Conor Sheehan (Limerick City, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context

938. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if Marino Institute of Education will be brought under the auspices of the Higher Education Authority like all other ITE providers; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33709/25]

Conor Sheehan (Limerick City, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context

939. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the steps his Department will take to implement the recommendations of the Sahlberg report on the structure of teacher education in Ireland in respect of the integration of Marino Institute of Education with the Higher Education Authority; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33710/25]

James Lawless (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

I propose to take Questions Nos. 938 and 939 together.

Marino Institute of Education (MiE) may be open to applying for the title of “designated institution of higher education” once the relevant provisions in the Higher Education Authority Act 2022 have been commenced. This designation would bring MiE under the governance oversight of the HEA.

When the Higher Education Authority Act 2022 was commenced, sixteen higher education institutions were automatically designated as “designated institutions of higher education”. The automatically designated institutions of higher education are the seven traditional universities, the technological universities, the institutes of technology, the National College of Art and Design and the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland. All of these institutions were established or recognised under legislation and were previously designated under the Higher Education Authority Act 1971.

The Higher Education Authority Act 2022 also provides for a designation by order process which allows other higher education institutions, including private and not-for-profit higher education institutions, to apply for designation. However, these provisions have not yet been commenced. Work has commenced on developing the designation by order process, including consideration of the conditions for designation for inclusion in regulations to be prescribed by the Minister under the Act.

This is a complex process, involving liaison with the Higher Education Authority, Quality and Qualifications Ireland and other stakeholders to ensure the new designation process fits seamlessly within the higher education system. Once the designation by order process is fully developed, the relevant provisions of the HEA Act will commence and the designation by order regulations will be prescribed. It will then be open to MiE to apply for designation by order under the legislation.

It is noted that for the specific recommendations of the Sahlberg report on the structure of teacher education, it would be for the Minister of Education and Youth to consider and progress these recommendations.