On the 7th and 8th of April, during the Spring break, the Stratford ISSU liaisons (Frans 5th Year & Rhea 4th Year) attended An Chomhdháil Bhliantiúl 2026, which is the biggest event in the ISSU calendar. Frans & Rhea report back.
ISSU, or the Irish Second-level Students Union, is the national student-led representative body for second-level students in Ireland. It acts as a democratic, non-profit organization focused on empowering student councils, ensuring student voices are heard in education policy, and promoting equal access to education.
During An Chomhdháil Bhliantiúl, new delegates and roles were voted for and appointed, as well as amendments made to the ISSU constitution. After the elections wrapped up, the newly appointed members held a panel to discuss issues that students are having across the country. The Stratford attendees brought up the current Irish curriculum and how exemptions should be used as a last resort, not a first option. They further discussed the importance of a reform of Irish to accommodate and include as many students as possible in class.
The event was hosted over two days, on April 7th; a Zoom meeting was organised to propose and vote on amendments to ISSU’s constitution. Additionally, ISSU’s future plans and endeavors were discussed amongst members of the Coiste Gno, the main decision-making body department, which were later democratically voted on by meeting attendees.
These amendments and proposals included social concerns both inside and outside of school, such as free public transport for students, exam adjustments, the endorsement of lowering the voting age to 16 and many more relevant issues.
During the in-person conference, we were pleasantly surprised with a formal address from the Minister for Education Hildegard Naughton!
It was both an informative and interactive experience, we are very grateful to have gotten the opportunity to vote on issues and potential improvements that can make a direct impact on a broad scale of students across Ireland.
A big thank you to our student council teacher liaison Ms. Kenny for introducing us to the event and helping us register!
Frans (5th year) & Rhea (4th year)
Stratford celebrated Wellbeing Week 2026 (5th - 8th May), a special week dedicated to promoting positive mental health, physical activity and cultural awareness. Students had the opportunity to take part in a variety of fun and engaging activities throughout the week, including walks, workshops, cultural events, sports, and wellbeing challenges.
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Congratulations to 1st Year Computer Studies students - Yair, Liam and Giorgi - who made it to the ECO-UNESCO 2026 Young Environmentalist Awards Finals held on 12th May with their Scratch coding project called "Giorgi the Litter Fighter". This is the first time that a Stratford project has made it to the finals - so very impressive work!
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Well done to the Stratford College Chess team who reached the Libermann Cup Finals to play against Coláiste Eanna on Monday 11th May. This is the first time that the Chess team has reached the finals. While it proved to be challenging with Coláiste Eanna showing great experience and ultimately winning out, the Stratford chess team are determined to be back next year!
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