Call for Nominations: 2024 Oxfam Public Service/Volunteering Alumni Award
In 2023, collaboration between the School of Law and Criminology and Oxfam Ireland established the Oxfam Public Service Alumni Award. This partnership celebrates the shared values of the both institutions and a dedication to volunteering and public service. Oxfam Ireland, with its core values of fostering a just economy, gender justice, climate justice, and accountable governance, has been instrumental in establishing this award, and we express our deep appreciation for their partnership.
We are pleased to announce the call for nominations for the 2024 Oxfam Public Service/Volunteering Alumni Award. This award honours the exceptional contributions of our graduates, both in their professional capacities and through their voluntary efforts within their communities. By recognising their achievements, we seek to highlight the pivotal role and positive influence our alumni have in shaping contemporary Irish society.
Criteria for the Award:
Demonstrated Impact: The nominee must have demonstrated a significant and measurable impact on their community beyond the university, through their volunteer/public service efforts. This impact could be in the form of positive changes, improvements, or advancements directly resulting from their volunteering initiatives.
Some examples of impact include (but not limited to) the following:
Initiative and Innovation: The nominee may have displayed initiative and innovation in identifying community needs or issues, and implementing creative solutions to address them. This could include initiating new projects, programs, or activities that effectively tackle existing challenges or improve the quality of life for individuals or groups within the community.
Leadership and Collaboration: The nominee may have shown leadership qualities and the ability to collaborate with others to achieve common goals. This could involve leading volunteer teams, coordinating efforts with various stakeholders, or fostering partnerships and alliances to maximize the impact of their volunteer work.
Sustainability and Long-Term Impact: The nominee's volunteer efforts could demonstrate a commitment to sustainability and long-term impact. This could include implementing strategies or initiatives that have the potential to create lasting change, empower community members, or build capacity for continued progress and improvement.
Financial or Resource Mobilization: The nominee may have played a key role in securing funds, resources, or support for a non-profit organization, community project, or charitable initiative. This could involve fundraising activities, grant writing, sponsorship acquisition, or leveraging existing resources effectively to maximize impact.
Organizational or Systemic Improvement: The nominee may have contributed to organizational or systemic improvements within a community setting. This could involve reorganizing processes, procedures, or systems to enhance efficiency, effectiveness, or accessibility, ultimately leading to positive outcomes for the community and its members.
Advisory and Consultative Role: The nominee may have provided valuable advice, guidance, or expertise to non-profit organizations, community groups, or charities in areas such as financial management, strategic planning, or operational efficiency. This advisory role should have contributed to the overall success and sustainability of the organizations or initiatives involved.
Chairmanship or Leadership Positions: The nominee may have served as a chairperson, board member, or in other leadership positions within charitable organizations, non-profits, or community groups. This leadership role should have involved strategic decision-making, governance oversight, and a commitment to advancing the organization's mission and objectives.
Special Projects or Initiatives: The nominee may have been involved in special projects or initiatives that have had a significant impact on the community. This could include disaster relief efforts, community development projects, advocacy campaigns, or other activities aimed at addressing specific needs or challenges within the community.
Exemplary Service and Dedication: The nominee should demonstrate a high level of commitment, dedication, and passion for their volunteer work. This could be evidenced by consistent and sustained engagement, overcoming obstacles or challenges, and a willingness to go above and beyond to make a positive difference in the lives of others.
Eligibility and Nomination Process:
All graduates of the School, encompassing individuals who pursued degrees in law, criminology, or both, are eligible for self-nomination. Additionally, colleagues and friends are encouraged to nominate deserving alumni.
Nominations should be submitted via the following form (https://forms.office.com/e/ehkJLdbpQn) by Friday, September 20, 2024.
This statement should include:
Brief biographical information about the nominee.
Up to two substantive examples illustrating how the alum has positively impacted their community through public service and/or voluntary work.
For all queries, please contact the External Relations Manager in the School, Dr Elaine Burroughs ([email protected]).
