Ludgate Hub The Future of Education

Bringing together World leaders in Education.

After a year that involved a global pandemic, school closures, nationwide remote instruction, protests for racial justice, the role of education has never been more critical or more uncertain. When the dust settles from this year, what will education look like — and what should it aspire to? Joining us for this 60 minute roundtable discussion is Lord David Puttnam, Atticus Education, Prof. Maggie Cusack, President of Munster Technological University, Prof. John O'Halloran, Interim President of UCC and Dr. Kieran Collins.

Professor Maggie Cusack

Maggie did her BSc degree in Cell Biology at the University of Glasgow. Her PhD at the University of Liverpool was a Tate & Lyle CASE award where she studied the sweetest substance known which, surprisingly, is a protein called thaumatin. Protein research then brought her to Geosciences at the University of Glasgow where, as a NERC PDRA, she investigated proteins in brachiopod shells. As a Royal Society University Research Fellow, Maggie collaborated with Sir Alwyn Williams for many years, establishing her enthusiasm for biominerals. As well as research and teaching commitments at the University of Glasgow she held several leadership roles including Associate Dean for the Faculty of Physical Sciences Graduate School, International Lead for the College of Science & Engineering and Head of School of Geographical & Earth Sciences. As Professor of Biomineralisation, Maggie’s research interests are broad and multi-disciplinary. These interests include extracting environmental information from shells and corals using isotopes and trace elements and determining how shells of economically important species such as mussels, will be affected by environmental change including ocean acidification. She is a long-standing advocate of multidisciplinary work, collaborating with Earth and Biological Scientists, Materials Scientists, Isotope Geochemists, Chemists and Engineers, securing international funding as well as funding from four UK research councils: BBSRC, EPSRC, NERC and MRC. In her research Maggie employs a vast range of techniques including scanning electron microscopy to quantify elemental and crystallographic data, synchrotron analyses for tomography and detailed chemistry, cell biology and protein characterisation to investigate biomineral formation. In 2017 Maggie joined the University of Stirling as Dean of the Faculty of Natural Sciences. The Faculty comprises the Institute of Aquaculture, Divisions of Biological & Environmental Science, Computing Science & Maths and Psychology. In 2018, she completed the Senior Executive Programme of the London Business School. She holds several external roles including being a member of the Scottish Government STEM Strategy Advisory Group, Chair of the Learned Societies Group (LSG), member of the Royal Society Partnership Grants Committee and the Carnegie Trust PhD committee. She recently completed a 3-year term as Vice-President (Physical Sciences) of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. She is the interdisciplinary advisor of REF sub-panel B7 (Earth Systems and Environmental Science) in criteria-setting and assessment phases. Maggie was awarded the Saltire Society’s Scottish Science Award in 2008, elected Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh in 2011 and, in 2017, she was awarded the Schlumberger Medal by the Mineralogical Society. On 1st January 2021, as Munster Technology University was founded, Maggie took up the role of Inaugural President of MTU. 

 

Lord Puttnam of Queensgate CBE

David Puttnam is a British film producer, educator, environmentalist and member of the House of Lords. In 2019 he was appointed chair to the Democracy & Digital Technologies committee to investigate the impact of digital technologies on democracy. The report for the committee’s findings was published in June 2020. His films, including The Mission, The Killing Fields, Local Hero, Chariots of Fire, Midnight Express, Bugsy Malone and Memphis Belle, have won 10 Oscars, 31 BAFTAs, 13 Golden Globes, nine Emmys, four David di Donatellos in Italy and the Palme D'Or at Cannes. David set up his production company, Enigma Productions, in 1976 and founded Atticus Education in 2012. Atticus Education delivers interactive seminars on film, media and screen to students at universities all over the world.

He currently holds a number of positions including: President of the Film Distributors’ Association; Chair of Nord Anglia International School, Dublin; Life President, National Film & Television School; Chair of Film London Executive Task Force; UNICEF Ambassador; Member of the Advisory Board of Accenture (Ireland); Adjunct Professor of Film Studies and Digital Humanities at University College Cork; Adjunct Professor, School of Media & Communications at RMIT University in Australia; Board Member of the Commonwealth of Learning, Patron, Dublin Bid World Summit on Media for Children 2020/2023 and International Ambassador, WWF since 2016. He is a member of the ASA (Advertising Standards Authority) Parliamentary Network and a founding member of the ECIU (Energy Climate Intelligence Unit) since 2014.

 

Professor John O'Halloran

Professor John O’Halloran is Interim President at University College Cork since September 2020.

Prior to this he was the Deputy President & Registrar and led UCC’s first Academic Strategy to reimagine the curriculum, transform assessment and nurture graduate attributes to position UCC students for their future world of work. Having formerly served as Vice-President for Teaching & Learning, and as Vice-Head of the College of Science, Engineering & Food Science, he is an academic leader with an ambitious vision for the future of Higher Education.

Professor O’Halloran has delivered transformation through collaboration on a range of Higher Education priorities including the advancement of research; enhancement of learning; digital education; lifelong learning; and professional development. He is committed to developing an inclusive culture at UCC - one where equality is upheld, and diversity is respected. He is also dedicated to putting sustainability at centre stage in UCC, in the community and beyond. Under his leadership UCC’s Green Campus Programme became the first third level institution worldwide to receive the Green Campus award in 2010. Now ranked as one of the most ‘sustainable universities’ in the world, UCC has achieved significant impacts including the development of a Sustainability Strategy, influencing national policy and winning many international accolades.

An ornithologist, he holds the Chair in Zoology at UCC and previously held academic posts at Colby College in the USA and at the University of Wales. He has published 250 research papers and several book chapters aimed at developing a deeper understanding of the ecological impacts of land-use change, climate change on a range of systems and processes.