Former primary teacher, Deputy Principal and Acting Principal with wide academic interests; lecturer in Media Studies (All Hallows College, DCU); Currently working as School Placement Supervisor and Course Author and Lead Tutor (History of Education, Hibernia College); Teaching Practice Tutor, Waterford Institute of Technology and Module Leader, School Placement, Level 8, St. Nicholas Montessori College, Dunlaoghaire I have an ongoing and relevant research profile, contributing to a range of publications across a broad field of educational and history/popular cultural issues.

• 2001: ‘For the Triumph of the Patriot Arms: the Influence of the Christian Brothers on Nationalist Ideology 1914-22.’ New Voices in Irish Criticism Conference, Galway, February.
• ‘The Christian Brothers, Militant Nationalism and Irish Popular Culture.’ Set Apart? Locating Ireland Conference, Boston College, Boston. October.
• 2002: ‘The School and the City – the Central Model School and the North Inner City Community.’ Irish Association of Teachers in Special Education Conference, St.Patrick’s College Drumcondra, Dublin. June.
• 2003: ‘Learning to Be a Man – the Crisis in Modern Irish Masculinty.’ Irish Association of Teachers in Special Education Conference, St. Patrick’s College Drumcondra, Dublin. June.
• 2004: ‘There is an Isle in the Western Ocean – Irish Catholicism and the Growth of Militant Nationalism, 1914-22.’ Irish Society for the Study of Children’s Literature Conference, St. Patrick’s College Drumcondra, Dublin. February.
• ‘Babes in Electric Toyland – Youth, Technology and Childhood in Modern Irish Society.’ Irish Association of Teachers in Special Education Conference, St. Patrick’s College Drumcondra, Dublin. June.
• 2005: ‘And Who Will Fight for Ireland? The Great War, Propaganda and the Representation of Conflict in Children’s Popular Literature.’ Irish Society for the Study of Children’s Literature Conference ,St. Patrick’s College Drumcondra, Dublin, February.
• ‘Looking for a Way Out – Youth, Modern Irish Society and the Rise of Self-destructive Behaviour.’ Irish Association of Teachers in Special Education Conference, St.Patrick’s College, Drumcondra. Dublin, June.
• ‘Traditional Ireland and the Evolution of Modern Popular Culture.’ Ireland, Land of Saints and Scholars Conference, Irish Studies Department, Sunderland University. November.
• 2006: ‘Tales Told in the Turflight: the Christian Brothers, Our Boys and the Representation of Gaelic Authenticity in Irish Popular Culture, 1924-90.’ Irish Society for the Study of Children’s Literature Conference, Church of Ireland College, Rathmines, Dublin. February.
• ‘Lost Generations – Social Dysfunction and the Role of Education in Modern Irish Society.’ Irish Association of Teachers in Special Education Conference, St. Patrick’s College Drumcondra, Dublin. June.
• 2007: ‘Enemy at the Gates: Fin de SiecleAnxieties, the Development of the British Thriller Genre and Popular Fiction for Boys.’ New Voices in Irish Criticism Conference, Church of Ireland College, Rathmines, Dublin. February.
• ‘Folk Devils and Moral Panic – Sedition, Subversion and Sensation in Victorian Popular Culture.’ Irish Society for the Study of Children’s Literature Conference, Marino College, Dublin. April.
• ‘One of the Boys – Masculinity, Gang Culture and the Search for Status in Modern Irish Society.’ Irish Association of Teachers in Special Education Conference, St. Patrick’s College Drumcondra, Dublin. June.
• 2008: ‘On Her Majesty’s Secret Service – James Bond and the Myth of Heroic Masculinity in British Popular Culture.’ Irish Society for the Study of Children’s Literature Conference, Marino College, Dublin. February.
• ‘In the Shadow of the Tiger – Young Offenders in the Irish Education System.’ Irish Association of Teachers in Special Education Conference, St. Patrick’s College Drumcondra, Dublin. June.
• 2009: ‘Cosy Catastrophe – the British Science Fiction Tradition in Modern Popular Culture.’ Irish Society for the Study of Children’s Literature Conference, Drumcondra, Dublin. March.
• ‘Cultivating Resilience in the Child – the Role of the School.’ Irish Association of Teachers in Special Education Conference, St. Patrick’s College Drumcondra, Dublin. June.
• 2010: ‘Bandits at Twelve O’Clock – the Second World War in the Popular Culture of Britain and Ireland.’ Irish Society for the Study of Children’s Literature Conference, Trinity College, March.
• ‘Keeping Them in the System – Preventing Early School Leaving in Irish Society’ Irish Association of Teachers in Special Education Conference, St. Patrick’s College, Drumcondra, Dublin. June.
• 2011: ‘Building Bridges – the Home School Community Liaison Programme in the North Inner City of Dublin.’ Irish Association of Teachers in Special Education Conference, Dublin. June.
• 2012: ‘Summoning Her Children to Her flag – The 1966 Commemoration of the Easter Rising, Popular Culture and the Politics of Childhood.’ Irish Society for the Study of Children’s Literature Conference, D.C.U. Dublin. February.
• ‘How Many Friends Have You? – Media, Social Networking and the Vulnerable Child’ Irish Association of Teachers in Special Education Conference, Dublin. June.
• ‘Cow-pie, Gruel and Midnight Feasts – The Representation of Food in Children’s Popular Literature’ Inaugural Dublin Gastronomy Symposium, D.I.T, Dublin. June.
• 2013: ‘Is There Anyone There Who Understands Me? – Schools, Mental Health and the Emotional Well-being of Young People in Ireland.’ Irish Association of Teachers in Special Education Conference, Dublin, June.
• 2014: ‘To Drive Back the Filthy Tide – the Christian Brothers, Moral Education and the Campaign Against Filthy Literature.’ 3^rd Biannual Irish Sexuality Studies Conference, DCU, Dublin, March.
• ‘A Passage to America – Emigration and Magical resolution in the Kitty the Hare Stories of Victor O’D. Power.’ Ireland and America: the Writer and Nation Conference, St. Patricks College, Dublin, April.
• ‘Through a Glass, Darkly – Technology, Media Culture and the Erosion of Traditional Childhood.’ OMEP International Conference, Cork, July.
• ‘Not Waving But Drowning – Popular Culture, Status Anxiety and Vulnerable Masculinity.’ Irish Association of Teachers in Special Education Conference, All Hallows College, Dublin. June.
• ‘Professional Identity and Trainee Teachers in the 21^st Century: Challenge and Opportunity.’ Key Note Speaker, Waterford Institute of Technology Education Conference, July.
• 2015: ‘Divine Maternity: Marianism, Motherhood and Moral Control in 20^th Century Ireland’ Motherhood and Culture International and Interdisciplinary Conference, Maynooth, June.
• ‘Learning to Be A Man – Masculinity, Identity and Self Esteem in the Digital Age’ Irish Association of Teachers in Special Education Conference, All Hallows College, Dublin. June.
• 2019: ‘A Gentleman and a Scholar’: The National School Master in Irish Popular Culture European Popular Culture Association Conference, Mary Immaculate College, Limerick, forthcoming, July, 2019.

