A SCHOLARSHIP scheme aimed at persuading academically gifted children to remain in the locality and attend second-level school has been launched.
Trinity Comprehensive School in Ballymun, Dublin, is offering students who win one of the new scholarships in 2012 a free laptop, financial support towards their book rental and uniform, a cultural trip to France and other educational benefits.
Each bursary will cost about €500 and the number awarded will depend on fundraising from the local community.
School principal Pat O’Dowd said the scheme is being introduced to resist the drift of talented students from Ballymun, who are going to schools outside the local area. “Some children are being enticed out of the area . . . causing a drop in student numbers here.”
He said Trinity Comprehensive has about 500 students, which is down from 600 when he joined the school two years ago.
Education was a key part of the Ballymun regeneration, he said, and the trend wasn’t good for the area, schools or students.
The scholarships are open to boys and girls coming into their first year. They must complete an application form, sit the scholarship exam and attend interview.
Labour Party TD John Lyons, a former pupil of Trinity Comprehensive, said the school received a bad press when it was formed from the amalgamation of local schools. But he said it was now “reaching for the stars”.
“I spent five quality years here that I will never forget . . . if we are truly to transform the Ballymun area and the lives of people then we must ensure high-quality education,” said Mr Lyons, who has pledged to sponsor a student scholarship.
Two other successful past pupils, Lena Byrne – a script editor on the RTÉ's Fair Cityand masters graduate Carrie Graham who is studying to be a teacher – also pledged support for the scheme at the launch yesterday.
“The new scholarships are really a way of saying to students that we believe in them,” said Byrne, who left the school in 1995.
Eileen Kelly, one of the teachers who conceived the idea of establishing a bursary, said many of the more academic pupils were leaving the area and this was a way to retain these students.
Another teacher, Paddy O’Reilly, said there is a need for role models in the school so that “all the kids can do that little bit extra”. He urged local firms and community members to sponsor the scholarships.