2023 Award Recipients:
Congratulations to Pamela Drumgoole on recieving the award in 2023. Pamela has dedicated her career to advancing justice and fairness for some of the most marginalised in our society. Since completing both her BA and MA in Maynooth’s School of Law and Criminology, Pamela has worked with the Irish Penal Reform Trust (IPRT), Merchants Quay Ireland and The Wheel. Pamela led a project to translate the Prison Rules 2007 into plain English. She managed the development of the Know Your Rights booklet, and ensured its dissemination to all prisons, aiding thousands of people in custody in understanding their rights while in prison. Additionally, she developed an interactive online version of the materials so that service providers and families of people in prison can easily access the information. Pamela has worked to improve safety for marginalized drug users and communities by leading a community engagement and public awareness campaign relating to Ireland’s first Medically Supervised Injecting Facility (MSIF) at Merchants Quay Ireland (MQI). Pamela engaged directly with the local community to understand and ease concerns, leading a public-facing awareness campaign, and supporting preparation for judicial review. She worked on Ireland's first-ever spent convictions scheme for adults and on a government Bill to remove barriers for people with convictions. Pamela engaged with Citizens Information, SOLAS, and other services to build capacity and reach affected people and communities as well as conducting research that informed debates on the Bill in the Seanad when she worked with Senator Lynn Ruane’s office. Pamela has particularly distinguished herself by taking leadership roles in innovative initiatives.
Honourable commendation has also been awarded to Christine O'Mahony. Christine works as a Legal Executive and a Journalist with Meath South East News. In addition to her career and academic achievements, Christine has made significant contributions to progressing equality and supporting people to access their rights, including through her involvement in organising to end direct provision and supporting women and non binary people who live in direct provision, for the rights of people with disabilities, for gender justice and against racism including by setting up the Mullingar for all group.
Pamela and Christine were recognised at the School's Awards Night on 12 October 2023 by Jim Clarken, CEO Oxfam Ireland.
"Alternative Careers" in Law and Criminology Event - April 2023
In April 2023, the School of Law and Criminology, in conjunction with The Criminology Society hosted an event entitled “Alternative Careers in Law and Criminology”. All students (especially final year students) and alumni were invited to the event and we had a wonderful turnout, with truely engaging speakers. This was an insightful event and a fantastic opportunity for students and alums to learn about alternative career pathways available to them, other than traditional positions. We would like to thank all of our speakers, especially Prof Aisling McMahon for moderating the session. We look forward to hosting a similar event for alumns and students in the Autumn.
Alumni In-Person Event - July 2022
The first School of Law and Criminology alumni event took place on campus July 2022. We were delighted to welcome back our alumni from the past 13 years and, in particular, the 1st (2011) and 10th (2020) cohorts of graduates. Mr Derek Foran and Prof Tomas D Russell, who both travelled from North America, offered engaging keynote lectures on the day. In addition, our alumni contributed to panel discussions where they explored a range of topics from their time at the School to how their studies have fed into their careers over recent years.
Panel discussants included: Dr Emma McEvoy; Mary Patricia Acom; John MacManus; Conor Duff; Naoise O Cearuil; Dr Liam Sunner; Christine O’ Mahoney; and Kelly Rennick. The evening came to a close with a presentation by the incoming Acting Head of School, Dr Fergus Ryan, to Prof Michael Doherty to thank him for leading the School to great success over the last decade and to mark his upcoming sabbatical.
We wish to thank all who contributed and attended on the day and we look forward to welcoming our alumni back to campus again in the near future. The event was kindly sponsored by KOD Lyons; William Fry; and McCann Fitzgerald.
You can view photographs from the day here.
Alumni Coffee Morning - February 2022
Our first Alumni coffee morning took place in February 2022. The aim of the session was to build connections and to meet fellow alumni and Faculty. We were joined by the then Head of School, Prof Michael Doherty and the session was facilitated by Dr Elaine Burroughs (External Relations and Alumni Officer). We discussed how the School of Law and Criminology can support alums in their careers and spoke about the various opportunities for alums to be involved in School activities.
The “Future Ready” team at Maynooth University host an annual evening celebration for the Alumni Mentoring Programme. As part of this programme, mentors (who are former students with professional experience) provide career-focused support, inspiration and guidance to mentees (current Maynooth University students). The purpose of the programme is to support the development of student preparedness for work, life and engaged citizenship through informed career insights and empowering students to achieve their career aims. It also seeks to advance the networking propensity of Maynooth University students from underrepresented groups with 30% places prioritized for students from underrepresented groups. If you would like to take part in this programme,
further information is available here
In celebration of International Women’s Day 2023, the School of Law and Criminology take this opportunity to amplify the achievements of women who have graduated from the School. The School is committed to intersectional equality and diversity.
