While the blog goes on summer vacation, we’ll spend the coming weeks sharing past blog posts about how City Connects helps students thrive.
This week’s roundup looks at the latest news about City Connects in Dublin, Ireland.
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Launching the National Centre for City Connects Ireland
May 30, 2024
We’re excited to announce that today is the official launch date of the National Centre for City Connects Ireland (NCCCI), which will be based at Mary Immaculate College (MIC) in Limerick.
The new National Centre will enable staff at Mary Immaculate College to provide local technical and research support to Dublin’s City Connects schools and allow City Connects to scale in Ireland.
The City Connects pilot program in Dublin’s North East Inner City was implemented in 10 schools in the fall of 2020, thanks to the work of City Connects staff and Irish educators.
“These schools are part of the national Delivering Equality of Opportunity in Schools (DEIS) program, which serves students who are designated as being at risk of educational disadvantage and social exclusion,” according to a Boston College news story.
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The news from Ireland
June 22, 2023
City Connects has made the news in Ireland, where our model is being implemented in 10 schools in Dublin’s North East Inner City.
“For the pupils and teachers at St Vincent’s Boys’ Infant School in Dublin, a change is under way,” an article from Raidió Teilifís Éireann, Ireland’s National Public Service Media, reports.
“Where once the school struggled with high absentee levels, particularly on Mondays and Fridays, attendance rates are now rising, with the boys reporting feeling happier coming to school.
“It is a change that School Principal Caoimhe Sheehan puts down to the introduction of a pilot project called City Connects.”
Sheehan herself says, “The boys are coming to school every day so excited about the different activities they can access.
“We have capoeira (mixed martial arts), gymnastics, athletics, football. Since the activities have been brought in, the absentee levels have dropped. It has been absolutely incredible.”
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By the numbers: City Connects in Dublin, Ireland
January 26, 2023
City Connects is in its third year of operations in Ireland, where it’s running in Dublin’s North East Inner City (NEIC), an area with high concentrations of students who live in poverty.
Since then, the program has brought new services, supports, and enrichment programs to students. Here’s a by-the-numbers look at what has been accomplished, drawn from NEIC’s 2022 Progress Report.
• 1,604 students
• in 10 schools
• received a total of 7,749 referrals.
• 90 community agencies provided services and enrichments.
• The Multi-Disciplinary Team made 437 referrals that led to “1,055 intervention sessions delivered in Speech and Language Therapy, Occupational Therapy and psychology. These direct referrals have reduced waiting times for these children to receive the supports they need.”
