Dundalk IT has witnessed major changes over the years. As Eamonn Duffy of Bennett Construction and Angela Short of Dundalk IT explain, the new state-of-the-art buildings can only help to attract more students to the college. Any Leaving Certificate student considering going to college in the north-east these days can consider Dundalk IT a viable option. As one of the main third level institutes in the Louth, Meath, Cavan and Monaghan areas, the college has undergone considerable expansion over the last number of years. The latest development is the GreenPark development on the college campus. This comprises a restaurant and theatre alongside the redevelopment of the Carroll's building for the School of Informatics, Music and Creative Media. This is certain to help move things forward and continue to attract students from around the country. Eamonn Duffy is Contracts Manager with Bennett Construction, the company looking after the development in the college. Originally from Clare, Eamonn has always had a keen interest in Gaelic games. The work at the college has kept him very busy over the last few months. "I'm based on site at the moment where all the work is being done. My job is to deal with clients, architects, engineers and all those involved in the development. "As well as the new restaurant and theatre, 41 apartments (owned by a company called Eli) have been built and the students have moved in. "The restaurant and theatre is on the college grounds with the apartments adjacent to the college," he says. You might think that construction work would involve problems of muddy footpaths, equipment left around the place and students being inconvenienced. However the company has ensured that this didn't happen. A purpose-built road was constructed close by the student apartments to make sure that there was never any such problem. So what does he believe it has all done for the college? "The development has certainly given the college a modern update. The student accommodation, for example, is a fine building. The theatre can be used for a wide range of things such as plays, dances and exams. A lot of these buildings are fairly modern at this stage so it has certainly added to what we already have in the college," he says. Eamonn's uncle Leo Duffy was part of the Roscommon minor team which won the All-Ireland football title in 1951. Eire Og, Ennis, is his native club in Clare and although they have had a quiet few years, he says things are "picking up" for them at the moment. Clare's fortunes over the last few years have been somewhat disappointing. After the glory years of the Ger Loughnane era, they came agonisingly close to reaching the All-Ireland final against Cork in 2005. Eamonn believes that the team can come good again. If new manager Tony Considine is given the opportunity, there is, he says, "a good steady crew" there at the moment to move things forward for them. Angela Short, who works in Public Relations at Dundalk IT, is also a part of the teaching and learning sub-committee at the college. Her husband Dermot comes from a strong GAA background. An uncle of Cathal Short and a cousin of Oisin McConville, Dermot played football for Crossmaglen Rangers before his time at Queens University. He also played with Na Piarsaigh and Fechin's in Louth. A former Armagh minor and under-21 player, he was a friend and fellow team player of the late Hank Kernan. The developments in the college since she began her career, she points out, have been phenomenal. "I started working in Dundalk IT around 20 years ago and it has been completely transformed since then. These latest developments are certain to enhance the student experience at the college," she says. "We will be able to seat around 700 people in the restaurant. I think the restaurant will improve things also as having a facility where students can eat comfortably with extended opening hours will keep students on campus longer and hopefully result in greater participation in student clubs and societies. "The theatre will seat 200 people and again having a space of that calibre that encourages more performers to come to the campus thereby adding to the entertainment and cultural side of the student experience at DkIT. "At the moment there are around 3800 full-time students in the college with around 1500 part-time students. With more people going to college nationally, Dundalk IT has been one of the colleges which has seen an ongoing increase in its numbers. The last five to seven years have seen a general increase in the numbers of students attending third level colleges and we have benefited from the increased attendance of students particularly from the surrounding feeder counties of Louth, Meath, Monaghan and Cavan. We are confident that the continuous upgrading of student facilities here coupled with our ongoing review and updating of courses offered will see a continuation of this positive trend at DkIT" Angela is also a member of a sub committee of academic council at DkIt a role which involves researching and implementing innovative ways of meeting the needs of a very diverse community of learners. Students today have hectic lifestyles and many are balancing their roles as workers, parents or carers so the traditional assumption that students are available all day every day to concentrate on their studies is not always valid. "Finding ways of ensuring that access to higher education is available to all is part of the challenge for DkIT today. We want to maintain the quality of teaching and learning here but be responsive to the needs of our learners" she stresses. " At DkIT, we strive to constantly promote life-long learning as a way of life for as many as possible" The challenge now is to ensure that the college can continue to build on the latest developments, spearheaded by Bennett Construction. If the college's ambition to move forward matches their ability to deliver on time, more modern buildings are sure to become part and parcel of Dundalk IT. Tweet

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