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Protesters from different language schools outside the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service Offices in Dublin Sam Boal via Photocall Ireland
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Task force set up to protect students affected by closure of private colleges
The group will try to place students in other language schools and accommodate them where possible.
THE MINISTER FOR Education Ruairí Quinn has announced that a task force will be set up to protect students who have been affected by the closure of private colleges.
Five private colleges have closed in recent weeks.
The group will try to place students in other language schools and accommodate them where possible.
The Minister also confirmed that students with visa issues are being given grace periods with regard to their immigration status so that they can remain in Ireland and plan their next steps.
Hundreds of students are out of pocket after the closure of the schools following an investigation into certain schools falsifying attendance records.
The task force will meet for the first time on Friday 23 May and is expected to complete its work within weeks.
The goal of the task force will be to urgently:
- Coordinate efforts regarding protection of learners affected by private sector college closures
- Determine the number of students who have not yet been satisfactorily accommodated (either through placement or immigration extension).
- Assess what existing capacity is available in the sector to make reasonable accommodation for genuine students and what further steps need to be taken.
- Oversee a system that seeks to make reasonable accommodation for students.
Ruairi Quinn says the panel will be made up of officials from his department, the Department of Justice and various English language and students’ groups.
The Education Minister said:
“We have every sympathy for the genuine students who have been affected by the closure of these private colleges and this Government wants to assist and co-ordinate a sympathetic response to them.
We take such a strong view of the impact these private college closures have on genuine international students and also on the wider need to protect Ireland’s reputation as a quality destination for international students that we are acting on several fronts.
“It is also important to note that the students who have been affected are being given grace periods with regard to their immigration status so that they can remain in Ireland, continue to work to support themselves and have the time to plan their next steps”.
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