Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Tuesday, 13 June 2023

Joint Committee On Children, Equality, Disability, Integration And Youth

Challenges Facing Women Accessing Education, Leadership and Political Roles: Discussion

Ms Vivienne Glanville:

If we look at the model we have in Women's Collective Ireland, in some of the projects we have from first steps to third level. That is our mantra. We champion the first steps programmes, but if women look to progress and want to take those steps, we are there to offer them. One of the models we have is the outreach model with the universities. We have partnered with UCD an the South East Technological University, SETU, in Waterford and Wexford. The universities have offered us outreach opportunities. We are looking outside the box. The lecturer comes to the community where people live, rather than 40 students all travelling to the campus. The same information is going to be given in the lectures. One person travels rather than many. That is the model that we have been using and it is working extremely well in Clondalkin. Deputy Ward has probably seen many of our graduations. The same is true in Waterford. The course is the women and gender studies, level 7.