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Education Minister John O'Dowd has officially opened a new Play Area at St Patrick's Primary School in The Meadow, Newry.
Speaking after the event, the Minister said: “Play is a central element of learning in the early years. Children benefit greatly from playing outdoors in the fresh air during school hours – it energises and stimulates them and complements and enhances their learning in the classroom.
“This new play area at St Patrick’s Primary School is covered so that the children can enjoy it in all weathers, all year round. It also comes after the completion of other recent works at the school, funded by my Department, representing a total investment of almost £65,000.”
The Minister added: “I commend the school Principal, Governors and all the teaching and non-teaching staff for their ongoing commitment to educating local children and wish them well for the future.”
Other guests at the opening included Bishop McAreavey who blessed the £27,000 facility and Daire Hughes, Mayor, Newry and Mourne District Council.
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St Joseph's Boys' High School, Newry certainly have a lot to be proud of and yesterday the 18th of December will be long remembered by all those associated with the school as they secured their first ever Ulster Colleges trophy by winning the under-16 Faul Cup.
They defeated the Belfast side Colaiste Feirste, who narrowly secured a victory against St Joseph’s in last year’s final. This year, it was hard win that took a massive whole-squad effort to come out on top following extra time. With both teams nervous in the early exchange it was St. Joseph’s who settled the quickest but struggled to turn the early domination into scores. In a low scoring half St. Joseph’s lead 0-3 to 0-1.
St. Joseph’s were dealt a hammer blow on the restart when a speculative Colaiste Feirste high ball found its way into the net. Those who feared that this would signal a change in momentum need not have worried because if anything the setback seemed to spur on the St. Joseph’s lads who raised their game and rallied, showing some excellent defensive work and build up play which lead to a series of majestic scores being registered by the hard working and industrious forwards. Colaiste Feirste registered another goal but again St Joseph’s regrouped, resulting in Ryan McAleavy dispatching the ball into the back of the net to raise the green flag. With the finish line in sight, Colaiste Feirste where not going to relinquish their title easily and dug in deep to battle back. Their resilience was rewarded with fortuitous penalty goal in the dying moments of regulation time. With the penalty dispatched St. Joseph’s mounted one last attack but could not muster the required point and so it ended 1-8 to 3-2.
So to extra time, and again St. Joseph’s were the dominant side overall with their superior fitness and desire for a historic first title helped them to push on and register a final score victory of 1-13 to 3-4. The unbridled spirit, tenacity and team effort that shone through from each and every player is testament to the ‘never-give-up’ attitude of St Joseph’s High school. This phenomenal team success will undoubtedly reverberate for a long time and the pride of staff, pupils, families and the extended school community will live long in the hearts of all associated with St Joseph’s!
Team: Aaron Osbourne, Cathal O’Reilly, Patrick O’Reilly, Caomhan Boyle, Niall Magill (0-1), Padie Magee (0-1), Micháel Dillon (0-1), Caolan Marron (0-1f), Conor Magee, Turlough Marks (0-4-1f), Cathail Byrne (0-1), Eoin Flynn (0-1), Sean Sands, Ryan McAleavey (1-3)
Subs used: Ryan Gorman for Cathail Byrne, Stephen O’Connor for Conor Magee (both in normal time). Keelan O’Reilly for Ryan McAleavy, Cathail Byrne for Eoin Flynn, Joe Mc Conville for Sean Sands (extra time)
For more images see www.stjosephsnewry.com
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An announcement from NUI Galway that they will be increasing their intake of students from the North of Ireland has been welcomed by SDLP MLA Dominic Bradley.
The pilot scheme will reserve 200 places across 50 undergraduate programmes for students currently preparing their A-Levels and hoping to enter university in September 2015.
Mr Bradley said: “This scheme marks a great opportunity for A-Level students hoping to advance to higher education this autumn. There is currently a surprisingly low number of students from the North studying in the South compared to the numbers travelling to Britain to study.
“Currently the points system of the Republic’s Central Applications Office makes little allowance for those studying A-Levels. While top level students in the South may earn between 500 and 600 points, 80% of students in the North will only sit 3 A-Levels, limiting them to a maximum of 450 points. This scheme will examine a student’s 3 best A-Level results and offer places to applicants who rank highest.
