Principal of Scoil Mhuire, Buncrana, Ms Rosaleen Grant pictured with Naughton Scholar, Caitlin McColgan who achieved 625 points in her Leaving Cert and Shaun Fletcher who achieved 617 points.
The results achieved by the Class of 2018 were amongst the best ever recorded in the history of the school. Principal, Ms Rosaleen Grant extended her warmest congratulations to all students on their individual successes and expressed her delight that all students across a wide range of abilities achieved success. Ms Grant was particularly pleased that all students in the LCA class achieved a minimum of a ‘Merit’.
Scoil Mhuire which offers a full range of JCSP, TY, LCA and LCVP programmes has for the first time ever secured a score of 625 points which was achieved by top girl, Caitlin McColgan. Caitlin is one of only 153 students in the country who obtained the maximum score of 625 points. Given that there were 54,440 students who sat the State Exams this year, this is a remarkable achievement which puts her in the top 0.3% in the national results’ table. Caitlin’s results included H1 grades in Maths, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, French and Dutch. Caitlin has accepted a place at Queen’s University Belfast to study Aerospace Engineering. Caitlin is one of thirty-six students starting Stem courses in college who has been awarded the prestigious Naughton Foundation scholarships worth €20,000 – the only Donegal recipient. The scholarships funded by the Naughton Foundation, which was started by founder of electrical goods firm GlenDimplex Martin Naughton and his wife Carmel are awarded to students who have an aptitude for science, engineering, technology or mathematics (STEM) and have enrolled in a Stem-based third-level course. Scoil Mhuire will also receive a prize which will go towards its Science Labs.
Top boy, Shaun Fletcher obtained 613 points with H1 scores in Maths, Chemistry, Biology, Irish and Music. His result places him in a bracket of only 228 students nationally who achieved between 610 and 624 points – or 0.4% of Leaving Cert candidates. Shaun will pursue a Maths and Chemistry degree at the University of Glasgow. These exceptional results place the two Scoil Mhuire students among the top 0.7% performers in the country. This is an outstanding accomplishment for the students and the school, and testament to the hard work and dedication of both the students and their teachers throughout their secondary education at Scoil Mhuire.
Most Leaving Cert students like Caitlin and Shaun have now progressed to further education at home and abroad. Some have adopted the apprenticeship route by securing full-time employment with prestigious international engineering firms with a strong foothold in North Donegal. At a recent meeting of incoming 1st year parents, Ms Grant reiterated her philosophy that “success is measured by achieving the desired place in the course or employment of your choice”. The success of the Class of 2018 reflects on the professional excellence of the teaching staff, determination and hard work of all students and the dedicated support of parents and guardians. Ms Grant wished all students continued success as they embark upon the next stage of their academic careers – a gateway to a myriad of amazing opportunities yet to be revealed.