Kildare university opens new national centre to promote inclusion in higher education

Kildare's Maynooth University has officially opened the National Centre for Inclusive Higher Education (NCIHE), Ireland’s first national centre dedicated to advancing equity, inclusion, and access in higher education.

The new centre will be led by award-winning academic, advocate, and author of 'Poor', Professor Katriona O’Sullivan, and aims to create solutions to reduce inequality and expand opportunity across Ireland’s higher education system.

It will lead a coordinated national effort to understand and implement what works to support students and staff from under-represented and underserved communities to access, succeed in, and progress beyond higher education.

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The NCIHE aims to fill a vital gap in Ireland’s education landscape by creating a hub where the equity and inclusion work that is currently happening across Irish universities and colleges can be shared and strengthened, such as happens with TASO in the UK or the Australian Centre for Student Equity and Success or ACSES.

Speaking of the opening of the new centre, Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science James Lawless TD said: "The Centre will play a vital role in shaping a more inclusive future for higher education in Ireland. By focusing on what works through research, evaluation, and collaboration, it will help ensure that opportunity in higher education is truly open to all, regardless of background or circumstance.

“I’m delighted to see Maynooth University leading this important national effort, bringing together expertise and lived experience to build a fairer, stronger, and more effective education system for everyone.”

Speaking at the launch, centre Director Prof O’Sullivan said: “At Maynooth University, we have always believed that equity, empowerment, and excellence go hand in hand. The launch of this Centre is our commitment to proving — through evidence and action — that equity strengthens the whole system.”

Maynooth University has a long history of widening participation and supporting under-represented learners through initiatives such as Turn to Teaching, College Connect, the Mountjoy Prison Education Project, and the STEM Passport for Inclusion.

Welcoming the NCIHE, Maynooth University President Professor Eeva Leinonen said: “The creation of the National Centre for Inclusive Higher Education is a proud moment for Maynooth University. It reflects our belief that universities should be engines of inclusion - where equity, excellence, and evidence work together to drive real change. Building on more than two decades of leadership in widening participation here at Maynooth, I look forward to the real impact this Centre will have on higher education in Ireland and beyond.”

The launch event took place in Maynooth University and was addressed by the Secretary General of the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, Colm O’Reardon.

It also featured a keynote address by Professor Penny Jane Burke, Director of the Centre of Excellence for Equity in Higher Education at the University of Newcastle, Australia, followed by a panel discussion.

Prof Burke, who also leads the UNESCO Chair in Equity, Social Justice and Higher Education, said: “The establishment of the National Centre for Inclusive Higher Education is significant in demonstrating how higher education can create inclusive spaces that generate and sustain collective advocacy and agency for transformative equity and social justice that serve our communities. I am honoured to be part of the launch for this important new Centre and to support its vision and goals for the future.”

For more information on the NCIHE, visit: https://www.maynoothuniversity.ie/centre-inclusive-higher-education