Almost 100 students and staff at Carlow College Saint Patrick’s staged a lunchtime protest at the college today to highlight the ongoing uncertainty surrounding the college’s future prior to its widely expected handover to SETU in under two years’ time.
Stef Hanlon, who is a lecturer in Social, Political and Community Studies at Carlow College, called on Higher Education Minister James Lawless (FF) and Carlow-based Minister of State Jennifer Murnane O’Connor (FF), to directly address students and staff and to clarify what lies ahead.
Jay Kenny, who is a Third Year Arts & Humanities student at Carlow College, spoke to KCLR News following this afternoon’s protest and underlined the college’s personal and social significance to both him and successive generations of students.
The protest, which was organised by the Carlow College Staff Action Group, calling for greater transparency regarding the decisions that led to the college’s scheduled closure in 2028 and subsequent handover to South East Technological University (SETU).
Read more here: End of an era for Carlow College
This followed SETU’s decision, following a Freedom of Information (FOI) request, not to fully release the Mazars consultants’ report that informed the decision to close Carlow College.
This afternoon’s protest was addressed by Carlow College lecturers Steph Hanlon, Dr John McHugh and Dr Regina Donlon, along with students Jay Kenny and Dermot Commins.
Funded by the News Reporting Scheme with thanks to Coimisiún na Meán.
