New Chair of the Board Elected!

Declan Meehan has been elected as Chair of the Board of Directors of ShoutOut. Declan has been involved with ShoutOut since its beginning in 2012, when ShoutOut first ran a pilot scheme in just 10 schools in Dublin. Over the past 5 years he has worked in various roles with the organisation, most recently establishing ShoutOut as an all-Ireland organisation by bringing ShoutOut workshops to Northern Ireland through a partnership with Cara-Friend, of which Declan is Deputy Director. Declan is also the Vice-Chair of the Northern Ireland Anti-Bullying Forum, as well as a committee member of the campaign for marriage equality in Northern Ireland, Love Equality. 

“It is an honour to be chosen as Chair of the Board of Directors of ShoutOut", said Declan. "The recent registration of ShoutOut as an official charity, combined with the appointment of Bella FitzPatrick as Director, and the restructuring of our Board of Directors with the position of Chair, are all important steps in ensuring the professionalisation and continued growth of ShoutOut. As Chair I am committed to supporting the excellent work of our volunteers, and our Director, as well as staff in schools all across Ireland. We want to ensure that every LGBTQ+ student in Ireland can bring their full and truest self to school every morning, and leave their school day in the afternoon without having experienced bullying or negativity because of who they are. ShoutOut is committed to changing the experiences of LGBTQ+ young people for the better in secondary schools across Ireland. We are also committed to the principles of transparency and good governance as a registered charity." 

In addition to Declan Meehan, the Board of Directors is comprised of Eoin O'Liatháin, Clare Ní Cheallaigh, Paul Behan and Anna Keogh. The Board will seek to expand its membership in early 2018 to broaden its diversity and expertise.