A total of 120 golfers took part in our 25th Golf Classic at Powerscourt Golf Club on 1st September 2023 to raise funds to support our work with women, families and communities across Ireland.
It was a great day of golf and camaraderie, with one of the highlights being adult learner Tamara Kearns sharing her experience of empowerment through education with An Cosán.
Tamara, who completed our NFQ Level 6 Personal and Professional Development course and is now entering her second year of our BA programme in Leadership and Community Development (both of which are accredited by South East Technological University), said she “absolutely loved” where her lifelong learning journey had brought her so far.
“An Cosán is an amazing adult community education provider,” she said. “The wraparound supports cover all aspects of college life because An Cosán wants its students to be able to focus on their work and to succeed.”
Ms Kearns, who left school early due to bullying, said she found applying for a bursary with An Cosán to be “effortless”, and that she had felt greatly supported by An Cosán’s counselling service.
“Studying has become a part of my daily life,” Tamara said. “Every opportunity I get to squeeze in some research is crucial, whether it’s listening to podcasts whilst driving, or reading aloud whilst cooking dinner. Education is a huge part of my family’s life now because when I’m learning, so are my kids.”
Ms Kearns said returning to education had greatly enhanced her CV and enabled her to secure “a fabulous job” with Northside Partnership. “My plans for the future are to continue with my education; I think I’ve caught the bug!” she said. “I would like to do a Master’s and I want to write a book. I want to see more people go back to education and I want to see communities working together.”
Thanking Ms Kearns for sharing her story, Chair of the Board Anna Durkan said: “An Cosán is all about giving opportunities to learners – adults and children – to develop skills and confidence so that they have choices in life. It’s about providing a pathway out of poverty. All our programmes are based on breaking down barriers – the barriers that women so often face, the barriers that society frequently doesn’t even recognise. We believe that, by coming together in solidarity, we can smash the cycle of inter-generational disadvantage and create brighter futures for women, families and communities. We are hugely grateful to all the companies who supported us today, especially our title sponsor, D/RES Properties.”
An Cosán CEO Heydi Foster said An Cosán was not in the business of handing out empowerment. “It is our adult learners, like Tamara, who empower themselves with the tools that we offer,” she said. “We support them to unlock a world of opportunities by helping them unleash their potential within.”
Heydi added, “An Cosán will continue to be a model for how to work in an inclusive way with communities who have faced being excluded and marginalised for too long. And we will work with and help shape the policy of Government so that they understand the impact that this way of working has on people’s lives and hear the voices of those it empowers.
“We couldn’t do this work without our generous supporters and without funding from SOLAS, the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, Pobal, Tusla and the Dublin Dún Laoghaire Education and Training Board.”
We were delighted that a total of €21,000 was raised through the Golf Classic.
You can see lots of photos from our Golf Classic at this link!
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