Governor Lane Visits Schools in Sligo and Longford

• Governor Lane meets students at Summerhill & Mercy College, Coola PPS and St Mel’s
• Students ask questions and given insight into Bank’s work
• Visiting schools part of Central Bank Outreach programme 

The Governor of the Central Bank of Ireland, Philip R. Lane, together with Patrick Casey, Registrar of Credit Unions, met with secondary school students in Sligo and Longford this week as part of the Central Bank’s outreach and engagement programme.

Governor Lane met with business and economics students from Summerhill College and The Mercy College in Sligo, Coola Post-Primary School in Riverstown and St. Mel’s College in Longford. It was familiar territory for Patrick Casey, Registrar of Credit Unions, as he is a former past-pupil of Summerhill College in Sligo.

Speaking afterwards, Governor Lane said: “I was delighted to be invited to these schools and to have the opportunity to listen to the students and explain the work we do at the Central Bank.

“School visits are a great opportunity to connect with young people, and to meet the next generation of economists. However, there are people with a wide range of backgrounds- other than economics doing important work at the Central Bank. For example, we welcome people with backgrounds in science, law, business and communications, to name a few.”

Governor Lane pointed out that the school visits to Sligo and Longford are an important part the Central Bank’s bid to engage directly with the public and to build understanding and awareness of its role and activities.

“Regional school visits are a key part of explaining our work and functions to safeguard stability and protect consumers. More generally, we recently had a chance to meet with thousands of people at the National Ploughing Championships in Tullamore in September. It was our third trip to the Ploughing, and people who visited us could view exhibits from our new Visitor Centre on the North Wall Quay in Dublin and look at material from the newly opened Central Bank archives."

Governor Lane and Patrick Casey began their day with a presentation at Summerhill College in Sligo, home to the 2017 Generation Euro competition winners. The winning team were on hand to welcome back past pupil Patrick Casey and Governor Lane having visited the ECB in Frankfurt through the Central Bank-run competition earlier this year. Students from the Mercy College in Sligo were also in attendance.

The Governor and Patrick Casey then travelled to Riverstown in Sligo to meet students in Coola Post Primary School before concluding the day at St. Mel’s College in Longford Town.