An insider's guide to education: God be with the days when the ASTI president spent their year in office dining on the rubber chicken circuit and being feted by all and sundry.
In contrast, Pat Cahill, the embattled current president is engulfed by a series of complex legal disputes. In the coming week, Pat must deal with the Charlie Lennon affair.
And then there is that awkward case taken by all the union's administrative staff to the Labour. The staff, members of SIPTU, the ATGWU and the NUJ, claim the atmosphere in the Winetavern Street offices is now intolerable.
The hearing on October 23rd is expected to hear vivid accounts of the pressures of day to day life in the ASTI office.
Cahill, a trained barrister, will need all his legal knowledge to swim through these choppy waters. To his credit, he is still maintaining his customary, upbeat and cheery mood. But he couldn't have wished that his presidency would turn out like this.
Incidentally, anti bin-charge spokeswoman Ruth Coppinger is secretary of ASTI's Dublin South 2 Branch (the same branch as Pat Cahill).
Coppinger, a Socialist Party councillor, has called on workers to organise work stoppages in support of Joe Higgins and Clare Daly, who are currently residing in Mountjoy at the State's pleasure. She has been a vocal critic of the trade union establishment.
One of the figures of real stature in Irish education is preparing to vacate his chair. Dr Seamus Smyth, who as president of NUI Maynooth has done so much to boost the reputation of the college, is to retire next June. The vacancy has already been advertised.
Smyth, the current chair of the group which represents university presidents, will be a very hard act to follow.
Those in the frame for his job may include vice-president Frank Mulligan and senior academics such as Professor James Walsh (geography) and Professor Gerard Boyle (economics). Externally, the current Registrars in UL (Professor Kevin Ryan) or Galway (Professor Jim Brown) might also be interested.
The NCCA (National Council for Curriculum and Assessment) was rightly praised for its paper on Leaving Certificate reform which was published last week.
Earlier this year, Minister for Education Noel Dempsey said that the NCCA faced its own exam when it came to Leaving Cert reform.
So how have they done? Passed with honours is the majority verdict - even if the actual report was turgid and difficult to read.
The council - who advise Mr Dempsey on exam matters - must be nervous about his plan to establish a new independent committee to advice on policy reform. Will this group - and not the NCCA - now set the agenda?
Warmest congratulations to Noel Dempsey's highly regarded press officer, Grace Cappock, who married RTÉ reporter and best-selling writer Barry Cummins at the weekend.
Got any education gossip? Email us, in confidence, at teacherspet@irish-times.ie
