ERI Board

Board of Edmund Rice International

Phil Glendenning is the Chair of the ERI Board. He was the founding Director of the Edmund Rice Centre for Justice and Community Education, a position he held for 27 years from 1996. For 10 years he was also National President of Australians for Native Title and Reconciliation (ANTaR). He served as President of the Refugee Council of Australia from 2012-2021. With a background in education, Third World development and political science, for the past 30 years he has been primarily involved in peace and reconciliation work – especially with youth – in Australia, Northern Ireland, Israel and Palestine, Central America, Rwanda, Kiribati and Tuvalu in the Pacific, and Aboriginal Australia. In 2017, he was made a Member of the Order of Australia for services to human rights and education.

David Barry is an MA graduate from UCC with postgraduates in education and educational administration and leadership. He has been involved in education since 1999. He has worked in Christian Brothers Schools in Waterford and Limerick. His first senior management role was in St. Fachtna’s de la Salle and is currently principal in Presentation Brothers College, Cork which one of eight Presentation Brothers Schools Trust (PBST) schools

Sean D’Alfonso currently serves as the Director of the Office of Mission and Ministry at Iona University in New Rochelle, New York. Sean has also served as the Advocacy Coordinator for the Edmund Rice Christian Brothers North America Province since 2015, and has over 10 years of experience in education and work promoting advocacy and human rights with students and schools. Sean received a BA in Global Studies from Loyola University in Maryland, a MS in Education from Johns Hopkins University and an Ed.D. from Seton Hall University.

Stephen Duffy grew up in Scotland, but moved to Manchester in 1979 where he graduated in Economics & Social Studies from the University of Manchester. He went on to qualify as a chartered accountant with Price Waterhouse (now PwC) and spent a couple of years at ICI as financial controller before embarking on a long consulting career with PW/PwC. His passion at work is helping people to develop and succeed, particularly during periods of change, and throughout his career sat on numerous programme boards and leadership teams across a wide variety of organisations and environments, bringing to bear this experience of change to help them make that happen.

Karen Herbert has more than 20 years international experience in significant leadership positions with large global organisations including the Allied Irish bank, Citibank Japan and  Deloitte. She has also served as the non-Executive Director and Chair of the Audit Committee of a state funded membership based charity and Chair of the grants committee of a religious organisation focused on refugee and mission related services. She is currently based in Co Louth Ireland.

Cormac McArt is the director of the Westcourt Centre, an Edmund Rice social justice ministry based in Belfast. Cormac is a BA (Hons) graduate from Queen’s University, a Master of Science graduate from the University of Ulster and has over twenty years experience in project management. He has been involved in the development and delivery of advocacy initiatives (specifically around homelessness) for the past 10 years.

Anne Murphy is a graduate of University College Cork and has a BA in English and Geography.  She has worked in a number of schools in Dublin ( Sion Hill and Clonkeen College CBS) and Cork. She is currently teaching in Coláiste Chríost Rí , Turners Cross, Cork.

Helen O’Brien is at present on the Senior Management Team of the Edmund Rice Schools Trust as Coordinator of Governance Support Services.  She has had over 20 years teaching experience in Primary education in Dublin.  Having graduated from Trinity College with a Master of Studies in School Planning,  she worked  on the implementation of the School Planning programme with the Irish National Teachers Organisation in the 1990s.  She was seconded to the Primary Curriculum Support Service by the Department of Education and Skills from 1999. From  2000 and 2008 she served as Assistant Director with St Helen’s Education Office (Christian Brothers) and was a member of the Project Team that oversaw the transition to the new Trust and the ERST Charter.

Phil Ryan cfc is a Christian Brother living in Bray Co. Wicklow. He is part of an Ecological Community and has a background in Farm Management. He also worked  with early school leavers for a number of years. He is a graduate of UCC in Community Studies and the National College of Ireland in Business Management. He has been Manager/CEO of the Edmund Rice International Heritage Centre, Mount Sion, Waterford. 

Rupert O’Sullivan fps graduated from University College Cork, with a degree in Arts and a Diploma in Education. He served as Headmaster/Principal from 1985 to 1998 and completed a Diploma in Spirituality from 1998 to 1999. He lived and worked in Africa for twelve years, six in formation and six as Province Leader. He served as Deputy Congregation Leader of the Presentation Brothers for six years, and in 2023 was re-elected as a member of the Congregation Leadership Team.

David Ryan Silva cfc is a Christian Brother currently a member of the Congregation Leadership Team based in Rome. Before coming to Rome, he was a member of the Province Leadership Team of the Christian Brothers in India. As a member of the team, he was the liaison person with ERI. David has degrees in Computer Science, Education, and Theology. He has worked for a considerable number of years as a teacher in Christian Brother Schools across India. Most recently he has also spent a few years working as a Project Manager in a rural village in the North East of India, engaged in community development, education, and advocacy.

As Executive Director of Edmund Rice International, Brian Bond cfc is ex officio a member of the Board.

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