“The announcement is of special significance in light of an expected reduction in the number of university spaces available in the North next year following proposed cuts in the draft budget. I commend NUI Galway for pioneering this scheme which I’m sure will prove successful and mutually beneficial. I hope it will inspire other institutions in the South to examine the allowances that they make for A-Level students who would jump at the chance to continue their education in Ireland.”
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Many Local primary schools took part in the annual Science Week at St Joseph’s High School in Newry.
Science Week gives pupils a chance to take a hands-on approach to learning about Physics, Chemistry and Biology.
Schools that participated included St Patrick’s PS, St Ronan’s PS and St Mary’s PS Barr.
Great praise was given to all the staff and pupils involved for their tremendous enthusiasm, engagement and participation.
See www.stjosephsnewry.com for more
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Students from Newry schools including the SCR recently attended a performance of the hard hitting play Popping Candy along with Deirdre Magill, Southern Health and Social Care Trust (SCSCT) and Patricia Hamilton, Policing Community Safety Partnership (PCSP)
The hard-hitting, compelling drama exploring the complex and controversial issues surrounding drug use, to a capacity audience of pupils aged 16+ from secondary schools across the District. Councillor Andy Moffett Chair of the PCSP said “the PCSP is aware that drugs known as legal highs are available to young people today and they are often not aware of the physical and mental dangers they may pose. The play illustrates this in an engaging and educative manner"
The play, by Patricia Downey and presented by Spanner In The Works Theatre Company, shines a spotlight on the mental health problems facing our young people today, by following the lives of four young people living away from home for the first time. It also highlights how readily drugs and alcohol are available to young people - no matter what their class, gender, age, or where they live. The play was followed by a question and answer opportunity for pupils.
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Plumbing apprentices Shane Branagan and Gary Doyle from Southern Regional College have started the final stage in getting a dream trip to Brazil.
Gary from Ballyward and Shane from Hilltown are the final two competitors in the selection process to be the UK Worldskills Plumbing representative at the World Skills competition, which will take place in Sao Paulo, Brazil in August. Worldskills is held every two years and in 2015 it will be held in Brazil. Worldskills showcase the skills of young people and over one-thousand 18-25 year olds across the globe compete in over 40 skills events ranging from Aircraft Maintenance and Beauty Therapy to Web Design and Welding.
Gary, who is employed by Kieran Trainor Plumbing and Heating, and Shane who works for Martin Johnston Plumbing and Heating, have defeated competitors from across England, Scotland and Wales and now go head-to-head to see who will go forward to Brazil.
This is the first time that two competitors from Northern Ireland have made it through to this stage of the selection process for Plumbing and what makes it more unique, is that both are from the same College. Tutor Ronnie Ferris stated “This is a credit to the hard work and dedication that both Gary and Shane have put in over the past three years since joining the College. They also require the help of their employers Kieran and Martin for their support and understanding, as quite a lot of time is involved training and travelling.”
Gary and Shane have won numerous competitions and awards at both local and national level since they commenced their apprenticeships and they now go to Brazil and Germany for two-weeks intensive training with the Brazilian and German squads as this is part of the final elimination process. There will be further training events over the coming months one of which will take place at the SRC Greenbank campus in March, before a decision is reached in May.
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Around the World Through Sport is a programme delivered to local schools by the Good Relations Section at Newry and Mourne District Council.
Over 20 young people from Kingsmills, Silverbridge and Whitecross took part. This programme was funded by the Office of the First and Deputy First Minister and introduced young people to some of the different cultures and identities that exist in N. Ireland today through the medium of sport.
Young people took part in a range of sports including hurling, basketball and soccer, as well as an Anti Racism awareness session. They also enjoyed a tour of Croke Park and a rugby match in the RDS stadium in Dublin. The overall aim of this programme was to consider the powerful role that sport has to play in promoting good relations, connecting communities from diverse backgrounds, embracing cultural diversity and facilitating community cohesion at a local level.
