Margaret Murphy O'Mahony (Cork South West, Fianna Fail)
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155. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills his plans to ensure that the Bachelor of Arts in the visual arts programme being run on Sherkin Island in west Cork is maintained in view of the fact that there is an issue with funding which has placed the programme in jeopardy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47798/17]

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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The position generally is that my Department allocates recurrent funding to the Higher Education Authority (HEA) for direct disbursement to the HEA designated higher education institutions. The HEA allocates this funding as a block grant to the institutions. As autonomous bodies, the internal disbursement of this funding, along with any funding it receives from private sources, is a matter for the individual institution.

However, the course referred to by the Deputy is being delivered by Dublin Institute of Technology (DIT) in partnership with the Sherkin Island Development Society (SIDS). This partnership has meant that DIT provides the academic input, with lectures taking place in Sherkin by video link, while SIDS has provided the administrative assistance and facilities to ensure the smooth running of the programme and support for students on site in Sherkin. 

I understand that SIDS has informed DIT that the funding it receives from Cork County Council is not guaranteed for this year and therefore it is not possible to commit to continuing this course for new entrants. However DIT has committed that the cohort of students currently on the programme will continue to graduation and students have been informed that this commitment is guaranteed under the policy for Protection of Enrolled Learners (PEL) in DIT.