Waterford Institute of Technology is facing industrial action and possible High Court proceedings in a row over plans to withdraw funding for a music school attached to the institute, which provides tuition for 850 primary and second-level students.
The board of management at the institute says it can no longer provide "discretionary" funding to maintain the music school, which has been in existence for 25 years. The alternative is closure of the school, with the loss of approximately 30 jobs.
However, parents have been told the future of the school can be guaranteed for a further year if they agree to a 75 per cent increase in fees, which would bring tuition fees for "tiny tots" to close on €900 per annum and almost €2,000 for examination students.
That proposal was opposed by over 300 parents who have obtained legal advice with a view to obtaining a High Court injunction to ensure that the music school reopens on September 6th.
While undergraduate students studying music at Waterford Institute of Technology (WIT) will not be affected by the move, the Teachers' Union of Ireland have warned they will take industrial action up to and including strike action if any of their members are made redundant.
Branch secretary Mr Colm Long said that an emergency meeting of the union would take place on September 1st and arrangements will be made for a ballot for industrial action.
A WIT spokesman said resource constraints exist at the institute and they must be faced. "We must act responsibly in our management of the budget available to the institute and, regrettably, this requires us to examine all areas of institute activity, especially those that do not involve our third-level students."
The spokesman stressed that music programmes in higher education would continue to be provided and developed in Waterford, with these courses forming a distinctive and valued feature of the institute's portfolio.