The Mayor of Newry and Mourne, Councillor Daire Hughes, awarded participants with certificates at a community event in Kingsmills last week and said ‘in addition to the programme itself, the significance of bringing together young people from Kingsmills, Silverbridge and Whitecross cannot be under-estimated. It is something we should all be proud of, it is a tribute to how far we have come and it is an important step towards our shared future’. The Mayor also acknowledged the key role that the three youth groups and partner organisations including the PSNI and SELB played in making ‘Around the World through Sport’ a success.
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Three former Newry school pupils were among the recipients of DCU McAleese Scholarships named in honour of former President of Ireland, Mary McAleese and Chancellor of DCU, Dr Martin McAleese.
Ellen McConville and Emma Begley former pupils of Our Lady's Grammar School and Keelin Murdock former pupil of Abbey Grammar School were some of the early benefactors of the awards.
Dublin City University (DCU) have just launched the second round of McAleese Scholarships that aim to encourage students from the north to study at the Dublin-based university.
Up to 40 scholarships will be made available to NI students who apply to DCU through the Central Applications Office (CAO) for the academic year 2015/16. The scholarships will allow successful applicants to gain one of 40 additional places across more than 60 DCU undergraduate degree programmes as well as receiving a €1000 scholarship.
The scholarship scheme was launched in 2014 and aims to address the low level of NI students being admitted to universities in the South - currently only 1% of the student population. As the vast majority of NI A-level students take only three A-levels, these students find themselves at a disadvantage under the current CAO scoring system where only a student with four A*s can score maximum points. This means that students with excellent results in three A-levels will find themselves with scores well below the requirement for many programmes at some Irish universities.
Speaking at the announcement of the second round of scholarships, Mary and Martin McAleese said “It is a great honour to be connected with this innovative scheme which endeavours to create a level playing field for students from Northern Ireland who may wish to study at DCU. The scholarships highlight DCU’s commitment to engagement with young people from all parts of the island of Ireland and re-affirm its collaboration in the creation of the Eastern Corridor from Liffey to Lagan.”
Commenting on the awards Ellen McConville, a former student at Our Lady’s Grammar, Newry who received a 2014 Scholarship said “The McAleese Scholarship was a great boost for me coming to DCU. It has a straightforward application process and it’s a great opportunity for any student from Northern Ireland wishing to study in DCU. It definitely confirmed for me that I had made the correct choice in choosing DCU as a university. I also think that the McAleese scholarship highlights DCU’s outreach to students from Northern Ireland.”
The McAleese Scholarships were developed following engagement by DCU with schools and career teachers in Northern Ireland who reported that the current points allocation mechanisms can act as a barrier to A-level students wishing to study in the South. The scholarships are intended as an interim solution to address current imbalances while the Irish Universities Association Task Group on Reform of University Selection and Entry addresses this issue at a sectoral level.
The McAleese scholarships will be awarded on the basis of three A-levels only, with a minimum requirement of 2 ‘A’ and 1 ‘B’ grades. Ten scholarships will be available per faculty, with a maximum of three in any one programme offering. Applicants must meet DCU minimum entry requirements and specific programme requirements. Candidates will also be asked to create a short personal statement that will be used in the event of equal grade ranking of candidates.
The closing date for applications through the Central Applications Office (CAO) is 1st May 2015. To make an application through CAO, visit www.cao.ie.
To apply for the McAleese Scholarships, visit www.dcu.ie/mcaleesescholarship. For further information on applications and entry requirements, visit www.dcu.ie/registry/undergrad.shtml or contact Georgina Roberts, DCU Registry, tel: 00 353 1 700 8995 or email: georgina.roberts@dcu.ie.
For further information on undergraduate programmes, facilities and for campus tours, contact studenthelp@dcu.ie
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Year 12 pupils from St Joseph's Boys' High School in Newry have planted trees around the grounds of their school to commemorate their time and experiences at the school over the last five years.
Project coordinator, Mr Brendan Fearon, explained that the trees are symbolic of the pupils’ growth and development during their post-primary education whilst also recognising the important nurture, support and care they received from staff along the way.
He thanked the Woodland Trust for their assistance in the project and explained that the trees would be an ever present reminder of the pupils for many more years to come. For more images: www.stjosephsnewry.com
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