STILLORGAN College of Education held its
‘Jive Back to
’65’ event recently to celebrate the school’s 50th anniversary.
For the current students it offered a glimpse back to a time when Seán Lemass was Taoiseach, the Vietnam War was raging, the Beatles were vying for Irish chart supremacy with Brendan Bowyer’s Hucklebuck and the Hills were alive with the Sound of Music.
For Anne Turner and Gaye Kane, however, the event was a trip back to their childhood and fond memories of their first days in secondary education.
Anne (nee Gibbons) was 12-years-old when Stillorgan VEC opened its doors for the first time in 1965. She was among a class of twelve girls; there were two other classes of boys. A year later, Gaye Kane started. They struck up a friendship that has lasted beyond their school years, through five decades. Gaye, who at the time lived in UCD where her father was a groundsman and now lives in Dun Laoghaire, spent two years at Stillorgan VEC where she completed her Group Certificate.
“The following year, through the school, I got a job across the road in William Gaul Importers [now the site of the Irish Blood Transfusion Service clinic],
? she recalls.
“I’ve worked for the last 47 years as a bookkeeper since then.
?
Anne, who lived on the grounds of Leopardstown Race Course, where her father was foreman and now lives in Walkinstown, started a secretarial course in her third year in Stillorgan.
She subsequently worked until 1975 when her first child was born.
After their school days, the women retained fond memories of a school that became known locally as
‘De Tec’ so when they recently noticed the college’s Facebook campaign welcoming guests to the
‘Jive Back to
’65’ they took a trip back down memory lane.
On the day, Anne and Gaye were brought on a tour around the facilities by Principal Kevin Harrington and Deputy Principal Carol Gormley.
“It was wonderful to meet them and to listen to their recollections of the college’s early days,
? said Principal Harrington.
“We like to think of ourselves as a small institution with a big heart, and it’s great to meet former students with such positive memories of our school.
?
Naturally, there have been more than a few changes over the last half century – not least the fact that the former VEC school is now exclusively a College of Further Education – offering courses for school leavers and mature students alike in Art, Journalism, Multimedia, Travel and Tourism, Photography, Computers, Event Management, Business and Animation.