Prof Sarah Alyn-Stacey has put her name forward for the position of Provost, she confirmed to this newspaper this morning.
Three other Trinity top professors – Prof Jane Ohlmeyer, Prof Linda Doyle and Prof Linda Hogan – have also in recent weeks announced their intentions to run for the top job.
Provost Patrick Prendergast will finish his term on July 31st, and the next head of Trinity will take charge the next day.
The brief of the job is vast: a 10-year term of office at the helm of Ireland’s most prestigious university, leading its academic, administrative and financial affairs.
The road to the job is a long one: applicants must go through an interview process before being elected by academic staff – as well as a handful of student votes – and then appointed by College Board, the chief governing body of the College.
Applications for the position of Provost close today at midday, and interviews for the position will take place over the course of December and January by the Interview Committee, which has been appointed by the College Board.
Campaigning will then begin on February 5th and end on April 7th, with elections taking place on April 10th. The elected candidate’s name will then be brought to Board for approval.
Alyn-Stacey must step down from the Interview Committee for the position of Provost and from her position on College Board for the duration of the election.
Alyn-Stacey is an associate professor in Trinity’s French department, and teaches at both undergraduate and postgraduate level.
She is the director of the Trinity Centre for Medieval and Renaissance Studies, a research centre which she founded in 1999. In 2001, Alyn-Stacey established the centre’s MPhil in Medieval Language, Literature and Culture.
Alyn-Stacey also served as the Irish representative to the Society for Renaissance Studies for over 10 years and sat on the Executive Committee of the society for nearly 20 years. She is currently a member of the editorial board of the interdisciplinary journal H-France.
In 2017, Alyn-Stacey was named a Knight of the National Order of Merit by French ambassador to Dublin Jean-Pierre Thébault. Membership to the National Order of Merit is awarded by the French President.
Alyn-Stacey also sits on the College Board, the University Council, the Standing Committee of Fellows, and the Grounds and Gardens Consultative Group.
