Provost Patrick Prendergast has re-iterated his desire to work with the Take Back Trinity campaign, following over a week of protest on campus in response to College’s decision to introduce a €450 fee for supplemental exams.
“The protests over the last week have been a necessary reminder to us all, staff and students alike, of the financial strain the higher education system is under”, he wrote in an email to all staff and students.
Prendergast met with Trinity College Dublin Students’ Union (TCDSU) President Kevin Keane and Graduate Students’ Union (GSU) President Shane Collins this morning in House Six and was due to meet with them this evening.
Last week, as protests spread across campus, Prendergast tweeted that College would consider alternatives to supplemental exams, as well as modular billing and postgraduate and non-EU fees.
“Your forbearance as we find a solution would be appreciated. I am not asking that anybody wind down their protests – student protest is an honourable tradition that I respect. But I am asking that everybody respects that Trinity belongs to all who study and work here – those that agree with the protests as much as those who disagree with the protests”, he added.
Over 500 Trinity alumni have signed a petition to Prendergast and Trinity College Dublin Alumni Office demanding the reversal of the introduction of the €450 supplemental exam fee.
The protests in Trinity, which included blockades of the Book of Kells, caught national attention. However, it was the occupation of the Dining Hall – and Trinity’s botched attempt to secure it from students – that triggered outpourings of anger online and sympathy for students and the Take Back Trinity campaign. Only the day before, Vice-Provost Chris Morash had told RTÉ that he supported students right to protest and had suggested anger was misguided.
But on Thursday night, following a storm of criticism, Prendergast promised to consider alternative proposals. Speaking to The University Times about this morning’s meeting, Keane said: “Today’s meeting was very productive. The Provost has recognised that the university has to listen to the demands of students.”
