Dick Langford (b. 1941), former CEO, Cork City VEC (part 3)

This recording initially focuses on Dick Langford’s teaching years in Birr, County Offaly. He recently attended a reunion of students from the school forty-five years after they left and he very much enjoyed learning about their varied life stories. He has interesting observations to make on the traditions of technical learning over a century in Cork city. He discusses his successful meeting with Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism John O’Donoghue TD when the Minister agreed to a strategic move relating to the establishment of the Crawford Art Gallery as one of the family of National Cultural Institutions – the only one located outside of Dublin other than a branch of the National Museum at Castlebar, County Mayo. This also secured the funding base of the gallery into the future. The early days at Bishopstown when new courses were being developed, were vitally important to the educational life of the city and beyond. Dick Langford oversaw the maturing of these courses, and makes special mention of Jim Roche, and his fine work at that vital time. Tension sometimes arose between the RTC and UCC and these were diffused due to the co-operation in the Biomedical Sciences degrees. He is at present enjoying his retirement though still very busy indeed. His most challenging endeavour at present is his chairmanship of the State Examinations Commission, which was established in 2003.