Mr. Jim Fennell, Chairman (2008 – 2013)
Appointed in November 2008, Jim Fennell is a Fellow of the Chartered Association of Certified Accountants who holds the position of Financial Controller and Secretary to the Governing Body of Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology (GMIT). In addition to his role at Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology he also holds a number of directorships including: Deputy President of Galway Chamber of Commerce, An Chéim (Collaborative Higher Education Information Management), HEAnet (Ireland’s National Education and Research Network), Chairman of the HEAnet Finance Sub-committee and Mayo County Council Audit Committee
Prof. Patricia Barker (2013 – 2018)
Patricia Barker is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland, having qualified in 1973 – the twentieth woman to qualify since the inception of the Institute in 1888. She completed an MPhil in Gender Studies in Trinity College. Her PhD developed a paradigm of disclosure of financial informationto employees in organisations. She served her articles with Stokes Bros. & Pim in Dublin and worked in Peat, Marwick Mitchell in Manchester. She then became a partner in an accounting practice in Manchester for six years and worked in Manchester University as a principal lecturer. She was appointed lecturer in DCU in 1980 and progressed through senior lecturer, Associate Dean (Business School) and Vice-President (Academic) of DCU. She has worked as a visiting professor in universities in New York, Boston, Angers, Malawi, Dar es Salaam, Sydney and Cape Town and has been an external examiner for universities and professional bodies. She served as Chairman of the Institute’s Accounting Committee for eight years and on the Council of the Institute of Chartered Accountants for four years. She was a member of the Urgent Issues Task Force in London for nine years. She had several tours of duty as Election Supervisor for the OSCE in Bosnia- Herzegovina, Republica Serpska, South Africa, Kosovo and Belarus. She chaired the expert group reporting to the European Union on the role, structure and functions of the European Court of Auditors. She has been a member of the Boards of Women’s Aid, Sonas Housing Association, the National Chamber Choir and was the Chairman of the IBTS for three years. She was a member of the Higher Education Authority and chaired its Audit Committee. She is currently a counsellor for the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre.
Mr. Francis Coyle (2010 – 2015)
Mr. Coyle had a long career with Donegal County Council serving in various posts from 1974 to 2010. From 2001 he was Director of Services for Planning and Economic Development. He worked with Letterkenny Town Council and was also Manager of Ballyshannon Town Council from 2005 to 2010. He was the Council’s European Liaison Officer with the Conference of Peripheral Maritime Regions (CPMR) for sixteen years. During the period 1995–1999 he managed the Council’s multi million pound Peace and Reconciliation funding and was Secretary to the Donegal Task Force for Peace and Reconciliation. Mr. Coyle has also worked closely with the International Fund for Ireland and other funding mechanisms such as INTERREG, and Peace lll to develop multi-faceted community and recreation regeneration projects designed to enhance towns and villages, both in Donegal and on a cross border basis. He is a past Director of Donegal Airport Company Ltd and is currently engaged in project management and co-ordination.
Mr. Lorcán Ó Cinnéide (2010 - 2015)
Lorcán Ó Cinnéide (BA) is Chief Executive of the Irish Fish Producers Organisation, a leading fishing industry representative body. A graduate in Economics and Politics from Trinity College Dublin, he is also a former fishing vessel owner. Lorcan is an active member of the EU Northwestern Waters Regional Advisory Council and a wide range of other fisheries management and advisory bodies in Ireland and at EU level. He has been an expert advisor to the EU on the evaluation of marine research progrmmes and been involved in fishing industry development and representation for the past 20 years. He is also a member of the Aquaculture License Appeals Board, Comhairle Raidio na Gaeltachta and Secretary of the Blasket Island Foundation.
Mr. Paul Hyde (2012 - July 2017)
Paul Hyde (BSc Arch, MA, MPlan, MRIAI, RIBA) is the managing partner in the Hyde Partnership Architects and Town Planners, a multi disciplinary design and planning practice. He holds degrees in both Architecture and Planning & Sustainable Development. A member of the RIAI, RIBA and IPI professional institutes, he has over 16 years of professional experience relating to the built environment and both terrestrial and coastal development and spatial planning. In addition to his role in the Hyde Partnership he holds a number of committee memberships including; The Irish Planning Institute, Southern Branch and The Royal Institute of Architects in Ireland, Southern Branch and he is a member of Cork Chamber of Commerce.
Mr. David Owens (2012 - December 2017)
David Owens (A.C.A) is currently Vice President, Finance and Operations for SolarWinds (NYSE: SWI). Prior to joining SolarWinds, Mr. Owens worked for Red Hat, Inc., an enterprise software company, for over seven years, where he served initially as Director of Global Logistics and Production and then as Senior Director of Finance- EMEA. Mr. Owens qualified as a chartered accountant with Ernst & Young and is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland .