Trinity College’s Eoghan Gilroy, Pádraig Mac Brádaigh, and Daniel Walsh have been elected to USI’s executive team today.
A motion passed this morning at USI’s national congress mandates that the organisation, formerly the Union of Students in Ireland, will now be referred to as Aontas Mac Léinn in Éirinn (AMLÉ).
Gilroy was elected as Vice-President for Academic Affairs and is the current Education Officer of Trinity College Dublin Students’ Union (TCDSU). Mac Brádaigh – Oifigeach na Gaeilge d’Aontas Mac Léinn Coláiste na Tríonóide – has been elected as Leas-Uachtarán don Gaeilge. Law student Walsh – who served as the 2024/2025 chair of TCDSU Council – has been elected as Vice-President for the Dublin Region.
Bryan O’Mahony, the Vice President for AMLÉ, has been newly elected as the President of AMLÉ. O’Mahony will take over from Chris Clifford who held the AMLÉ President position for two years, and worked full-time for at Student Union positions at Munster Technological University (MTU) prior to his AMLÉ Presidency.
Speaking last night at USI Congress hustings in Wexford, Gilroy spoke about how he has attended many congresses with USI and often isn’t sure of what is going on – which is something he’d like to change about the union. Gilroy commented on his win to The University Times that: “It’s not a job that I wanted initially, but sure, we’ll go for it now. Give it the best […] I think it’s great to be elected alongside two others like my fellow Trinity Student’s Union Pádraig and Daniel. I think we do things uniquely in Trinity and that’s the kind of energy I’d like to bring to USI and I think it definitely needs it.”
At the hustings, Mac Brádaigh highlighted his extensive experience securing funding for Irish in Trinity and said that he would support the creation of other full-time Irish language officers roles in colleges across the country. After his election, he said: “Táim ar bís amach ‘s amach.”
“Táim ag tnúth go mór, mór leis an mbliain amach romham agus ba mhaith liom an obair a rinne mé i gColáiste na Tríonóide a leathnú amach chuig gach ollscoil ar fud na tíre – sin an fáth ar sheas mé”.
During Walsh’s hustings speech he talked about the importance of collaboration and pledged that he would visit colleges “as much as you’ll have me”. Walsh said that he is “delighted” to be elected and he “can’t wait to get started”.
USI’s website outlines that a role on the Executive team means being the “public face of USI” over the course of the one year position.
