Pictured above at the Mary Immaculate College Awards Ceremony were RTE presenter Dáithí Ó Sé, RTE sports presenter Jacqui Hurley and recently retired Executive Director of Trócaire, Éamonn Meehan, who received the MIC Alumni Awards. They are pictured here with Professor Eugene Wall, President of MIC and Mary Mitchell O’Connor TD, Minister of State at the Department of Education with special responsibility for Higher Education
RTE stars, Dáithí Ó Sé and Jacqui Hurley, along with former Executive Director of Trócaire, Éamonn Meehan, were all honoured at the Mary Immaculate College (MIC) Annual Awards Ceremony, held in the Lime Theatre on Monday 19 November.
The three graduates of MIC were recipients of the MIC Alumni of the Year Award 2018; an award presented to those who have made an outstanding contribution in their field of endeavour.
Dáithí, completed a BA in Gaeilge and History at MIC in 1999 before embarking on a very successful television career. For the past decade he has been the host of The Rose of Tralee and also co-presents the popular Today Show with Maura Derrane.
Accepting the award Dáithí said “Is onór mílteach é seo dom agus ní rabhas ag súil lena leithéid riamh! I am so excited to be receiving this award from Mary Immaculate College, a place where I've the fondest memories of. I always saw Mary I like the Rose of Tralee, one big happy family! So with that in mind it is a huge honour for me to receive this award!”
Jacqui graduated from MIC in 2006 after completing a BA in English and Media & Communication Studies. She spent a year working in Live 95fm before moving to Dublin to pursue a career in sports journalism. Her time in RTE started out with a five minute slot talking about sport on TV, while also working in production as a sub editor, on programmes such as The Sunday Game and The Premiership. Jacqui’s big break came in 2009 when she took over presenting Sunday Sport on RTE Radio One, becoming the first ever female anchor in the show’s history. This year she anchored RTE’s World Cup television coverage and is a regular presenter of the sports news on RTE News bulletins. She has covered two Olympic Games for RTE Sport. Jacqui has previously represented Ireland in basketball and played camogie for Cork.
Accepting her award Jacqui said “It is an incredible honour to be asked back to Mary Immaculate College to receive this alumni award. I loved every moment of my four years at MIC. I always say the skill set I developed whilst here equipped me so well for my career in the media. MIC is an incredible community that continues to develop some of Ireland's most talented people and I will be forever grateful to have been part of it".
Éamonn, originally from Kilmaley, County Clare, graduated from MIC in 1977 as a primary teacher and taught in Clane, County Kildare, Knocklyon in County Dublin and in Turkana in Kenya. He first joined Trócaire in 1991 as Programme Manager for the Southern Africa Region where he managed the day-to-day running of Trócaire’s work in South Africa, Mozambique, Angola, Zambia and Zimbabwe. In 1996 he became Head of the International Division, responsible for Trócaire’s work overseas. This included the allocation of resources to development and humanitarian programmes and securing co-financing from the Irish government, the EU and others. In 2002 Éamonn was appointed Deputy Director and Head of Trócaire’s Ireland Division with responsibility for fundraising, marketing, communications, development education, policy and campaigns. Éamonn became Executive Director of Trócaire in October 2013 where he served until his retirement earlier this year.
Accepting his award Éamonn said “I’m delighted to receive the MIC Alumni Award. I had a wonderful experience as a student here in the 1970s. We received a strong academic and professional education and sport was a huge part of our lives as well. Deep engagement with philosophy and English literature were formative experiences for me and were a great foundation for further study. While I eventually moved on from teaching the skills I developed as a student at MIC were incredibly valuable and helped me develop my career in international development and humanitarian work. I think the most important things I learned as a student in MIC in the 1970s were the values of service, duty and responsibility. They have stayed with me through the years”.
The Alumni Awards were presented as part of the MIC Annual Awards Ceremony, now in its second year and this year almost 150 students, graduates and alumni from MIC were recognised for their academic and other notable achievements with over €250,000 presented on the night in scholarships and bursaries.
Please click here to view a video with Dáithí Ó Sé's - winner of one the 2018 MIC Alumni Awards.
Please click here to view a video with Jacqui Hurley - winner of one of the 2018 MIC Alumni Awards.
