Our Team

 

Staff Bios



Julie Bernard - Access Officer
Julie Bernard is the Equality Access Officer and manages the DIT Access Service.  Before joining DIT in 2003, she was the manager of an adult employment and guidance service in Dublin and has previously worked in education in Germany, Japan and Scotland.  Julie has a BA in English and German from Trinity College Dublin and has a Postgraduate Diploma in Career Guidance.  She is currently doing a Doctorate in Education at the University of Sheffield and her areas of research include biographical research on participation in higher education for young people from Dublin inner city and the relationship between research, policy and practice in widening participation in Ireland.   


Gráinne Burke - Project Officer
Gráinne has been with the Access Service since February 2006, working as an Administrator and as a Post Entry Project Officer since July 2007.  Gráinne qualified with a Joint BA Honours Degree in Arts: Geography and Sociology from NUI Maynooth and a MA in Child, Family and Community Studies in DIT.


John Delap - Project Officer
John joined the Access Service as a Post-Entry Project Officer in October 2007 after completing a BA in American Culture and an M.Phil in International Peace Studies.  During the academic year 2005-2006, John worked as the Religious & Spiritual Life Community Fellow at Vassar College in New York, USA. 


Nicola Phelan - Project Officer
Nicola Phelan is a Post Entry Project Officer and has been with the Access Service for the past several years.  Nicola was previously working in the area of Community Development before coming to DIT and has always had an interest in the area, stemming from her Masters experience and thesis on Women's groups in Northern Ireland.  Nicola works Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays only.


Susan Hawkins - Project Officer
Susan Hawkins joined the Access team as Post Entry Project Officer in August 2006 having previously worked as an Administrator in the Faculty of Tourism and Food in D.I.T.  Susan attained her Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics and Psychology as a mature student and recently completed an MSc in Equality Studies in U.C.D.


Kieran Houlihan - Project Officer
Kieran joined the Access Service in October 2006 initially in the role of Post Entry Project Officer, then as Acting Access Officer and is currently Pre Entry Project Officer. He graduated with a BA in Legal Science, Sociology and Politics in 2002 from NUI Galway. He also is a Bachelor of Law and has completed a Masters in Public Administration at the University of Limerick.


Sinead McEntee - Administrator
Sinead has worked as Administrator in the Access Service since July 2007. Sinead has an Honours Bachelor Degree in Marketing Management from IT-Tallaght. She previously worked in the registrations office in the Faculty of Business in DIT before taking up her current position in the Access Service. 


Edel Travers - Project Officer
Edel joined the Access Service as a pre-entry project officer in November 2006 after completing the Higher Diploma in Education in UCD. Before this she studied at NCI, where she attained B.A. in Accounting and Human Resource Management. Since 2007 Edel has been working closely with second level schools in inner city Dublin.

Sinead McCann-Project Officer
Sinead is a DIT Access graduate. Sinead has been with the Access Service Team since March 2008, and has been running the Access Services Portfolio Preparation Course since 2005.  Sinead holds a BA in Fine Art Sculpture from DIT and a Masters of Fine Art Sculpture from the National College of Art and Design.  Sinead is currently enrolled as a PhD researcher at the National College of Art and Design and will begin her PhD studies through the department of Sculpture at NCAD in September ’09. Her research topic for PhD studies is “Urban Living in Regenerative Urban Areas; Interactions with Architectural Structures and Dominant Societal Systems and Codes”