GARY REDMOND, the president of the Union of Students in Ireland (USI), has been re-elected for a second term.
Mr Redmond, from Arklow, Co Wicklow, served as students’ union president in UCD before being elected as USI president for the first time in April 2010. He was returned to the position unopposed in yesterday’s election.
As president, he acts as the chief spokesman and representative for the USI and is the union’s chief executive officer.
Speaking after the election, Mr Redmond called his nine months in office momentous, referring specifically to the large student protests he organised last November against tuition fees.
Voting for the presidency and various other positions within the union took place in Dunboyne, Co Meath, at the annual USI congress attended by hundreds of student representatives.
Apart from electing officers, the congress debates and decides on union policy for the upcoming year. The congress, which began on Sunday, is due to continue until tomorrow. Today, the new chairman of the Higher Education Authority, John Hennessy, will deliver its keynote address.
Founded in 1959, USI is the sole national representative body for students in Ireland. It represents more than 250,000 students in over 40 colleges across the island of Ireland.