Áine Ní Cheanainn (1907–1999) was

headmistress A headmaster/headmistress, head teacher, head, school administrator, principal or school director (sometimes another title is used) is the staff member of a school with the greatest responsibility for the management of the school. Role While s ...

and co-founder of Cumann Scannán na nÓg. Ní Cheanainn was born in Derryvea,

Kiltimagh Kiltimagh () is a town in County Mayo in Ireland. As of the 2022 census, the town had a population of 1,232 people. Although there is no river going through the town, three rivers flow around the town: the Glore River, Yellow River and Pollag ...

County Mayo County Mayo (; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. In the West Region, Ireland, West of Ireland, in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht, it is named after the village of Mayo, County Mayo, Mayo, now ge ...

, daughter of a shopkeeper. She was taught locally before attending Carysfort Training College from 1925 to 1927, graduating with a qualification for primary level. She later studied at UCD, where she obtained an M.A. in education. She taught at Scoil Mhuire in

Howth Howth ( ; ; ) is a peninsular village and outer suburb of Dublin, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The district as a whole occupies the greater part of the peninsula of Howth Head, which forms the northern boundary of Dublin Bay, and includes the ...

from 1927, and became principal of Scoil Eoin Baiste girls' school in Clontarf in 1941. By the 1950s, Scoil Eoin was one of the most prestigious in Dublin. The following decade she introduced audio-visual equipment, years before their official introduction as part of the curriculum in 1974. Ní Cheanainn was actively involved in many areas of education, such as the Eigse Raifteri summer school, the Comoradh Mhic Eil, the Irish branch of

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

, the Irish-German society, and Corfheile na Scoileanna. She was a co-founder of Cumann Scannán na nÓg, which was merged with the

Irish Film Institute The Irish Film Institute (IFI; ), formerly the Irish Film Centre, is both an arthouse cinema and a national body that supports Irish film heritage. The IFI presents film festivals, retrospectives and curated seasons, along with independent, I ...

to form the Irish Film Centre. She was the only woman appointed to the Radio Éireann authority, serving from 1960 to 1965, but was disappointed not to be asked to serve a second term. It was at her insistence that the authority's name was changed to Raidió Teilifís Éireann in 1966. She published a biography of John MacHale in 1983. Áine Ní Cheanainn remained unmarried. She spent the last years of her life at Grove Nursing Home,

Killiney Killiney () is an affluent coastal suburb on the southside of Dublin, Ireland. It lies south of Dalkey, east and northeast of Ballybrack and Sallynoggin and north of Shankill, in the local government area of Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown within ...

County Dublin County Dublin ( or ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland, and holds its capital city, Dublin. It is located on the island's east coast, within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. Until 1994, County Dubli ...

. She died in June 1999 and was buried in Kiltimagh, survived by one sister.

References

* ''Dictionary of Irish Biography'', pp. 911–12, Cambridge, 2010.

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ni Cheanainn, Aine 1907 births 1999 deaths 20th-century Irish people Irish-language writers Irish writers People from County Mayo Irish schoolteachers