The Trinity College Dublin Trust has set up a special fund of €100,000 for student groups in College.
Student societies, clubs and other organised student groups can apply to the trust for cash to spend on new projects “that advance learning and education in College”.
The deadline for applications is December 11th. The trust will announce the results of the funding call in mid-January.
€5,000 will normally be the cap on the grants handed out by the trust, which wants to support student life during the pandemic.
The trust is looking for “innovative initiatives designed to enhance student life under current restrictions”.
In their applications, groups must explain how their ideas improve extracurricular activities and student life under the coronavirus restrictions. The trust will prioritise grants earmarked for next semester.
The trust states on its website that “to be successful, an application needs to be for a well-defined purpose, and must include a detailed budget explaining how the grant is to be be spent”.
“Applicants must indicate any other sources of funding they have applied for and the amount of support (if any) received. Grants will not be awarded retrospectively”, it adds.
Individuals and staff members are not eligible for the grants.
The Trinity College Dublin Trust was set up in 1987, a merger of the Association – established in 1928 – and the Trust – established 1955.
A group of Trinity graduates manage the trust on a voluntary basis. It focuses on providing funding for College projects where funding is not available from “mainstream resources”, its webpage states.
During the 2018/19 academic year, the trust supported 90 activities – from the “activities of student clubs and societies, academic research, student welfare and travel, training and charitable activities”.
The pandemic has hit societies and sports clubs hard. Restrictions on team sports and gatherings have made it impossible for most sports clubs to engage in their sports.
Due to the government restrictions, a traditional freshers’ fair with hoards of people and stalls lining Front Square was not possible this year.
To lessen the blow to society membership and to allow first years to still enjoy society life in their first week, the CSC launched Trinity Societies Sign-Up Hub, a place where societies can upload content and students can join as many societies as they like using their card.
The hub has proven successful, and many societies remained upbeat in the aftermath of the shift to online, despite the dip in sign-ups.
