Technological University of the Shannon: Midlands Midwest

The Technological University of the Shannon: Midlands Midwest (or simply TUS; Irish: Ollscoil Teicneolaíochta na Sionainne: Lár Tíre Iarthar Láir) is a public technological university. The third one to be established within the Republic of Ireland, it began operations in October 2021.

Technological University of the Shannon: Midlands Midwest
Ollscoil Teicneolaíochta na Sionainne: Lár Tíre Iarthar Láir
Logo of the university
Other name
TUS
TypePublic technological university
EstablishedOctober 1, 2021 (2021-10-01)
ChairpersonJosephine Feehily
PresidentVincent Cunnane
Total staff
1,200+
Students14,000+
Location
Republic of Ireland
Colours   Gold and black
Websitetus.ie

The university was the result of a merger between two institutes of technology; the Athlone Institute of Technology and the Limerick Institute of Technology. The AIT-LIT Consortium had been formed due to the passing of the Technological Universities Bill, which required at least two institutes to apply together for university status.

The university officially opened on 1 October 2021 to serve both the midlands and the mid-west regions of the country. It currently has six campuses situated in four counties and three provinces within Ireland. They are located in Limerick, Athlone, Thurles, Clonmel, and Ennis.

History

Formation of the AIT-LIT Consortium

In 2018, the Athlone IT investigated the possibility of becoming a university in its own right. However, the Technological Universities Bill passed by the Oireachtas earlier that year ruled out that possibility as it declared that two or more institutes must apply together for university status.[1][2][3][4][5]

A consortium between the Athlone IT and the Limerick IT (ALTU) was formed[6] and announced in October 2019,[7] with the intention of forming a technological university for the mid-west and midlands regions, centered on the River Shannon,[8][9][10][11][12] with Athlone and Limerick both sitting on it.[13] The objective was to establish a new technical university for central and midwestern Ireland / Technological University of Central & Midwestern Ireland, with a targeted opening date of 1 September 2021.

Application and approval

On 23 November 2020, the AIT-LIT Consortium announced that the joint Limerick-Athlone IT application for technological university (TU) status had been submitted for approval.[14][15][16]

The government approval was officially announced by Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, Simon Harris in May 2021.[17]

Operations
The formal bilingual logo of the university. It includes the full title in English and Irish.

The Governing Body of Technological University of the Shannon: Midlands Midwest was established to govern the university. The body is chaired by Josephine Feehily, while Vincent Cunnane serves as president.[18] Currently, there is a population of 14,000 students and 1,200 staff members under the university.[19][20] Campuses where the Athlone Institute of Technology is are now referred to as TUS: Midlands, while campuses where the Limerick Institute of Technology is are referred to as TUS: Midwest.

References
  1. "AIT remains committed to Technological University status". Athlone Advertiser. 10 May 2018. Archived from the original on 17 June 2018.
  2. "Technological University Status Granted To Athlone IT". Midlands 103. Retrieved 5 May 2021.
  3. Kelly Palenque, Brendan (5 May 2021). "Limerick IT and Athlone IT to merge to form new technological university". Independent.ie. Retrieved 5 May 2021.
  4. O'Brien, Carl (24 January 2018). "Technological universities a step closer following passage of Bill". The Irish Times. Retrieved 17 July 2018.
  5. Marren, Aisling (12 October 2018). "HEA Invests €800,000 in Four Institutes of Technology". The University Times. Trinity College Dublin. Archived from the original on 12 October 2018. Retrieved 6 November 2018.
  6. "Our Journey". AIT-LIT Consortium. Retrieved 5 May 2021.
  7. Duffy, Rónán. "LIT and AIT want to join up to create a River Shannon-linked technological university". TheJournal.ie. Retrieved 16 November 2021.
  8. O'Flynn, Laurie (12 January 2020). "CA0 2020: ITs gain new powers to make awards". BreakingNews.ie. Archived from the original on 12 January 2020. Retrieved 14 January 2020.
  9. Walsh, Fintan (15 October 2019). "Limerick Institute of Technology to form technological university consortium with Athlone IT". LimerickLeader.ie. Archived from the original on 16 October 2019. Retrieved 23 October 2019.
  10. "Limerick and Athlone ITs to form Technological University". RTÉ.ie. 15 October 2019. Archived from the original on 17 October 2019. Retrieved 23 October 2019.
  11. "Limerick IT and Athlone IT forming consortium to develop Technological University". BreakingNews.ie. Archived from the original on 16 October 2019. Retrieved 23 October 2019.
  12. Fagan, Ronan (17 October 2019). "Athlone IT to attain merited technological university status". Athlone Advertiser. Archived from the original on 23 October 2019.
  13. "LIT and AIT want to join up to create a River Shannon-linked technological university". TheJournal.ie. 15 October 2019. Archived from the original on 15 October 2019. Retrieved 23 October 2019.
  14. "AIT - LIT Consortium Awarded €5 Million to Progress TU Ambition". AIT-LIT Consortium. 8 October 2020. Retrieved 5 May 2021.
  15. Donnelly, Katherine (28 April 2021). "Technological universities expected to get the green light to build their own student accommodation". Retrieved 29 April 2021.
  16. Collins, Niall (23 February 2021). response to committee question (Speech). Joint Committee on Education, Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science debate - Tuesday, 23 Feb 2021. Oireachtas.ie. Leinster House (remote meeting): Houses of the Oireachtas.
  17. "Minister Harris grants Technological University status to Athlone and Limerick Institutes of Technology". www.gov.ie. Retrieved 5 May 2021.
  18. "Governing Body". TUS. Retrieved 16 November 2021.
  19. Halloran, Cathy (1 October 2021). "Ireland's newest technological university opens". Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  20. TU Newsletter - Edition 3 (Report). AIT-LIT Consortium. June 2021. p. 7.
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