Success for the Bridge to College Programme at the Social Entrepreneurs Ireland Awards

Posted on: 01 November 2010

Director of the Bridge to College programme, John Lawlor, was recently awarded a Social Entrepreneurs Ireland Award for the initiative.  Launched in 2007, the Bridge to College (B2C) programme was designed to provide students from designated disadvantaged second-level schools with an innovative learning experience using technology.  The awards aim to recognise individuals who are developing new initiatives to address a wide variety of social and environmental challenges.  The B2C programme will receive €80K in funding to develop the project over the next two years plus €50K worth of professional services.

The Bridge to College programme is a partnership between Suas Educational Development, Trinity College’s Access Programmes (TAP), and the Centre for Research for IT in Education (CRITE).  The main aim of the programme is to promote access to third level education.  Students who take part are mentored by volunteer undergraduate and postgraduate TCD students.  They combine a very specific model of teamwork with the creative use of technology to provide an innovative educational model for 21st century learning.  More than 1,500 students from 30 schools have taken part since the programme began.

Transition year students at the B2C programme.

John Lawlor is a social entrepreneur with a commitment to the development of young people.  With over 30 years experience in the telecommunications sector in Ireland and Africa, John’s main interest lies in researching how technology can be used to support learning and he is currently pursuing a PhD at TCD on the use of technology to mediate values based learning.  John joined Suas in 2007 as programme manager for the B2C programme and continues to strive to find new and engaging ways to ensure students are prepared for a career in the smart economy.