Pictured: Ambassador of Ireland to the USA, H.E. Geraldine Byrne Nason and Professor Eugene Wall, President of MIC
Mary Immaculate College and the Ambassador of Ireland to the USA, H.E. Geraldine Byrne Nason recently hosted a gathering of educational partners in Washington DC.
Close to 100 guests were present at the event at the Ambassador’s residence, including the Presidents and representatives of MIC’s partner universities, who were also attending the annual meeting of the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities (ACCU) in the American capital at that time.
The event marked the fourth such gathering in recent years, following a similar reception at the residence of Ambassador Byrne Nason in 2023 and two with her predecessor, H.E. Daniel Mulhall—who co-hosted gatherings with MIC in 2018 and 2022.
Speaking at the event, President of MIC, Professor Eugene Wall said: “I am very grateful to the Ambassador for her generous willingness to host this reception again this year. I am so very pleased to see so many of our international partners here this evening, not only from the US, but from several other countries as well. There are historically strong cultural and economic ties between Ireland and the United States and those linkages have been a pivotal influence in shaping modern Ireland and in powering our vibrant economic growth. A key priority for my time as President of MIC has been bringing about a significant expansion of our global activities, which I deem to be core to the College’s mission and success, and occasions such as this have contributed much to advancing that mission.”
Also addressing attendees at the event was Ambassador Byrne Nason who spoke to Ireland’s globally recognised excellence in education. Also speaking were two American MIC graduates: Media Studies graduate, John Joe Horan and recent Erasmus+ exchange student from Boston College, Drina Yatsu. John Joe said that studying at MIC was a “life-changing experience” for him and Drina informed the audience that she was “extremely proud of her experience at MIC” and how she has brought many learnings from Ireland into her classroom, including hurling demonstrations!
The event was held on Friday 2 February and attendees were presented with St Brigid’s Cross pins in celebration of the Feast Day of Ireland’s Patroness Saint.
Most of the institutions represented at the event partner with MIC for staff and student exchanges annually and the value of the shared knowledge, friendship and solidarity characteristic of these partnerships was also noted on the night.
