Since Shannon College joined a larger university in 2015, we have been part of many exciting developments and changes. The latest change has been the name of our university. NUI Galway is now called University of Galway and has a new brand which we are proud to be a part of.
One thing that you will notice is that our wings and harp crest no longer features as part of our college logo. We will continue to proudly use our crest for alumni and other internal college activities so it will not be lost. We are very proud of our heritage and what our crest stands for – “the wings of tourism lifting the harp of Ireland” and this continuous to influence the ethos of Shannon College of Hotel Management – this features on page 1 of the new Under Graduate Prospectus. There is understandable concern amongst many alumni that the iconic crest will fade out over time and cease to mean something to incoming students.
At the end of September, I shared a short survey with Alumni entitled ‘What the Shannon College of Hotel Management Crest means to me’ and 326 Alumni took the time out of their very busy days to respond.
On October 27th, we got the opportunity to have a discussion with the University about future use of the SCHM Wings Crest. The new Alumni President, Eamonn Casey (2004) spoke with such passion and dignity on behalf of the Alumni. 326 replies to the Alumni Survey on “What the Shannon College Crest means to me” were received and Eamonn had these bound into the format of the traditional SCHM Thesis to give all of your thoughts and feedback the respect and consideration that they deserve.
Despite Eamonn planning to speak for 5 minutes, he spoke for 30 minutes and represented us all so well!
Phillip Smyth also spoke on behalf of Shannon College and 4th year student Leah McCarthy Cahill gave a wonderful representation on behalf of the current students.
Unscripted, Kate O’Connell then spoke and her passion and emotion was palpable and so heartfelt.
The reaction from the University delegation after today is very positive. In particular, they referenced the obvious professionalism and passion on display throughout.
- The big take away is that we need to be able to tell our story.
- Using our crest in areas such as Alumni is now locked in.
- Usage of the crest internally is also agreed in principal and we will now start to engage with the branding team in the University with regard to actual usage.
Final agreements as to its continued usage are still ongoing.
Read all 326 replies on the link below:
We are a school of the University of Galway and this is only positive for Shannon College in a highly competitive and crowded market. So much has changed in the world of education and hotels since Shannon was founded in 1951 and our future and your legacy is now secure. I would like to assure all alumni that the University is extremely proud and supportive of all that we do and are keen to work with us so that our story can be shared and celebrated.
