can find out more about the Killybegs Marine Cluster by clicking here. Karl Bonner, Killybegs Marine Cluster Manager
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Atlantic Technological University (ATU) will be one of the largest multicampus universities in Ireland, serving a diverse group of learners, staff, communities and organisations from our region and further afield.
Becoming Atlantic Technological University in 2022
