THE EDUCATION Minister was in Limerick this past week to launch the National Centre for City Connects Ireland (NCCI) at Mary Immaculate College.
The NCCI aims to establish a school-based system of intervention for marginalised children from its base in Mary Immaculate College (MIC).
The City Connects programme is designed, developed, and delivered in partnership with schools and services, and was originally established at the Mary E Walsh Center for Thriving Children in Boston College.
The NCCI programme aims to meet the needs of children living in areas that are at the risk of educational disadvantage or poverty, addressing the out-of-school challenges impacting children’s ability to succeed in school.
Launching the programme, Education Minister Norma Foley said that, based off the successful City Connects pilot programme in Dublin, the Limerick project “does not target specific students or groups of students within a school. City Connects is for all students.”
“The work of this centre will examine how City Connects could be extended to other comparative areas experiencing disadvantage to support children and young people.”
MIC president Professor Eugene Wall welcomed the launch of the project, saying that the college is “privileged to be involved as the national lead implementation partner on City Connects Ireland”.
“Social justice is deeply ingrained in our mission and underpins many projects that MIC is engaging in. City Connects has been hugely successful for Boston College and it is very gratifying to see how it can translate to the Irish context.”
