A distinguished Kerry academic has been appointed Chancellor and Chair of the University of Limerick’s Governing Authority
Hugely respected political scientist, Professor Brigid Laffan, will take over from outgoing Chancellor Mary Harney, who has held the role since January 2018.
Professor Laffan, a native of Caherciveen, is acknowledged as one of the world’s leading experts on European integration and how the European project affects Ireland’s foreign policy.
She was one of the very first students to attend UL in 1972 – when it was the National Institute for Higher Education – and in 2022, the university celebrated her exceptional contribution to academia by awarding her an honorary degree of Doctor of Letters. Professor Laffan was also the recipient of an Outstanding Achievement UL Alumni Award in 2018.
In a statement the university said: “We are truly fortunate to have secured a person of her calibre, international profile and abilities.
“Having already honoured Brigid’s achievements we are privileged as she becomes our Chancellor to now have the benefit of her international perspective, her known capacity to build consensus and, of course, her wisdom.
Picture: Valerie O’Sullivan
Professor Laffan said her decision to go to Limerick in 1972 proved to be the formative decision of her life and she has retained a deep empathy and commitment to UL.
“I have watched the University grow and flourish over the last 50 years and now, as the newly elected Chancellor, I very much look forward to being part of its future,” she stated.
Always proud of her Caherciveen roots, Professor Laffan now lives in Dublin. She is a European Studies graduate, Emeritus Professor of the Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies at the European University Institute, Florence, Emeritus Professor of UCD and a well-known commentator on European affairs.
A former Jean Monnet Professor of European Politics at UCD, she was the founding director of the college’s Dublin European Institute and served as principal of the College of Human Sciences for seven years. She was appointed a UCD vice-president in 2005, later becoming Director of the Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies in 2013.
Since retiring from the European University Institute, Professor Laffan has continued to work on large EU collaborative research projects.
She has published 10 books and written countless journal articles and book chapters and is the recipient of awards as illustrious as the Ordre national du Mérite – an accolade conferred by the President of France.
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