The Team Behind the Magic!
Inspiring kids to love Science Technology Engineering Art Maths
The STEAM Team
At STEAM Education we’ve ve been working with Science, Technology, Engineering, Maths (STEM) and Arts experts from academia and industry since 2014 to support and enhance STEAM education for children and adults, starting at primary school level. We are committed in a broader sense to increasing awareness of the critical functions STEM and Arts play in our lives and our societies; to engaging in transdisciplinary collaborations for innovative problem-solving; and to exploring and learning about the fascinating world that we share.
Dr. Alice D'Arcy
Managing Director
Alice is the Managing Director of STEAM Education Ltd since 2015. She has channelled a broad range of professional experience, from ecology to animation, development education to sustainability management, into the development of STEAM approaches to learning and teaching.
A strong advocate of life-long learning she has a variety of qualifications from Applied Ecology (BSc) & Applied Environmental Science (PhD), Creativity & Change: Arts, Participation and Development (L8 Crawford/CIT), Creative and Digital Marketing (UCC Cert), and Art Therapy for Socio-Educational Interventions (Cert ddf+).
She is passionate about lots of things, including cats, chickens, science, creativity, growing things – especially native trees – and getting her hands dirty.
- +353 (0)87 6189837
- alice.darcy@steam-ed.ie
Greg Scully
Accounts, Procurement & Technical Support
Greg is our combined accounts, procurement and technical support section. Having spent twenty-plus years in Computer Software & Systems Development/Administra- tion, mostly for medium-to-large or multinational companies, he joined STEAM in 2016, and now directs his skills towards assisting the company with its financial and technical management.
- +353 (0)86 104 6511
- greg.scully@steam-ed.ie
Juliet Haykal Libbos
Graphic Artist, Creative Content Developer & Operations Manager
Juliet was appointed as Operations Manager in June 2021. Juliet joined the STEAM team in 2018 as our Graphic Design Specialist and Workshop coordinator. She has 7 years of working experience in the areas of Visual and Graphic Arts as well as a background in International Relations after working for NGOs, embassies and Inbound Marketing companies in the Middle East and Latin America.
- +353 (0)83 8391742
- juliet.haykal@steam-ed.ie
David Nolan
Business Development Executive
David joined the STEAM team in 2019 as our Business Development Executive. He had 14 years of previous experience in the areas of programme management, training, recruitment and funding proposal development in the charity sector.
- +353 (0)87 6577918
- david.nolan@steam-ed.ie
Suzanne O'Brien
STEAM Scientist & Educator
Suzanne joined the STEAM team in January 2021 as our Scientist & Educator. She has a Masters by Research in Biological Sciences from MTU and a Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Food Innovation, DIT. As our STEAM ‘Zoom-in’ Scientist, she delivers Science-in-a-Box and Engineering-in-a-Box programmes to 5th and 6th class primary school students across Ireland, inspiring them to become our future scientists and engineers. She has always had a love for science and working with kids, making her role at STEAM Education an enjoyable and rewarding experience.
- +353 (0)85 8264915
- suzanne.obrien@steam-ed.ie
Sinéad McGleenon
(STEAM NI) education & outreach Executive
Sinead joined the STEAM team in 2020 as our (NI) Client & Schools Engagement Executive. She has a Masters in Early Years Education, 24 years’ experience in teaching in the primary sector in NI and has held responsibility in Science and Early Years leadership. Sinead has taught in the USA and Australia. She won Primary Science Teacher of the Year in 2008. She has worked in the wider Education sector as a STEM Teacher Developer and as an Associate Assessor. She was keynote speaker for the RDS in 2018 and has presented in science conferences in Ireland, UK and Europe on the area of Co -Teaching and Science Education in the primary sector.
- +44 (0)7711594616
- sinead.mcgleenon@steam-ed.ie
Aibhlín O' Leary
PROJECT Manager
Aibhlín joined STEAM Education in 2021 as a Project Coordinator with specific responsibility for our Climate Action Programme. Aibhlín has a background in international relations and human rights, having worked on a variety of outreach and awareness raising campaigns with the United Nations Development Programme, the International Organization for Migration, and the Immigrant Council of Ireland.
- +353 (0)87 7704958
- aibhlin.oleary@steam-ed.ie
The STEAM Advisory Board
We also work with a number of other STEAM experts on programme development, training and delivery. We are very lucky to be supported by a highly experienced and dedicated advisory board.
Seamus Devlin
Co-Founder | Scientist | Entrepreneur | Businessman
Seamus – a parent scientist – started volunteering to teach science in Darrara primary school in Clonakilty when his daughter was 7. He loved it so much he continued doing this for 7 years, bringing in experiments and teaching the kids science, engineering and arts. It was this experience that inspired him to found STEAM Education – so that STEAM subjects could be cotaught by experts with primary teachers in schools all over the country!
“Our world is facing huge challenges and desperately needs creative people. Scientists, technologists, engineers, artists and mathematicians; people with the knowledge and skills to create a better world”.
Prof. John O'halloran
President of UCC | Zoologist | STEAM Engagement Advocate
Professor O’ Halloran is President of University College Cork; a scientist specialising in ecology, ornithology, education and sustainability. John has over 30 years experience in scientific research, teaching and learning, and outreach, and has been engaged in STEM education at all levels of the educational ecosystem. He is Director and advisor to STEAM Education.
“We need to educate cohorts of young people, from primary school onwards, to prepare them for jobs and careers that don’t even exist yet. STEAM Education is a really important approach to
combining and enriching the learning and teaching of STEM and Arts subjects to do this as early as possible. It’s about giving young people the opportunity to learn, and to grab the opportunities coming down the tracks in future skills. Actively linking STEAM primary school students with third level institutes, such as STEAM has done here with UCC STEM postgraduates, and with STEM professionals from industry, further enhances the potential for children to understand and pursue the multitude of opportunities to pursue exciting STEAM careers.”
Kevin O'Callaghan
Telecommunications Industry Business leader | Eco-sustainable House & Garden Constructor
“I was so impressed at the positive influence the STEAM programme had on my kids when the then fledgling programme started in their primary school (late 2000’s) that I teamed up with Seamus to assist in the development of STEAM as a business during its early years. I believe that industry has a social responsibility to nurture the talents of young people in their local communities. Science-based education is crucial in today’s ever more technological world and the integration of science and the arts within the
educational environment will be a fundamental advantage for societies in the future”.
Prof. Colette Murphy
Associate Professor of Education, TCD | Co-Teaching Expert
Colette is Associate Professor of Education in Trinity College Dublin, specialising in science education, co-teaching and other pedagogies in relation to primary school children and teachers. Colette is co-teaching and pedagogy advisor, and trainer, with STEAM Education.
“I have worked in the area of STEM interventions and co-teaching for many years on many interesting projects, but this is the best that I have been involved with. The combination of using hands-on STEAM
approaches, the team’s understanding of what really benefits primary schools and children, and the engagement of diverse enthusiastic “real-life” STEM experts to co-teach really works. We need more of this!”
Fiona Naughton
Naughton Foundation
Fiona and the Naughton foundation are key supporters of science in particular and also advisors to the company. They have many years of experience and engagement in and with STEM students and graduates. They have engaged with STEAM to intervene at primary level, given the necessity to do so as a long-term strategy for the development of STEAM literacy and capacity in the country and beyond. The Naughton Foundation have supported this initiative since 2014 and are very happy to continue to do
so.
“I think it is important that children start to engage in STEAM education as early as possible because I think this will influence the future course of their lives”.
STEAM Team Highlights
