REMARKS BY PRESIDENT McALEESE AT THE PRESENTATION OF THE ONE MILLIONTH FETAC AWARD
REMARKS BY PRESIDENT McALEESE AT THE PRESENTATION OF THE ONE MILLIONTH FETAC AWARD MONDAY, 8TH NOVEMBER, 2010
Dia dhíbh a chairde inniu. What a great and unusual occasion this is when we gather to mark the presentation of the one millionth FETAC award. My thanks to Donal O Rourke and his team for inviting me to join you in celebrating what is not simply an important milestone in FETAC’s history but a massive investment in Ireland itself through the one million lives enhanced through FETAC since it first began in 2001.
Galileo once said ‘You cannot teach a man anything; you can only help him find it within himself’ and the truth of that reminds us that we would have nothing at all to celebrate if men and women did not take the opportunity offered by FETAC. Thankfully we have an ambitious people, anxious to improve themselves and their life chances through education and training and so with the help of organisations like FETAC, over 300,000 people a year in Ireland, are finding within themselves abilities and talents which are changing their lives.
For some of the recipients of the one million awards to date taking on a FETAC course was the beginning of the end of under-achievement, of problems with literacy and numeracy that had lingered from school-days and dogged their lives. It was the beginning of self-confidence and pride as they found the courage to start again. For others FETAC offered them the chance to progress their education and training step by step and to build their self-belief so that they could take on higher and higher award levels. No two stories are exactly the same but almost all FETAC graduates have the same reaction to their achievements and to the experience of being FETAC students. It was worth the hard work, the sacrifice, the new discipline of studying and it changed their lives for the better.
I am proud to say that some of those one million awards went to members of the Áras an Uachtaráin OPW Household staff who received a range of high-level FETAC diplomas earlier this year in the Aras first ever graduation ceremony. Hard though it was to work, rear families and study at the same time there was among the Áras staff an overwhelming delight at their success, at the friendships made, the new skills acquired and the hunger for more that each of them now has. Each one was so alive to their own giftedness and potential thanks to FETAC and thanks to their individual commitment to FETAC.
Each one is stronger for themselves, their families, their workplace and for our country. They are in many ways a massive national resource base of courage, heroism and civic mindedness for they are the kind of people who do not let the most difficult of circumstances overwhelm them without a fight.
I have often said that the most impressive people I have met since becoming President are those I met through Adult education, in particular the work of NALA which helps people with literacy problems. I have met men and women who could not read their children a bed-time story, who were afraid to socialise in case their inability to read would become obvious, who lived their lives under awful clouds of self-doubt, always on the outside of a world where everyone else seemed to be making progress but where they felt marooned - until they made the decision to get back into education again. They told me of the sheer joy of being able to write a birthday card, or fill out an application form for a job or a place in College. They revealed through their lives the fullness and the potential that emerges when we start to investigate what we are capable of through education and training.
One of the most encouraging things in these not so encouraging times is the number of people who are unemployed or worried about unemployment, who have returned to education to make sure that when the upturn comes, as it will, they will be really well prepared for the new job opportunities that will open up. They refuse to sit back and let life just flow past them, making spectators of them. Instead they are taking control adjusting to the changing economic conditions, getting ready for the new labour market requirements, using their time well and investing in the optimism that comes from doing something positive. It is people with that cool mixture of realism and optimism and ‘can do’ attitude that will help Ireland become a stable and prosperous economy in the months and years ahead.
A famous American businessman once said ‘Be a student as long as you still have something to learn, and this will mean all your life’. Education is a great companion through life. It is a buffer against boredom, a prompt towards personal achievement and a catalyst for the kind of curiosity that keeps us in love with life. As you receive your awards today I hope you look back on the steps it took to get here, with deep pride in your commitment and your tried and tested abilities. The certificates tell us the subjects you excelled in but they also tell us the kind of people you are, the staying power you have, the spirit you have and the enthusiasm you bring to life. You radiate hope in these somewhat dark days and it is my fervent hope for you that with the help of your FETAC qualifications your futures will shine in ways that will surprise and fulfil you.
I congratulate Donal and the Council, Stan McHugh and the fantastic staff of FETAC and the FETAC accredited bodies, on the huge effort that has produced one million awards. I wish FETAC well in the exciting amalgamation with HETAC and the National Qualifications Authority of Ireland. Finally I would like to congratulate all of the award recipients here today and all those who make up the million. Without you there would be no role for FETAC and with you we have this unique celebration - which your hearts, hands and brains have created.You should be very proud of what you have achieved and I wish you all continued success in the future.
Comghairdeas libh arís ‘s go raibh míle maith agaibh go léir.