Interviews

Name: Emma McPhillips
Course: Trinity Centre for People with Intellectual Disabilities (TCPID) graduate

Tell us a bit about yourself.
I’m the eldest in my family, l have three brothers. I went to St Augustine’s school in Blackrock and then I did a catering course before I went to Trinity. My hobbies are Bowling (I’m in a Special Olympics bowling club, the Stillorgan Eagles), I’m in a choir, I love meeting my friends and going to the cinema.

How did you feel when you got offered a place in Trinity?
I was happy and delighted and so were my brothers. I was a little bit nervous at the beginning.

What did you enjoy most about being a student in Trinity?
Meeting new friends, learning new skills and trying new things. I still meet a couple of the friends I met on the course in Trinity. We had a mentor too, my mentor was doing a Speech and Language course, we used to go for coffee on Grafton street. We did work experience too. I worked in the Gift shop on campus, helping tourists to find gifts to buy.

Describe your most memorable day in Trinity.
My graduation day, I got new clothes and we all wore a cap and gown and got photographs taken. My nana and grandad were there and my mam and dad and my brothers. I still have that photo in my bedroom now.

Tell us about Avolon and your current role.
Avolon is a very big company. They have a new office in Ballsbridge and all the workers moved into it a few months ago. They buy airplanes, lease airplanes and have offices all over the world. There are a number of different departments and I work in HR.

I have my own desk and computer and I like to have jobs to do so that I am busy every day. I can ask somebody if I have a question or need some help. I like it when I am asked to do different things around the office, like organising the stationery room or packing goodie bags for events. When somebody new joins the tribe, I put a plant on their desk in their department. I did some jobs on excel a few weeks ago and I will be doing more of that. So far, Avolon have had some great community days - we had a day in Glencree in the summer and we all had a job to do in our teams. My team were painting and varnishing all the signs. We had an Eighties theme day last month and we all got to dress up and my hair was coloured green. They had a masked ball for Christmas last year and I was invited too. We were all dressed up. I know a lot of people now in Avolon.

I worked in a charity shop for about a year, but that was just volunteer work and I wasn’t paid. Avolon is a real job and I am very proud of that.

What would you like to say to those who support TCPID?
It’s all thanks to the TCPID course in Trinity that I got a proper job. Marie and the team showed us how to get ready for our work placements. We learned new skills and we can do our best in a real job when we get internships. Thank you to Avolon, every company that works with TCPID and everyone who donates to the centre.

“We have a very active CSR programme which we call CARE (Community, Avolon CARE Days, Resources, Education and Entrepreneurship) and we are always on the lookout for new ideas and initiatives to expand the CARE footprint. Hugo MacNeill who does a lot of work with TCPID, mentioned the programme to us and asked would we be open to a meeting. Two minutes into the meeting we knew we had found a new initiative that sat squarely with the objectives of CARE. Shortly after we signed up as a business partner to the programme. Very early on in our partnership we recruited a TCPID graduate, Emma, on a work experience placement programme. The initial intent was that this would run for three months, however, this was extended and we have recently made Emma a permanent employee! Having Emma as part of our team and seeing her grow and develop in her role has given us all an opportunity to reassess how we think about people with intellectual disability and to challenge some widely held preconceptions. Emma being here shows our people that our CARE initiatives are not just corporate speak, they are real and meaningful ways in which we can give back while also benefiting hugely.” - John Higgins, President and Chief Commercial Officer (Avolon)

“The practical and financial support that we receive from Avolon and our expanding network of TCPID business partners is helping us to secure the future of the TCPID and to develop further opportunities for our students and graduates. Together with our partners we believe that the full inclusion of people with intellectual disabilities in education, employment, and society should be a right, not an aspiration. Our graduates, including Emma are inspiring others to follow in their footsteps by showing what is possible when people are given the opportunity to fulfil their true potential.” - Marie Devitt, TCPID Pathways Coordinator

“Feedback has been really positive from the individuals involved, their families and partner companies. We hope that other Trinity Alumni can help us to build further momentum for this ground breaking programme by providing introductions to potential partners” - Hugo MacNeill, TCPID Ambassador

For further information about the TCPID Business Partners Programme, please contact Marie Devitt, TCPID Pathways Coordinator at devittma@tcd.ie or 8963885