Pub GuideO'Donnell, Irene
IRENE Mary O’Donnell is the director of campus offices services and records management at John Jay College of Criminal Justice/CUNY in New York. John Jay is a liberal arts college dedicated to education, research and service in the fields of criminal justice, fire science and related areas of public safety and public service.
A native of Glenties, Co. Donegal, O’Donnell earned a bachelor’s in forensic psychology from John Jay, and a master’s from Baruch/Cornell University. O’Donnell is active in Irish American causes. Since 1996 she’s been a member of the Jerry McCabe Fellowship Breakfast Committee at John Jay which is primarily a fundraiser for the exchange of members of the NYPD and the Irish police force to research public safety initiatives by each agency. This has proven to be a huge success with two Irish officers acquiring master’s degrees from John Jay annually.
She is also a former chairperson of the Irish Center in Woodside, and a member of the Donegal Association for many years.
O’Donnell travels to Ireland twice a year. “After 31 years in the U.S., Glenties is still home! I’ve lived here longer than I have in Ireland, and Ireland is still home,” she says. “I love when people detect my Irish accent, which I still have, and when they ask me where I am from. Ireland is in my blood and that never changes.
“I would not change being a citizen of Ireland ever, and chances are that I will eventually retire there!”
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