Athlone based Senator, Gabrielle McFadden has called for progress on the Technical Universities Bill, one provision of which would allow ITs such as Athlone Institute of Technology to apply for university status.
Speaking in the Seanad last week, Senator McFadden welcomed the €310m in the budget earmarked to address the infrastructural needs of institutions of higher and further education, and then called for progress on the Technical Universities Bill.
“The Bill signifies a very important step forward for the higher education landscape in Ireland and provides for a framework for institutes of technology to remain competitive,” she commented. “Athlone IT has always welcomed this Bill and it has always been our ambition to be a technical university. Athlone has met all the metrics and has been to the forefront of the IT sector.”
Senator McFadden went on to congratulate AIT on having been named Institute of Technology of the Year in the Sunday Times Best University Guide, and stated that this added to the case for university status for the institution.
