Bernadette Meagher

Bernadette Meagher is a senior leader in higher education with over 20 years of experience at the Institute of Art, Design & Technology, Dún Laoghaire (IADT), where she has held leadership positions for more than eight years overseeing the strategic and operational management of various externally funded educational programmes.

Bernadette holds a BA (Hons) in Public Management and an MSc in Cyberpsychology, complemented by a Post-Graduate Certificate in Learning & Teaching for Higher Education and a Post-Graduate Certificate in Design Thinking. She is also a FETAC-accredited trainer, bringing both academic rigour and practical training expertise to her work.

Currently, Bernadette is responsible for the management of IADT's TSAF-funded programme, which is aligned with IADT's Strategic Plan 2024-2028 and its ambition to become Ireland's University for the Creative Industries. In this capacity, she chairs IADT's TSAF Task Force, working collaboratively with diverse groups and multidisciplinary teams both within the institute and across the wider higher education sector.

Her role requires extensive engagement with internal and external stakeholders. External partners include the Technological Higher Education Association and the N-TUTORR partnership, comprising Atlantic Technological University, Munster Technological University, Technological University Shannon, South East Technological University, Technological University Dublin, and Dundalk Institute of Technology.

Throughout her career, Bernadette has cultivated strong working relationships with numerous organisations, including the Professional Development Service for Teachers (now OIDE), EU/Erasmus+ consortia, Irish Aid, Irish Film Institute, Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council (Arts Office, Economic Development Unit, Libraries, Corporate Affairs, and Tourism & Heritage), Houses of the Oireachtas, Creative Ireland, IADT's National Film School, IADT's Public Design Lab, Pobal, the Aga Khan Foundation, and UNESCO.

Bernadette's career spans multiple sectors, including SMEs, multinationals, and higher education. She served as IADT President's nominee on the Management Committee of the Blackrock Education Centre for three years and, during her time at Canon (Ireland), was co-opted onto the Board for two years.