Limerick academic secures top appointment

MARY IMMACULATE College academic Dr Rosemary Day has been appointed to a high-profile position within the Higher Education Authority (HEA).

It was a good day for Dr Day as her appointment to the board of directors of the Higher Education Authority (HEA) was announced by Minister Simon Harris, who is at the Department of Further and Higher Education.

The HEA exists to lead the development of the Irish higher education and research system.

Dr Day is the head of the Department of Media and Communications Studies at the college, and has nearly 30 years experience as a senior lecturer and third level manager.

She has previously served as a member of the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland and a co-ordinating director of the National Audio Research Centre.

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Dr Day founded Raidió na Life, a station for Irish speakers in Dublin, and Wired 99.9FM which is staffed by students of Mary Immaculate College.

Speaking following her appointment, she said: "I am keen to get started. As an academic in a smaller institution outside of Dublin, I will bring the concerns and needs of students and staff beyond the Pale to the table. I am particularly keen to promote alternative routes to education for individuals who are marginalised by geography, age, gender, socio-economic background, race, language and the many other difficulties that are often grouped together under the banner of ‘Equality, Diversity, Inclusion and Interculturalism’. I believe in education for all and I also believe in developing the wider range of intelligences that we have as humans, beyond the traditional academic university courses we currently offer.”

Dr Day’s research interests include community media, minority media, and media participation and democracy.

She is currently writing a book on the history of Irish radio and collaborating with universities across Europe in mapping the role of media in democracy and investigating ways of future proofing pathways to strengthen democracy.