21 year at DCU
Coming of Age ... 21 years at DCU
Richard O'Kennedy

The then National Institute of Higher Education opened it's doors to students in early November, 1980. I had just been recruited as the first lecturer in Biology and arrived just 12 days before the first cohort of students numbering about 212 over all the courses. There was a no option but to pitch in and get the show on the road despite incomplete and defective labs, a chronic shortage of everything but with huge enthusiasm, good humour and co-operation between all staff and the very clear belief that we were about to set out on an entirely new journey in terms of development of Irish Third Level education.

In these days of rapid and easy communication it is interesting to reflect back on the situation in relation to phones and other systems of contact. To get a phone line often required months of waiting and there was only one line provided into the NIHE, which had resulted from the entrepreneurial activities of a certain individual. The number associated with this line was only discovered when someone rang in by mistake, and, through the rapid reaction of the person who answered having the wit to ask what number was dialled. However, this was the only line, it was frequently unreliable so a queue of staff would often be present outside 'The Slipper' waiting to use the call box ... at least that was what they said.

At first there were no catering facilities and lunch was taken at the old Institute for Research and Standards, now Enterprise Ireland. Eventually a canteen was started on the ground floor of the Albert just behind the present AG00. Nowadays there are many sites and selections available but the menu then consisted of soup and sandwiches with toasting coming as a major advance. The space also suffered from repeated floodings since the plumbing in the Biology labs overhead was badly defective, it had been originally installed in the late nineteenth century. However, on completion of the present restaurant conditions improved greatly with better menus and no water from Biology. Staff would all join at one long set of tables and major discussions and very effective communications resulted as the numbers were so small. Indeed I knew every staff member and virtually all students by name.

There were many incidents which clearly showed us how we were viewed by the Established Universities and other Colleges. I remember a call being received to know if the caller was on to 'NIHE Limerick Ballymun branch'. Some academics felt that we were 'a glorified technical school' and that we 'should not be allowed to do research'. Others thought that we were receiving huge amounts of money which was their's by right. One leading academic vowed that Biotechnolgy should not be taught as an undergraduate programme as it was not suitable. However, following the successful launch of Biotechnology as the first such undergraduate degree programme in the country, many of the older Universities followed suit, I like to view this as a form of flattery. Having said this there were many University colleagues who were extremely helpful and supportive and who continue to help DCU in very many ways.

The student body was fantastic. Firstly by signing on to come to NIHE they were really entering unchartered waters and the pioneering spirit they possessed can now be clearly seen as they contribute so much to Ireland's and the world's economy. They are also immensely supportive and proud of all that has been attained to date and represent our greatest asset and our greatest achievements. However, while conditions were frugal and facilities very limited (particularly from a social aspect) because of the small numbers they had a huge amount of interaction with staff and benefited greatly from it. I remember one student failing to attend an examination. On enquiring nobody had any explanation for the absence. I decide to call to here house only to learn that she had got the day wrong as she presumed the exam was on the next day. Luckily we were able to get her to a supervised room and she did the exam successfully. With huge numbers that cannot now be achieved.

With the gradual construction of new buildings and refurbishment there were frequent moves. Over the last 21 years I have moved labs or office 18 times. I have frequented the Albert in 5 different locations, the Albert extension, the now demolished John Barry building, the Grattan, the now demolished Hampstead and the SGO's, a very badly dilapidated set of prefabs, the Research building, the old physics labs, now also happily demolished and built over with postgrad accommodation, and, finally, the aptly named Block III ... this was another move to the new NCSR building. This is sometimes referred to as Academic tourism although others, I hear, get to much sunnier destinations. When people now refer to the problems with buildings I remind them of what we used to have and that I myself constructed much of my first lab with great support and guidance form Owen Ward, my first Head, who was very handy on the DIY front. However, my experiences with snagging block III suggests that our efforts were, well, pretty good.

In the first year in then summer term we had a University Sports' Day and all staff and students took part. The playing fields were in a very bad conditions; the grass was too long and someone had attacked the goalposts with a chainsaw so we had to use the adjoining park after much cajoling of the park personnel. I can recall sterling performances from many staff including Jane Horgan in hockey and Charles McCorkell in football. There was a very nice party afterwards with strawberries and cream. That evening we had a dinner and the Albert Memorial Shields (hastily made from a plank from the Bea Orphen Building and with incompletely dried varnish) was presented to the victors - the students - by Dr D O'Hare.

So there it is. The development of NIHE, the attainment of University status as DCU in 1988/89, the huge developments in the scope and numbers of degree programmes, the massive building programs, the huge successes in attracting funds for research (e.g. NCSR, NICB, PLASMA, SCIENCE, RINCE, etc.) developments in Nursing, Business, the Humanities, Communications, Sports Science, Engineering and Computing have clearly established our credentials as a vibrant educational organisation. We now also have a Strategic Plan and new goals to be achieved. It is timely, that as we move into a rapidly changing educational environment that we review our approaches, retain all that is good, maintain and improve our standards but be open, flexible and friendly and see change as a challenge that presents major opportunities in line with our well established history of innovation.