Senior Prizegiving

One of the highlights of the school year occurred on Tuesday 3rd March 2009 when St Columb's College celebrated its Senior Prizegiving Ceremony.

Staff and students were joined by parents and friends of the College to recognise and celebrate the achievements, endeavours and successes of those pupils who have impressed us with their attainments and accomplishments over the 2007-2008 academic year.

The school was particularly pleased to welcome members of the Board of Governors to the ceremony along with two of its most distinguished Alumni Illustrissimi, Mr John Hume and Professor John Toland, FRS, our Distinguished Guest for the evening. Also on the platform were Mr Sean Grant, Chairperson of the Parents' association and Rev Fr Eamon McDevitt, President of the College Union.

Prizegiving Collage

Professor John Toland (Distinguished Guest)

John Francis Toland was a student at St Columb's from September 1960 until June 1967. After graduating with First Class Honours from Queen's University Belfast and attaining his Masters and Doctoral qualifications at Sussex University, Dr Toland lectured at the Universities of Essex and London before being appointed to the Chair of Mathematical Sciences at Bath University. He has extensive experience as a visiting professor in universities as far apart as France, the Netherlands, Germany, Australia and the U.S.A.

Professor Toland is a leading authority in Pure Mathematics. His speciality is in the areas of Partial Differential Equations and Fluid Mechanics. Elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1999 Professor Toland was awarded an Honorary Doctorate in 2000 for his pioneering work in the field of Mathematics. He received the Senior Berwick Prize of the London Mathematical Society for his work on the rigorous theory of steady water waves.

Professor Toland has been an editor for numerous Mathematics Journals and has long-standing associations with the Science and Engineering Research Council, of which he is a Senior Fellow. He is Scientific Director of the International Centre for Mathematical Sciences in Edinburgh and as a university administrator he has held posts at Senate and Council level.

Along with Professor Peter McCullagh, Professor Toland was jointly awarded the College Union's Alumnus Illustrissimus Prize in 2007.