Wanted: Very Important Person, with endless patience, to chair Michael Woods's long-promised Commission on Teaching. No teaching experience necessary; in fact any links with ASTI, however tenuous, might be a disadvantage. Business experience preferable (to impress IBEC and Shane Ross). Education experience necessary (to maintain something called social solidarity/ partnership/consensus).
Needless to say the job is proving impossible to fill. Woods has been toying with some names but none fit the bill. Ray MacSharry is apparently too busy. Denis O'Brien is too controversial. Denis Brosnan is a Kerryman (ideal!) but still probably too busy. And Bill Clinton's former education guru, Dick Reilly, is still mulling.
Carmel Naughton of the National Gallery is also in the frame, but if things don't improve soon it will be back to the likes of John Coolahan and ┴ine Hyland.
Say what you like about Michael Woods but he can take the heat. Earlier this year - at the height of that nasty ASTI business - Michael stunned the usual media begrudgers and colleagues by jetting off to Malaysia.
Michael is undaunted by the criticism. Where has he been for the past week, as the schools re- opened? You've guessed it.
Apparently it has something to do with the Royal College of Surgeons. In any case, Woods - after decades around the cabinet table - deserves a few days in the sun. Damn the begrudgers.
They are calling it "The Long Goodbye" - Joe O'Toole's slow departure from the INTO. In the style of great North Korean leaders, Joe is making his exit slowly and deliberately. This time last year - that's September 2000 - Joe let it be known that he was leaving, but he has still not gone away you know. In fact, he will remain as general secretary until Easter of next year - April 2002. Thank goodness the general secretary-designate, John Carr, is a patient soul.
The position may not be vacant for another two-and-a-half years but the gun has already been fired in the race to succeed Art Cosgrave as president of UCD.
Art, a good chum of TP's, steps down in December 2003.
The race, like all battles in UCD, will be long and bitter. Frank Hegarty and Fergus D'arcy are in the frame and what odds Caroline Hussey becoming the first female head of an Irish university? But is some dark horse ready to make his play?
Up at DCU, Prof Ferdinand von Prondzynski, has been detailing his strategic vision on the web. One result is pictured above. What does it all mean? As someone once said, I'm damned if I know.
E-mail in confidence at teacherspet@irish-times.ie
