A LEAVING Certificate student will learn today if he is to be expelled because of a political protest he organised earlier this week.
Shane Donnelly (17), who attends Moyle Park College, Clondalkin, led about 100 students out of class on Tuesday on a march to a local Fianna Fáil office.
There they chanted anti-Government slogans in protest to the Budget cuts that were being announced that day.
While the school has not officially suspended Shane, it did recommend that he not come to class until after he had attended a meeting with school authorities. This is scheduled for 2pm today.
“They said they wanted to expel me because I have supposedly wrecked the school’s reputation,” Shane said.
On Monday he informed the principal that it would not go ahead as he was fearful of the principal banning it. Shane then distributed leaflets the following day - the morning of the Budget - informing students to proceed.
He estimated that about one in three students used the opportunity to skip school and go home but he praised the majority who continued down to the constituency office of Minister of State John Curran on Main Street, where Shane said a “very peaceful protest” occurred.
Shane is a member of the Free Education for Everybody organisation, which he joined several years ago after the Government threatened to reintroduce third-level fees.
This group of mostly college students campaigns regularly for “genuinely” free education for everyone.
Moyle Park College said it did not want to comment on the matter as it is still investigating the incident and did not want to affect the student’s right to a fair hearing.
“I’ve been in the school for five years and never gotten suspended before or anything like that. I think I’ve had detention six times since I’ve been here. I’m afraid that I won’t get accepted to another school if I get thrown out because of this.”
Yesterday, an estimated 200 secondary school students in Mayo marched under a Free Education for Everyone banner in support.
Fergal Rowe, a pupil of St Gerald’s College, Castlebar, said he wanted to send a message of solidarity to Shane.