Seven asylum seekers and refugees will receive full scholarships.
University College Cork (UCC) became Ireland’s third University to acquire University of Sanctuary status.
The award was issued by the City of Sanctuary, an organisation that supports efforts in the UK and Ireland to build a culture of hospitality for people seeking sanctuary.
Professor Caroline Fennel, UCC’s Senior Vice President, was delighted by the news, saying: “Universities provide a key space in which to challenge societal assumptions and to support and highlight work aimed at fostering a culture of welcome for asylum seekers and refugees.”
Professor Fennell continued, saying that UCC’s new found Sanctuary Status is not a marker just of what has been achieved in UCC “but an indicator of the need for sustained and creative work to support asylum seekers and refugees locally and internationally”.
“Through the range of initiatives cultivated over many years in UCC, we [UCC] are dedicated to providing spaces to learn about what sanctuary means, to develop a sustainable culture of welcome and to share our practices and initiatives with communities and other higher education institutions”.
The new status will now see seven asylum seekers and refugees receiving full scholarships to attend the university. Set to be provided from September 2018, the scholarships will cover full fees and tuition, as well as travel and expenses.
UCC joins Dublin City University (DCU) and the University of Limerick (UL) that have already been awarded University of Sanctuary status in Ireland.
From February 5 to 9, UCC will host Refugee Week during which the film ‘Sorry I Drowned’ by Studio Kawakeb and Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), will be screened in the Glucksman Gallery.
And on February 6, Alison Phipps, Professor of Languages and Intercultural Studies and UNESCO Chair in Refugee Integration through Languages and the Arts at Glasgow University, will present her keynote lecture titled ‘What is Refuge, Who Decides and How?’
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