Iognáid G. Ó Muircheartaigh is an Irish academic who served as president of

NUI Galway The University of Galway ( ga, Ollscoil na Gaillimhe) is a public research university located in the city of Galway, Ireland. A tertiary education and research institution, the university was awarded the full five QS stars for excellence in 201 ...

between 2000 and 2008. The Ó Muircheartaigh Hall in the university's sports centre is named in his honour.

Early life and education

From

County Kerry County Kerry ( gle, Contae Chiarraí) is a county in Ireland. It is located in the South-West Region and forms part of the province of Munster. It is named after the Ciarraige who lived in part of the present county. The population of the co ...

, he attended an Irish-speaking school, Colaiste Mhuire, on Dublin's Parnell Square. He then attended

University College Dublin University College Dublin (commonly referred to as UCD) ( ga, Coláiste na hOllscoile, Baile Átha Cliath) is a public research university in Dublin, Ireland, and a collegiate university, member institution of the National University of Ireland ...

. He earned a PhD in statistics at the

University of Glasgow , image = UofG Coat of Arms.png , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms Flag , latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis , motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita , ...

, and he was awarded a Fulbright Fellowship at

Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...

, and a US

National Academy of Sciences The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the Nati ...

Senior Research Associateship at the US Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California.

Academic career

During his term as president, NUI Galway conferred honorary doctorates on

Nelson Mandela Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela (; ; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African Internal resistance to apartheid, anti-apartheid activist who served as the President of South Africa, first president of South Africa from 1994 to 1 ...

, Louise Arbour, Sr.

Helen Prejean Helen Prejean ( ; born April 21, 1939) is a Catholic religious sister and a leading American advocate for the abolition of the death penalty. She is known for her best-selling book, '' Dead Man Walking'' (1993), based on her experiences with t ...

Richard Goldstone Richard Joseph Goldstone (born 26 October 1938) is a South African former judge. After working for 17 years as a commercial lawyer, he was appointed by the South African government to serve on the Transvaal Supreme Court from 1980 to 1989 and ...

Philippe Kirsch Philippe Kirsch, (born April 1, 1947) is a Canadian lawyer who served as a judge of the International Criminal Court from 2003 to 2009 and was the Court's first president. Biography Kirsch was born in Belgium in 1947 and arrived in Canada in 19 ...

Pius Langa Pius Nkonzo Langa Order of the Baobab, SCOB (25 March 1939 – 24 July 2013) was Chief Justice of South Africa, serving on the Constitutional Court of South Africa, Constitutional Court. He was appointed to the bench in 1994 by Nelson Mandela, h ...

and

Cyril Ramaphosa Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa (born 17 November 1952) is a South African businessman and politician who is currently serving as the fifth democratically elected president of South Africa. Formerly an anti-apartheid activist, trade union leader, and ...

. As an adjunct professor in Human Rights, he continues to undertake research in Statistics, with applications in Human Rights, Economics, and Medicine.

Other roles

Ó Muircheartaigh has also served on the board of directors of

Aer Arann Stobart Air, legally incorporated as ''Stobart Air Unlimited Company'', was an Irish regional airline headquartered in Dublin. It operated scheduled services under the brands Aer Lingus Regional, BA CityFlyer and KLM Cityhopper on behalf of the ...

. He is also on the board of directors of the Galway Rape Crisis Centre.

Recognition

He was conferred with honorary doctorates by both the University of Connecticut and the University of Massachusetts.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Omuircheartaigh, Iognaid G. 20th-century Irish people Presidents of the University of Galway People from County Kerry People educated at Coláiste Mhuire, Dublin 21st-century Irish people Alumni of University College Dublin Alumni of the University of Glasgow