Former Portlaoise school student awarded valuable bursary

A Portlaoise CBS past-pupil has won a bursary for €1,500 per year for the duration of his studies in third level.

Jack Spillane, 19, is in his first year studying English Literature and Drama at Trinity College Dublin. He is one of three recipients of the 2022 Gerard Byrne Bursary for third level students who are blind or vision impaired. The bursary is award by the NCBI, Ireland's sight loss organisation which works for people with sight loss.

Now in its sixth year, the Bursary has been awarded to 17 students to date. The courses and careers being pursued by people with sight loss are wide and varied and include business, STEM, education, politics and more. T

The Gerard Byrne Bursary consists of an annual grant for these undergraduate students who are blind or vision impaired and who are studying on a full-time basis at a recognised educational institution in the Republic of Ireland. 

This year’s bursaries were presented to the students at a ceremony in NCBI Tallaght, Dublin 24 by John Kearney CEO of National Council for Special Education. 

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Mr Kearney said: “I am delighted to have the opportunity to present these three exceptional students with the Gerard Byrne Bursary awards this year and I wish them all the best in their future studies and career. Increasing the number of people who are blind or vision impaired in third level education is essential, and these bursaries from NCBI go a long way in supporting students each year. We all recognise the value of education in successfully achieving employment and any opportunity to support students in education is essentially supporting their future potential and careers.”

Toni O’Dwyer, National Services Manager for the Children and Young People Team, added: “We wish John, Maya and Rafiat the best of luck in the coming years and we are delighted to be involved with their journey. NCBI is funding the Gerard Byrne Bursary for its sixth year because we are all too aware of the appetite for young people who are blind or vision impaired to continue their education into third level. Increased representation of people who are blind or vision impaired in education and employment is something NCBI will continue to champion. It is so important that we support anyone with sight loss who wishes to progress in education so that they can thrive in all aspects of life, with the same opportunities as a sighted person.”

Across the education sector, blind and vision-impaired people make up just 1.8% of students with disabilities and represent the smallest single grouping of students with disabilities studying at third level (AHEAD, 2020). In reviewing the longer-term trends, in the last 10 years, the numbers of students with sensory disabilities has grown at less than half of the rate of students with disabilities more generally (AHEAD, 2020).

The other recipients for 2022 were Maya Flynn from Co Wicklow and Rafiat Agbona from Newbridge in Kildare.