We feature some of our wonderful alumni, who both offer us inspiration and represent the wider community of women working in Law and Criminology. A huge thank you to our alumni for sharing their profile. We are very proud of their achievements.
“I chose Law in MH101 Arts at Maynooth as there is great flexibility at the end of first year; I transferred into the LLB programme. There are lots of opportunities to improve legal knowledge and skills outside of lectures in FLAC (Free Legal Advice Centre), ELSA (European Law Students’ Association), and Maynooth Law Society. I took part in various Moot Court Competitions. I was selected for an internship in the Four Courts where I worked with Mr. Justice MacMenamin of the Supreme Court. I was also selected for a work placement year, working with one of Ireland’s leading corporate law firms, William Fry.” At the end of this internship I was offered a Traineeship with William Fry and I now look forward to commencing my training with them. Rebecca Reid (LLB)
“In Maynooth, the balance of law and another Arts subject such as Sociology is fascinating and integral to my positive university experience and study. Studying Law in Maynooth means that you are immediately part of a supporting network of students and experienced lecturers, where the office door is always open, and you are encouraged to ask questions and think on your feet. You will learn that nobody has a monopoly on wisdom or the law - as a law student, you are building the potential to help shape society itself.” Síona Cahill (BCL International)
“The LLM in International Business Law (dual degree) was a wonderful opportunity not only to receive a dual qualification but also to experience the wonders of studying abroad. Studying abroad opened my mind and allowed me to mature and grow as a person, and intellectually. I did not have a strong base in the French language, but this was not a problem, as the lectures were in English, and classes in French of all levels were provided by the University. Rent was extremely reasonable in Lyon and the French Government provide rent assistance to all students studying in France. This LLM not only prepares you on an intellectual level, but also allows you to travel and experience different cultures, and have fun at the same time.” Emer Shannnon (LLM International Business Law)
“The LLM in International Justice is an excellent programme for anyone with an interest in the areas of justice and human rights. The modules are engaging and extremely interesting, and are delivered in small classroom settings by lecturers who are genuinely interested in their students. Although the LLM has a strong legal component, is it extremely accessible to non‑law graduates, of which I am one. I would highly recommend the programme, and indeed Maynooth University, to anyone with an interest in this area of study.” Jean Molloy (LLM International Justice)
“The international nature of the LLM in Global Legal Studies at Maynooth allowed me to build on my studies of law and politics at undergraduate level and allowed me to purse my interest in studying international institutions like the UN at PhD level. The small group teaching at Maynooth meant I developed a great relationship with the lecturers, who were fantastic in helping me find funding to continue my studies.” Gene Carolan (LLM Global Legal Studies)
“My master’s programme in International Business Law at Maynooth gave me such a great start on the career ladder. The investment funds industry is an area of real opportunity for Irish graduates and it’s great to have taken part in the first funds law course ever taught in an Irish university.” Andrew Norry (LLM International Business Law)
“The quality of the learning environment I experienced in the MA programme speaks to the high standards of the School of Law and Criminology. It was the most challenging yet rewarding year of my academic journey to date. The diverse faculty and topics covered allow students to gain a broad and far reaching perspective on complex issues in criminology and criminal justice, at national and international levels. Our lecturers encouraged and fostered independent specialisation, allowing students to focus our knowledge on topics about which we are passionate. This helped me orient my studies towards my dream career. I took a leap into the MA, and loved every second of it – I cannot recommend it enough to others.” Triona Kenny, (MA Comparative Criminology and Criminal Justice)
The structured PhD programme gives you the opportunity to develop your skills and knowledge in a number of diverse areas including research and publishing and also dissemination and presentation of your research. The School always provided opportunities for support, networking and engagement throughout the semesters from holding engaging research seminars and workshops to hosting PhD cafés for students to engage informally with School academics and fellow PhD students. This gives students a sense of comradery and support throughout the PhD journey from different angles, enabling students to conduct impactful research, develop essential research and transferable skills, take on teaching responsibilities and disseminate their research.” Siobhan Buckley (PhD Law)
