Set up in 2012 with the support of long-standing Professor of Economics Dermot McAleese, these awards highlight the important role that TAs play in enhancing the learning experience for students in the School of Social Sciences and Philosophy.
Award winners are selected based on their dedication, effectiveness, and ability to engage and inspire students. These outstanding TAs go above and beyond in their teaching roles, demonstrating a deep commitment to educational excellence.
2024 Winners
This year's winners were announced at a ceremony in the School on May 28th. Congratulations to Imogen Eve, Doireann O’Brien, Henry Potter and Marina Schenkel, who have demonstrated exceptional dedication and effectiveness in their roles, enhancing the learning experience for their students.
Imogen Eve
Imogen Eve is a PhD candidate in Sociology. Working within the sociology of knowledge and education, her research focuses on epistemic decolonisation and its intersections with nationalism and postcolonialism. Specifically, she explores the decolonisation of higher education in the Republic of Ireland. Imogen aims to develop and expand decolonial theory and influence curriculum reforms that promote epistemic decolonisation in higher education, particularly in Ireland.
Proposer | Professor Pablo Gracia
Doireann O`Brien
Doireann O`Brien is a first-year PhD candidate in Economics. She is in the early stages of the first paper of her thesis in which she hopes to investigate whether restricting access to sex-selective abortion increases the incidence of child marriage within the context of a ban in India. Doireann hopes to pursue a career in empirical research, focusing on the areas of gender and development.
Proposers | Professor Ronan Lyons & Professor Francis O'Toole
Henry Potter
Henry Potter is a PhD candidate in Philosophy. His research centres on the philosophical problems of action and free will from a biological perspective. The aim of his work is to develop an empirically grounded framework for understanding the agency of living systems, and to explore the implications of this for traditional debates in the philosophy of free will.
Proposer | Professor Alison Fernandes
Marina Schenkel
Marina Schenkel is a PhD candidate in Political Science. Her research focuses on the political determinants behind adopting contrarian views in policy responses to public health emergencies, such as the COVID-19 pandemic. She specialises in public policy, health policy, and computational methods. Marina aspires to continue researching and teaching in academia, with an emphasis on public policy and health policy issues relevant to the Global South.
Proposer | Dr Eman Abboud