Templemore College of Further Education celebrates Graduation Day
Templemore College of Further Education, the only exclusive Post Leaving Cert. College in Tipperary providing a ‘third level educational experience’ in Tipperary, recently celebrated its Graduation Day on Friday October 16th in the Templemore Arms Hotel. Nearly three hundred students graduated from the College with qualifications in areas such as Sports and Recreation, Computer Software Development, Tourism, Business, Complementary Therapies, Security, Horticulture and so on.
Left to Right – Kenny McGovern, Katie McGovern (Beauty Therapy Student), Phyllis Maher
Principal Noel Colleran PhD. started proceedings with a presentation to Rachel Ryan, a former student of Templemore College, to mark her extraordinary achievement in winning one gold and one silver medal at the Summer 2015 Special Olympics in Los Angeles.
Dr Colleran then proceeded to address the audience about the fundamental purpose of education in Templemore College. He proposed that the purpose of education is to develop the confidence to take charge of the future direction of one’s life. He went on to say that life presents many obstacles at a personal and social level, however the achievement of life’s goals is dependent on how we respond to these obstacles and how much we are willing to fight for who we want to be.
Security Studies Students – Left to Right – Anthony Quinlivan, Cathal Mulqueen, Vincent Lawrence
Dr Colleran continued ‘life is about being passionate about something, its about standing for something. We need to find our defining passion, a passion not only worth living for, but sometimes worth dying for’.
He concluded ‘the staff and I hope that your educational experience in Templemore College has enabled each one of you to identify, discover, and affirm your passion, and while taking account of the difficult obstacles each one of us face on a daily basis, I hope that each one of you graduates is satisfied that you have the freedom and the ability to take charge and set the direction you want your lives to take’.
Hairdressing Students – Left to Right – Sorcha Dempsey, Ciara Devery, Rachael Digan
Guest of Honour James Northridge, former winner of ‘Dragons Den’ on RTE Television, addressed the audience on the topic of learning difficulties. James spoke openly about his struggles with dyslexia and how he had dropped out of his first attempt at third level. However, after ‘regrouping’ he completed his degree and also a Masters.
His message to the graduates and their families was that we can all see difficulties as blockages but he sees difficulties such as dyslexia as a challenge to be dealt with. He said that ‘dyslexia as well as other learning difficulties should not be excuses or reasons why people get diverted from their life goals. James concluded by congratulating all the graduates and wished them well in their future lives.
This was a day of celebration for the Graduates and their families and friends. It was a fitting conclusion for another year’s work in a College that has grown is size and reputation over the past decade. The College is now the leading provider of Further Education services to Tipperary and surrounding counties.
