Cllr Rena Donaghey elected Deputy Chairperson of Donegal ETB

Cllr Donal Coyle has been elected Chairperson of Donegal Education and Training Board, with Cllr Rena Donaghey elected Deputy Chairperson.

They replace outgoing Chairperson Cllr Michael McBride and outgoing Deputy Chairperson Patsy McVicar.

“It’s a great honour for me to be elected Chairperson of Donegal ETB, Cllr Coyle said. “Coming from a rural area, it’s a great opportunity that has come my way and it’s great you’ve put your trust in me. Donegal ETB plays a huge roll, not alone in society but in the whole education sector of the county and in the economy as well.

“We’re very lucky to have a great administrative staff led by Chief Executive Anne McHugh and her team; the teaching and ancillary staff of the schools and the great strides made in recent years in the Further Education and Training Service are excellent. I’m hoping to see progress this year on the new school building for Errigal College and the three-school campus in Buncrana and I look forward to the challenge and to a successful year as the Chair.”

The Board of Donegal ETB is made up of 12 elected representatives, two staff, two parents, two local industry and three sectoral interest representatives. The other elected representatives include Cllr Michael McBride, Cllr Barry Sweeny, Cllr Martin Harley, Cllr Albert Doherty, Cllr Gary Doherty, Cllr John O Donnell, Cllr Martin Farren, Cllr Noreen McGarvey, Cllr Terry Crossan and Cllr John Sheamais Ó Fearraigh.

Staff representatives are Joanne Donaghy and Barry Molloy, while parents’ representatives are Geoffrey Browne and Lorraine Doherty.

The remaining five representatives are Ms Lorraine Thompson (Donegal Youth Service) representing Youth Work Ireland, Patsy McVicar representing the National Association of Principals and Deputy Principals (NAPD), Regina Grant representing the Disability Federation of Ireland and industry representatives Dr Conor McTiernan (lecturer, ATU) representing the Irish Hospitality Institute and Gerard Grant (Tata Consultancy Services) representing IBEC.

“I would like to congratulate Cllr Donal Coyle and Cllr Rena Donaghey on their election as Chairperson and Deputy Chairperson of Donegal ETB,” Donegal ETB Chief Executive Anne McHugh said. “As we enter the third year of our Strategy Statement, I am looking forward to working with our new Chair and Deputy Chairperson as we strive to realise our goals and objectives which we know will make a positive difference to our communities in Donegal.”

The Chief Executive also welcomed two new members to the Board – Dr Conor McTiernan, who was nominated by the Irish Hospitality Institute to represent the hospitality sector (lecturer, ATU) and Cllr Terry Crossan who replaces Cllr Noel Jordan who has stepped down.

Donegal ETB is the largest education and training provider in the county. Along with its extensive Further Education and Training (FET) Service,15 of the 27 post-primary schools in Donegal come under the patronage of Donegal ETB and it is a co-patron/trustee for a further eight Community and Comprehensive schools.

The ETB also provides outdoor education and training at its centre at Gartan, along with music education and has legal responsibilities for youth work.