PATRICK KELLEHER

In his evidence to the Wyse Committee (1835-1838), which had campaigned for the establishment of a Munster College, Dr. Denis Brenan Bullen, then a lecturer in Chemistry at the Royal Institution and later a more controversial figure at Queen's College Cork, wrote:

" I do not know of any city where there is greater anxiety for really useful knowledge than in Cork. I attribute it very much to the domestic habits of Cork people who are fond of staying at home in the evening and reading; and to the existence of the Cork Library which I think has been a great advantage, and also to the existence of the Cork Institution library so that they therefore had a very ample supply of books, and made good use of them."

The spirit of the Royal Cork Institution was embodied in Queen's College Cork and in the Schools of Art & Design, Music, Science and Commerce, which followed before the end of the century. In 1901 the City of Cork Technical Instruction Committee was formed leading to a major advance in technical and vocational education with the opening of the Crawford Municipal Technical Institute in 1912. The Institute offered tuition in a very wide range of subjects in Engineering and Science.

Students included some from Queen's College Cork who attended practical courses with the support of the President, Sir Bertram Windle. The City of Cork Vocational Education Committee was established in 1930 and later collaboration between the Institute and UCC included the establishment of a Diploma in Chemical Technology at the Institute in 1941. The 1960's heralded a new era for Ireland leading to expansion in Education. An early sign of the emergence of a new third level technological sector was the appointment by Cork VEC of the first formally designated teacher of technology to take responsibility for the Diploma in Chemical Technology at the Crawford Institute. The person appointed was Pat Kelleher.

Pat Kelleher was born in Limerick City in 1939 where he received his primary and secondary education. His father, a Garda, died while he was young and Pat's mother was a formative influence on his life. He became a student at University College Galway where he graduated with first class honours in Chemistry in 1961. He subsequently undertook research at Imperial College London and the State University of New York at Buffalo before returning to Ireland to take up the teaching appointment at the Crawford Institute in 1963. It was a comparatively lonely furrow at that time but Pat Kelleher's sense of purpose and quiet determination ensured that close collaboration with industry led to curriculum development as well as work placement which served the needs of students and enhanced their prospects for employment. One of his strong characteristics as a teacher was a continuing interest in his students and the careers they followed.

He was active on the Cork Scientific Council and involved nationally as an Examiner for the Department of Education and the NCEA. He was appointed Head of the Department of Chemistry and Biology at the Crawford Institute in 1973 and on its incorporation in 1976 into the newly established Cork Regional Technical College, he became Head of the School of Applied Sciences. In that capacity and later as Assistant Principal of the College he drew on his contacts with industry for support in winning recognition for full degree programmes from national authorities and more established educational institutions.

He was appointed Principal of the College in 1988 and in 1993 managed its transition to an autonomous institution incorporating the Crawford School of Art and Design and the Cork College of Music. Pat Kelleher became the first Director of the newly constituted Cork Institute of Technology in 1997.

We honour him today, not only as the Director of an Institute of Technology with deep historical roots but also as a distinguished representative of an entire sector.

The role of the Institutes of Technology in facilitating social and economic development by extending access to educational opportunity at third level across the country is one of the success stories of modern Ireland. Pat Kelleher has been part of this story from the beginning sharing the monumental task of managing rapid growth with limited infrastructure. He has brought to the technological sector the best traditions and high standards of his own institution. He is a strong advocate of collaborative endeavour and a believer in the virtues of a binary structure for higher education. As Director of the largest Regional Technical College in the country he shared the expectations of its staff and students for greater national recognition and led the successful battle for Institute status. This was tough at times and the courage and dignity he showed in coping with the external pressures and internal stresses involved were greatly admired.

The Institute he now leads has some 5000 full-time students, 2000 engineering and catering apprentices and 6,500 part-time students. Its teaching, social and sporting facilities are highly developed. Its programmes have wide recognition and are in demand. The balance achieved in the range of programmes offered is particularly noteworthy. A strong central core of Engineering and Science is complemented by courses in Business and Humanities. The structure of programmes is such that a ladder of opportunity extends from courses that facilitate access through Certificate, Diploma and Degree qualifications to Master and Ph.D degrees. The commitment of the Institute to craft skills is exceptional and the quality of the training provided is reflected in the repeated success of the Institute's apprentices in international competitions, so much so that it has been said that Cork can claim to being the craftiest city in Ireland!

The reputation of the Cork Institute of Technology does not rest on education and training alone. It has an excellent record in Research and Development with industry-oriented work being a natural focus for its activities. Its record in co-ordinating EU research programmes is unique within the technological sector and its staff have also won significant research contracts under national programmes and industry led projects. A measure of its national standing in postgraduate research is that in 1997 it accounted over one quarter of all postgraduates undertaking theses registered with the National Council for Educational Awards. The Institute is seen as a major resource of technical expertise and training which is responsive to the needs of the community. Substantial interactions with UCC include a degree in Biomedical Science, the Programme for Research at Third Level and a joint initiative to establish a college on the north side of Cork City.

The Director of this very successful Institute is a remarkably modest man who is quick to deflect the credit for its accomplishments to others. He is justly proud of its staff and students and what has been achieved. His honesty in approaching issues and his sense of public duty has won the trust and loyalty of all who have worked closely with him. He recognises that education is for individuals and brings to his role an understanding and concern for the needs of each individual student and each individual member of staff. He is respected by his peers at national level where his selfless approach and quiet but determined style has again proved very effective. The national computing network linking the institutes of technology, ITNET, is managed by the Cork Institute. He chairs the committee which sets internal audit standards for the technological sector and also has had a significant national role on behalf of the Council of Directors in negotiating terms of service for staff in the sector.

Pat Kelleher's life has been his work and his family. He is married to Sheila, a native speaker from Ballingeary, Co Cork. They have two sons, Liam an electrical engineer and Fergal a doctor, and a daughter Eileen who is a software engineer. Pat is a regular tennis player and a serious but avid reader who has been known on occasion to be almost lost on his way to work - in a newspaper!

His handwriting is reputed to be indecipherable to all at the Institute apart from his very essential secretary Ann O'Mahoney.

In his application for the post of Principal of Cork Regional Technical College, which had to be deciphered some twelve years ago, Pat Kelleher concluded:

"The most important requirement, however, is a vision of the College and its future and the determination to make it happen."

It is apparent from the success of the Cork Institute of Technology that Pat Kelleher had both the vision and the determination needed and it is especially appropriate that the National University of Ireland should honour him as its Director to-day at UCC.

PRAEHONORABILIS VICE-CANCELLARIE, TOTAQUE UNIVERSITAS:

Praesento vobis hunc meum filium, quem scio tam moribus quam doctrina habilem et idoneum esse qui admittatur, honoris causa, ad gradum Doctoratus in Utroque Jure, tam Civili quam Canonico, idque tibi fide mea testor ac spondeo, totique Academiae.