Michael McBride elected Chairperson of Donegal ETB with Patsy McVicar deputy

Cllr Michael McBride was elected Chairperson of Donegal Education and Training Board (ETB) on Monday morning, with Patsy McVicar elected Deputy Chairperson.

They replace outgoing Chairperson Cllr Barry Sweeny and outgoing Deputy Chairperson Cllr Martin Harley.

“I would like to thank the members here this morning for electing me,” Cllr McBride said. “It’s something that I’m passionate about. I do really enjoy the education sector. The delivery of school facilities that are fit for purpose will be a major goal for us as a committee in 2023. We have to support the staff and students in all our ETB schools.

“I also look forward to working with our FET Service as they work to develop skills that are very much needed around the county and I would encourage continued cooperation between the FET Service and ATU to meet local industry needs as it’s of great benefit to our communities. We have many centres who work to deliver classes around the county and I would encourage FET to continue funding and supporting these courses.

“I would like to thank all the members of the Audit and Risk Committee and Finance Committee and we look forward to working together to drive forward the best possible package that we can in 2023.”

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 27post-primary schools in the county 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. The Board of Donegal ETB is made up of twelve elected representatives, two staff, two parents, two local industry and three sectoral interest representatives.

The other elected representatives include Cllr Barry Sweeny, Cllr Martin Harley, Cllr Albert Doherty, Cllr Gary Doherty, Cllr Rena Donaghey, Cllr John O Donnell, Cllr Martin Farren, Cllr Donal Coyle, Cllr Noreen McGarvey, Cllr Noel Jordan 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 Brian McDermott (Chef) representing the Irish Hospitality Institute and Gerard Grant (Tata Consultancy Services) representing IBEC.

“I would like to congratulate Cllr Michael McBride and Patsy McVicar on their election as Chairperson and Deputy Chairperson of Donegal ETB,” Donegal ETB Chief Executive Anne McHugh said. “As we enter the second 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.”