      PUBLICATIONS

• ‘For the Triumph of the Patriot Arms – The Christian Brothers, Our Boys and Militant Nationalism in Irish Popular Culture, 1914 – 1922’ in Karen Vandevelde (ed.), New Voices in Irish Criticism 3 (Dublin: Four Courts Press, 2002). Also published in the United States in Patrick Doan (ed.), Working Papers in Irish Studies (Florida: Nova Southeastern University, 2001).
• ‘The Confirmation Project – Religion Teaching, Popular Culture and Modern Irish Society,’ in Patrick Devitt (ed.), E.A. – Religion, Education and the Arts, Journal of Mater Dei Institute, (Special Issue, ‘Religious Teaching in Ireland Today,’ Issue 4, 2003
• ‘There is an Isle in the Western Ocean: The Christian Brothers, Our Boys and the Representation of Catholic/Nationalist Ideology in Irish Popular Culture’ in Celia Keenan and Mary Shine Thompson (eds.), Treasure Islands in Children’s Literature (Dublin: Four Courts Press, 2006).
• ‘Brave New World: Media, Identity and the Changing Culture of Irish Childhood,’ in Patrick O’Connor (ed.), Oideas – Journal of the Department of Education and Science (Government Publications, summer, 2006)
• ‘Our Boys in Irish Popular Culture’ in INTOUCH, Journal of Irish National Teachers’ Organization, June, 2007.
• ‘And Who Will Fight for Ireland? The Great War, Propaganda and the Representation of Conflict in Children’s Popular Literature’ in Mary Shine Thompson (ed.), Divided Worlds – Studies in Children’s Literature (Dublin: Four Courts Press, 2007).
• ‘God Bless us, Everyone: Charles Dickens and the Invention of Christmas’ in INTOUCH, Journal of Irish National Teachers’ Organization, December, 2007.
• ‘Oh Yes it is! The Christmas Pantomime in Irish Popular Culture’ in INTOUCH, Journal of Irish National Teachers’ Organization, December, 2008.

• ‘The Central Model Schools: 150 Years of Tradition in Marlborough Street’ in INTOUCH, Journal of Irish National Teachers’ Organization, November, 2010.
• ‘To Enlighten and Entertain: Adventure Narrative in the Our Boys Paper’ in Irish Communications Review, Harry Browne, Nora French, Brian O’Neill eds., DIT, 2010.

• Republic of Virtue: The Christian Brothers, Our Boys and the Assertion of Catholic Moral Authority in Free State Ireland.’ In Made in Ireland: The Visual Culture of Irish Modernity, 1922-1992, Linda King, Elaine Sisson eds., Cork University Press, 2011.
• ‘Tales Told in the Turflight: the Christian Brothers, Our Boys and the Representation of Gaelic Authenticity in Irish Popular Culture, 1924 – 90’ in Young Irelands: Studies in Literature, Mary Shine Thompson and Amanda Piesse, eds., Four Courts Press, 2011.
• ‘Folk Devils and Moral Panic: Sedition, Subversion and Sensation in Victorian Popular Culture.’ in Voicing Dissent: New Voices in Irish Criticism, Noreen Doody, Sandrine Brisset, eds., Four Courts Press, 2012.
• Irishman’s Diary, Irish Times, July 14, 2014.
• ‘Cow-pie, Gruel and Midnight Feasts – The Representation of Food in Children’s Popular Literature’ in ‘Tickling the Palate’ Gastronomy in Irish Literature and Culture. Series: Reimagining Ireland – Volume 57, 2014.

• Review: ‘Children and the Online World – Risk, Regulation, Rights’ (Elizabeth Stakstrud, London: Ashgate Publications) in Journal of Media Practice , London, 2015.

• ‘Through a Glass, Darkly – Technology, Media Culture and the Erosion of Traditional Childhood’ Childlinks – The Journal of Barnados, (Issue 3, 2015).
• Review: ‘The Unleashed Scandal: the End of Control in the Digital Age’ (Bernhard Poerksen and Hanne Detel, Taylor and Francis) in Journal of Media Practice, London, , summer, 2015.
• ‘God Save Ireland Said the Heroes’ – The Christian Brothers, Our Boys and the Construction of National identity in Irish Popular Culture’ in Voices of Educators in 21^st. Century Ireland Teresa Whitaker ed., Hibernia College, 2018.