‘Deeply unfair’ - Kilkenny senator questions closure of Carlow college
Circumstances surrounding the college’s closure and transfer of lands to SETU have been under increasing scrutiny in recent days
Kilkenny-based senator, Patricia Stephenson has criticised the handling of the closure of Carlow College, describing it as “deeply unfair” and calling urgently for full transparency.
Speaking following a meeting of the Joint Oireachtas Committee for Further and Higher Education, Senator Stephenson said the evidence heard raised serious questions about both the process and impact of the decision.
“The more I hear about how this has been handled, the more concerned I am,” she said. “Staff and students have been left carrying the burden of decisions made behind closed doors, with little explanation and even less certainty about what comes next.”
“We heard that staff were working alongside SETU colleagues to develop future courses because they believed a merger was progressing. They planned for the next academic year in good faith, only to receive news of impending redundancies late in the evening with virtually no notice.”
“That is simply not how people should be treated. We continue to hear from Carlow College and SETU that this process was designed to protect learners - this does not reflect reality. Psychology and social care places in the region are being significantly reduced,” she added.
The removal of the college’s liberal arts offering without any local alternatives have also caused concern about diversity of education in the region while the senator criticised the situation of some students’ course plans being disrupted for the coming year.
“Mature students accepted CAO offers, left jobs and planned their futures around studying in Carlow this September," she outlined. “Some now have no course to attend. Students with disabilities, who cannot easily travel elsewhere, have been particularly disadvantaged with no way to travel to colleges further from their homes.”
“During the Committee hearing, I called for the publication of the external risk report that appears to have changed the direction of the proposed merger. If SETU, Carlow College and the Department for Further and Higher Education supported a merger before that report, then the public deserves to understand what changed.”
“Government cannot simply point to institutional autonomy and step back. Students, staff and the wider South East deserve leadership, transparency and immediate action to protect higher education in our region,” she concluded.
Article funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme