South Roscommon native appointed as University of Limerick president

South Roscommon native Professor Shane Kilcommins has been announced as only the fifth-ever president of University of Limerick (UL).

A native of Creagh, Prof Kilcommins previously held the role of provost and deputy president of UL, and has served as acting president since 2024.

He brings extensive academic and executive leadership experience, having previously held senior roles including Head of the School of Law and Executive Dean of the Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences.

A full Professor of Law, Prof Kilcommins is a respected scholar with a strong record of research, public engagement and service, and his academic work is closely associated with principles of justice, rights and fairness, including long-standing engagement with organisations and agencies across policing, prisons and the wider criminal justice system.

Speaking following his appointment by the Governing Authority of UL, Prof. Kilcommins said: “It is an honour to be appointed President of University of Limerick. UL is a university with a distinctive character and a clear academic purpose, rooted in this region but also confident in its place nationally and internationally. What makes UL distinctive is the breadth of the education it offers.

“An education at UL encompasses not only how students are taught and what they study, but how they develop as individuals, how they understand relationships, and how they engage with well-being, creativity, diversity and community.

“Here, academic excellence sits alongside sport, culture and the arts, and no one is defined by a single pathway or identity. That is the hallmark of an education for life, and one of the defining strengths of this university.”

Prof Kilcommins added that the responsibility of leadership was to protect and strenghten the conditions that allow students to 'emerge as the next generation of scholars, researchers, professionals, public servants, athletes, entrepreneurs, artists and creatives'.

He also said that he was entrusted with ensuring that everyone who works at UL, in every role and at every level, feels valued, supported and able to contribute fully.

“I am confident in the future of this university. With a renewed sense of shared purpose, UL will articulate and advance its academic mission and its role as a public good, while sustaining an environment of which staff and students can rightly be proud,” he said.

An early priority for Prof Kilcommins will be to work closely with the governing authority to agree and advance UL’s next strategic plan.

Welcoming the appointment, Prof. Brigid Laffan, Chancellor of UL, said: “The Governing Authority has great confidence in Prof. Kilcommins’ judgment, integrity and understanding of the responsibilities of leading a public university at a time of significant change in higher education nationally and internationally.

“He brings academic credibility, strong institutional knowledge and a principled approach to both scholarship and governance. Under his leadership, this university will stretch its ambition while remaining faithful to its core values.”