University of North Florida. Irish Studies Program

In 1986, the University of North Florida (UNF) Dept. of Language and Literature began offering a variety of courses in Irish literature, which generated high student enrollments and community interest. Literature Professor Richard Bizot, a charter member of the Dept., was the catalyst and longtime coordinator of Irish Studies at UNF. In addition to designing and teaching courses on Irish fiction, poetry, and drama, he conducted literary tours of Ireland in 1986, 1987, 1990 and 1992, for university students and members of the community. In 1991, Bizot was instrumental in bringing Irish poet John Montague to UNF for the first Irish Studies event on campus.

In March 1995, a formal Irish Studies Program was initiated through the generosity of the Schultz Foundation, a Jacksonville, Florida, family foundation. UNF was the recipient of funding from the Foundation in the memory of John Francis Reilly, the Irish-born father of Nancy Reilly Schultz. The Foundation supported Irish Studies at UNF for ten years, and underwrote both the John Francis Reilly Performance and Lecture Series and the Reilly Fellowship program. A UNF Irish Studies Committee supervised the Series; initial members were Richard Bizot (chair), Dale Clifford, Betty Flinchum, Charles Galloway and Debra Murphy.

The Reilly Performance and Lecture Series presented 101 public events from its inception in Fall 1995 until Fall 2008. Irish poet and educator Seamus Deane presented the Inaugural Series Lecture, "Irish Studies: Rereading a Culture," on November 9, 1995. Other Reilly Series events included poetry readings, concerts, lectures, film series, exhibits and symposia. The Reilly Fellowships for curriculum development were awarded to eleven UNF faculty members who developed a variety of Irish Studies courses in art, film, Celtic spirituality, education, history, literature, nursing, political science and sociology. As a result, UNF faculty and students have presented scholarly papers at many Irish Studies conferences in the United States and Ireland.

In totality, the Irish Studies Program raised more than $100,000 in contributions to the UNF Foundation, establishing one endowment - the Moriarty Endowment, named after Professor Bizot's mother's family, and more than $100,000 in in-kind contributions.

In November 2008, due to budgetary constraints, most of the operations of the Irish Studies Program were suspended by the University until further notice. The last major event held was a Samuel Beckett Festival, featuring a trilogy of world-class events on October 30 - November 6, 2008.

From the guide to the University of North Florida. Irish Studies Program Records., 1986-2008, (UNF Library Special Collections and University Archives)