BFEI News Roundup

Here’s the latest news from Blackrock Further Education Institute!

DRAGON’S DEN AT BFEI

This year BFEI introduced an ‘Entrepreneurial Endeavour Award’ in the Entrepreneurial Skills Module. This award went to the team that demonstrated outstanding entrepreneurial flair underpinned by a high standard of market research, financial literacy and of course innovation and creativity.
BFEI also ran Dragon’s Den as usual. Over fifty Entrepreneurial Skills students participated, working collaboratively in 18 groups. Teams pitched their new business ideas in an effort to secure financial investment in return for an equity share in their new business; this is a great learning opportunity for all involved.
BFEI were fortunate to have Lisa Cunningham (MD – Vogue Business Development) mentor students throughout the process and this culminated in Lisa judging the winning team, ‘Kick Clean’ from the BSM class.

Winning Team: Justin Lowe, Hugh Reid, Harry O’Kane and Jack McGann, with Lisa Cunningham.

Lisa’s involvement was made possible because of the support of our Local Enterprise Office (LEO) in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown.

RAG DAY

Rag Day, held on the UNESCO International Day of Education, offered a huge range of activities for students and staff to get involved in. From the madness of pie throwing to the safe space of a bake sale, and everything in between, all to raise money for medicines for Ukraine. A nail treatment was a popular option for a lot of staff and students alike – male waxing was only for the few brave at heart. Over 1,400 euro was raised on the day.

CULTURAL TRIP TO MADRID

The Design Department went on a cultural visit to Madrid. They spent four days visiting Museums in the morning and discovering contemporary landscapes, historic interiors and innovative wall art in the afternoons. The evenings were spent tasting the culinary delights with fun interaction between all classes. Upon their return, they were brimming with inspiration and eager to incorporate new ideas into their project work for the year.

PRE-FIRE AND AMBULANCE STUDENTS KEPT ON THEIR TOES

Pre-Fire and Ambulance students were kept busy all year. In February alone they had a full schedule of events with students getting to meet industry experts in Dublin Fire Brigade, Dublin Airport Search and Rescue, Dublin Airport Fire Service, Army, Air Corps, Military Police and Air Ambulance staff to hear about the many career options available to them.

Many students then found Work Experience in Dublin Fire Brigade, Dublin Airport, Hospitals and Care homes. They then got to enjoy a day of teambuilding in GoQuest in Carrickmines.

GoQuest is also where the Exercise & Fitness students went to work on their problem-solving skills and to engage in team-building fun.

THE DEVIL IS IN THE DETAILA forensic workshop was a fun and educational day for Psychology and Law students. Questioning “facts”, looking at a crime from all potential angles, learning how to recognise misconceptions and bias, were all incorporated into a “Who Killed JFK?” workshop.

A CALM CUPPA!

A Calm Cuppa was organised by teaching and Guidance staff to cut the ribbon on a Peace Pod installed for the benefit of students who need a quiet space from time to time. Since its launch the individual pod/workspace has been very popular with students and is rarely empty!
Below: Tina Reddin, BFEI Principal, with staff and students at the Peace Pod

ERASMUS+

Erasmus+ was a hit yet again for BFEI students who got to go to Netherlands, Spain and Portugal. All Erasmus+ student mobilities are fully funded by the European Commission through Léargas, our National Agency. Flights, accommodation, insurance and living expenses are provided to students as part of this fantastic initiative. Over 50 BFEI students got the opportunity to do their work experience abroad and enjoy life in a different country for a few weeks.

PROGRESSION LINKS TO UNIVERSITY

On a more academic note, BFEI got great news when Trinity College Dublin announced that it is now accepting applications to its prestigious 4 Year Level 8 TR004 LL.B. Law Degree under the Higher Education Links Scheme from QQI Level 5 Applicants who have achieved the Level 5 Certificate in Legal Studies at BFEI. This is a fantastic development and means QQI level 5 qualifications are now accepted by all Third Level Universities and Institutes of Technologies (IOTs) within the State for progression purposes.

WATERCOLOUR WORKSHOP WITH LIAM

Design students delved into dynamic workshops led by none other than the renowned artist Liam O’Herlihy, who also serves as the esteemed President of The Water Colour Society of Ireland. With Liam’s expert guidance, students immersed themselves in the world of watercolor painting, mastering brush techniques and exploring vibrant color palettes. Under his mentorship, they unleashed their creativity, transforming blank canvases into captivating water colour paintings.

FINALLY, AN AWARD-WINNING BUILDING TOO

While all of this was going on for the students and staff at BFEI, McCullough Mulvin Architects received a “Highly Commended” award from the Royal Institute of Architects of Ireland (RIAI) in recognition of their conservation and restoration work on the BFEI campus building and the Carnegie Library. The judges recognised their sensitive conservation of three existing protected structures while creating beautiful learning spaces and making a hugely positive contribution to the revitalisation of Blackrock Village.