Prof Jane Ohlmeyer will campaign on a promise to “unlock Trinity’s full potential”, setting out ambitious aspirations to make Trinity a “serious player on the world stage”.
Ohlmeyer’s manifesto promises that if elected, she will recognise the “significant challenges” College faces both “internally and externally”, declaring as well that “this is a time for change.”
“I will bring new ideas grounded in broad experience, new energy, empathetic leadership, as well as a return to putting people first and trusting and valuing our Trinity community.”
The manifesto is light on specific policy points, but Ohlmeyer said: “This is the start of my conversation about the issues, not the end, and I will be publishing policy statements during the campaign as well as developing some of the ideas contained here.”
Ohlmeyer asserts her belief that “by working together as a community we can shape the future and success not only of Trinity but of Ireland on the world stage, contributing in our different ways to a more inclusive, equitable, and just society for all”.
If elected, Ohlmeyer says that she will be a Provost who is “bold in vision, fearless in commitment to scholarly excellence and to advancing a pluralistic and inclusive society”.
Ohlmeyer adds that she would be “compassionate in enabling, and inspiring colleagues and students to be the best they can be, as leaders and as people”.
“I am running for Provost because I have these qualities”, Ohlmeyer adds. “As well as the proven track record, the breadth of experience at home and abroad, and the vision and clarity of purpose to steer Trinity through the current challenges and to ensure that we build on all that is great about our University.”
As Provost, Ohlmeyer says it would be her commitment to “nurture and facilitate” Trinity’s “shared history, collective understandings, and diverse and rich expertise”, in order “to impact society, to inspire the brightest minds and to support excellent research”.
Ohlmeyer adds that as Provost she will lead “by listening, by placing trust in the community, and by facilitating an ethos where people feel valued.”
Ohlmeyer acknowledges the wide scope of current crises that College is facing, saying: “From pandemic conditions to the climate emergency, the second millennium has brought profound and rapid change to our world.”
“Never before has it been more critical that Trinity is led by a Provost who embodies the values of the University.”
Ohlmeyer was previously the director of the Long Room Hub until earlier this year, having been elected in 2015. She is also a Fellow and is an expert in early modern Irish and British history, holding the title Erasmus Smith’s Professor of Modern History at Trinity. She is also the chair of the Irish Research Council. She ran unsuccessfully for Provost in 2011.
Ohlmeyer is running alongside two other female candidates, Linda Hogan and Linda Doyle.
Campaigns for the Provost elections launched today and will continue until April 7th, when over 800 academics will vote online.
The brief of the role of Provost is vast: a 10-year term of office at the helm of Ireland’s most prestigious university, leading its academic, administrative and financial affairs.
