Our Lady of Mercy College, Carysfort
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Our Lady of Mercy College, Carysfort (commonly known as Carysfort College) was an important College of Education in Dublin, Ireland from its foundation in 1877 until its closure in 1988 and was located in Blackrock. The college, which was a recognised college of the National University of Ireland from April 1975 had a long history of education in Ireland and educated primary school teachers.
Noted past academics at the college include Seamus Heaney, Eoin MacNeill and Eamon de Valera. The academic staff of the college were transferred, on closure, to: National Institute for Higher Education, Dublin (now Dublin City University), St. Patrick's College, Maynooth (now National University of Ireland, Maynooth), Trinity College, Dublin and University College, Dublin.
[edit] Controversy
The closure was not without controversies. For example, the state had invested several million Irish pounds (IR£) in the years immediately prior to the closure. The Sisters of Mercy, the owners, had the property valued at IR£ 20 million from the sale of the lands and buildings - this led to a minor scandal and the compensation to the state to the tune of IR£ 3 million. The most developed 20 acres (81,000 m²) of the 90 acre (364,000 m²) estate were eventually sold to University College, Dublin in 1991 for IR£ 8 million after much speculation - it was not an unusual thing for the state to get property at a much reduced price at the time. This also led to further controversy as it was claimed that the university college was forced to purchase a property that it neither needed nor wanted - especially as its new Belfield campus nearby was more than adequate for future expansion.
