INNER-NORTH SCHOOLS:THE RECESSION made Amy Yeomans (19), from Cabra, Dublin, go back to get her Leaving Certificate earlier this year.
Poring over her results outside St Joseph’s Secondary School for Girls in Stoneybatter yesterday, she was delighted with her results.
“I left after fifth year but when I couldn’t get a decent job and I was going nowhere I thought, ‘Here I better go back and do me Leaving’. I’ve got what I wanted and I’ll do dental nursing in Marino now, so yeah I’m thrilled.”
Her friend Chelsea O’Neill (19), from James’s Street, did “great” she said. “I passed all my subjects. I’m planning on studying to be a special needs assistant in Liberties College.”
There were just 31 girls in the class of 2009 at the school. Principal Tommy Coyle was pleased with the results and proud of his staff who gave “great pastoral care” to their charges. “They really get to know each of them and draw the best out of them.”
“Our catchment is from the local O’Devaney Gardens flats up to around Cabra. We have about 40 per cent non-national students, so there’s mix. It’s mixed-ability teaching and some of the achievements are wonderful. We had one girl who was identified as highly vulnerable, socially and academically, from primary school. She would have been at high risk of dropping out early, and here she is today with her Leaving Cert and her six passes.
Cutbacks in the school budget would affect that capacity next year, he said. “We are losing €10,000 from our Leaving Cert Applied and our Transition Year budgets and our parents don’t have the money to fundraise.”
A 10-minute drive away results were also being given out at Belvedere College boys’ school.
Jim Briscoe (18) from Skerries did well, he said, with 395 points, and hoped to do quantity surveying in DIT. “I’m not sure about the points. It was 405 last year but I’m hoping they’ll be down.”
His mother, Gráinne, beamed as she held his certificate and described herself as “relieved”.
“You just don’t know how it’s going to go but when I saw him come out of the room I knew he was happy enough,” she said.
Donal O’Riordan (18) from Donabate got 515 points and hopes to do law in UCD. “I’m delighted. Happy now and we’re off to the Dandelion to celebrate tonight.”
Principal Gerry Foley said the results were “very good”, that students had improved significantly since their mock exams and two students achieved the maximum 600 points. Some 10 per cent of the intake were from poorer families, who got a place through a school access programme, he said.
“It’s a tough and worrying time for all students now. We hope they all go on to make the most of what they have achieved with us. We know their own futures, and ours as a country, depends on a well-educated population.”
In the nearby O’Connell School off the North Circular Road, Jidefor Onwugbenu (18), originally from Nigeria, was confident he would get his first choice, computer science in Trinity. “I’m very happy.” Principal Michael Finucane, like Mr Coyle at St Joseph’s, expressed his anxiety about cutbacks in the school budget.
“They will affect us. We have a heavy need for language support teachers here but we hope we can make a special case to the department not to lose any.”
