South West College has just launched its Friends and Alumni Association with membership from across the Enniskillen, Omagh, Dungannon and Cookstown Campus areas. The Association will provide parents with the opportunity to become more involved in the life of the College and will bring the College and the communities it serves closer together.
The vision for the Friends and Alumni Association is to integrate and connect the four Colleges through state of the art conferencing facilities giving all parents easy access to any meeting in any Campus minimising travel time to venues.
Michael McAlister, Deputy Director, explained "Parents of students attending South West College automatically become members of the Association and we are keen to see as many parents as possible come forward to serve on the Committee."
Michael continued "We aim to contribute positively and practically to our young people's experience of Further Education and also to debunk the myth that the contribution of parents to their child's educational life must end when they complete Secondary School."
Rita Overend, Secretary of the Friends and Alumni Association, told us "The Association was formed as a means of connecting and contributing to aspects of College life. As a mother of three sons, being involved in their day to day education was important to me and I was a member of Parent Councils throughout their earlier education years."
Rita continued "I have always enjoyed interactions with their schools and quickly realised that when my eldest son became a student at the South West College in Omagh, I had, effectively, been cut out of the loop. I am delighted that this opportunity has arisen and it has already proved a valuable means of getting to know other parents and College Educators. I already feel connected to the College and am familiarising myself with the very real and valuable contribution SWC makes to my community."
For further information including dates of meetings, please telephone 0845 603 1881.