LIMERICK woman Linda O’Shea-Farren is running for election to become the first woman chancellor of the National University of Ireland in its 116-year history.
Linda is currently serving her fifth five-year term elected to the NUI Senate, which governs UCC, University of Galway, UCD, Maynooth University, and recognised colleges including the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland and the Institute of Public Administration.
Not only is the former Presentation Convent and Laurel Hill student running to become the first woman NUI Chancellor, she the second woman ever to vie for this role.
Linda says her bid for the chancellorship is based on her 22 years’ service to date on the NUI Senate and her legal, mediation, and public policy background.
The electorate for NUI Chancellor includes graduates of any NUI university and certain recognised colleges, including graduates of Limerick’s Mary Immaculate College (1975 to 1994) and NIHE and Thomond College (1976 to 1977).
The Limerick woman practiced law in London and New York, where founded the Irish American Bar Association to give free legal advice to Irish people living undocumented in the US.
Since her return to Ireland, Linda has held senior positions in law, government, finance, education, health, disability, and the arts.
Having campaigned for people with disabilities throughout her adult life, Linda was instrumental in getting Ireland’s first disability law on the statute books in 2005.
NUI graduates living anywhere in the world can request their voting papers via online form on nui.ie or bye mailing [email protected] before October 9.
