Advocacy, Education and the Care Experience: Educators from a different perspective

Waterford Institute of Technology (WIT) and EPIC, Empowering People in Care, with support from the WIT Equality, Diversity, & Inclusion Fund warmly invite you to a special event, Advocacy, Education and the Care Experience: Educators from a different perspective, which celebrates all care-experienced young people with a focus on those in, or thinking about, further or higher-level education.

We invite all staff and students from further and higher education institutes, aftercare workers, social care workers, social workers, foster carers and other stakeholders interested in learning from the lived experiences of those with care experience.

Speakers

A guest panel of Speakers will include: Welcoming remarks from Dr Lisa Moran (HoD, Dept. of Social Care and Early Childhood Studies, WIT), Thomas O’ Driscoll (CE, MA in Social Work), Thomas Mongan (CE and co-creator of EPIC’s Care Experienced Podcast), Dr Roisin Farragher (CE and Lecturer/Researcher) Dr Danielle Douglas(CE and Lecturer/Researcher), Beatrice Ayo Vaughen (CE student at WIT) Sean Downey (CE Speaker and self advocate).

At the seminar, you will hear from care-experienced people about their various experiences of advocacy and education throughout their care journeys. The panel of speakers will challenge traditional ideas of ‘educators’ and reflect on those who assumed this role at different stages of their lives. Thinking about how education occurs across various aspects of young people’s lives inside and outside of the classroom will highlight the important role key relationships play in promoting advocacy and positive outcomes.

Podcast and discussion

The right to independent advocacy and challenges that young people and those who support them can encounter will also be discussed. During this live recording of the EPIC Care Experienced Podcast, you will be invited to be part of the discussion by offering observations and asking questions. Please come along and avail of this wonderful opportunity to learn from experts at the heart of the system and ask questions that you may have but have not had the opportunity to ask.

After the panel, we invite attendees to join us for refreshments where they can network and keep the conversation going.