Our Previous Board (2020-2023)

Cormac Savage is the founder and former President of SSUNI. He is currently studying at Harvard University. He is a trustee of the British Youth Council, represented South Down in the UK Youth Parliament, and won two Paul Boskett MBE Awards for speeches at the annual UK House of Commons sitting. A recipient of the Rotarian Youth Leadership Competition. In 2019, he travelled to Strasbourg to represent Ireland in the EU Parliament. Cormac has won a YAFTA in the ‘Inspirational Young Person’ category and a Michaela Foundation Wings Award.

Paul has been working in the area of 'community relations' in Northern Ireland for most of his career, particularly in terms of working with young people on issues related to the conflict and training youth workers, teachers and others to do the same. He has also worked closely with colleagues in conflict regions around the world. He currently serves as Executive Director of Politics in Action. He has a strong interest in developmental models of youth engagement and new models of participation - especially through new technologies. He has a creative streak (first degree in Fine Art) and enjoys problem-solving and trying out new things.

Mark Langhammer is the regional secretary of the National Education Union (NEU), the largest education union in Europe. Mark was elected onto the Northern Ireland Committee of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions in 2008, being re-elected in 2010. From 1994 until 1998, Mark was the Chair of the Northern Ireland Association of Citizens Advice Bureau. He was subsequently the Chair of Playboard NI. He currently serves as a Director of Crusader F.C.

Graham is from a background of frontline education, having served as a teacher, vice-principal, and principal. He is the National Secretary of the National Association of Headteachers (NAHTni) and has led his profession in representation in both Stormont and Westminster. Graham has extensive experience with various councils, boards of directors and governors, with a current membership on many educational bodies, mental health services and sporting bodies.

Prof. Laura Lundy is Co-Director of the Centre for Children’s Rights and a Professor in the School of Social Sciences, Education and Social Work at Queen’s University, Belfast. She is co-Editor in Chief of the International Journal of Children’s Rights. Her expertise is in children’s right to participate in decision-making and education rights. Her 2007 paper, “’Voice’ is not enough” is one of the most highly cited academic papers on children’s rights and the model of children’s participation it proposes is used extensively in scholarship and practice. The ‘Lundy Model’ of child participation is core to the Irish National Children’s Participation Strategy (2015) and has been adopted by international organisations such as the European Commission and global NGOs such as World Vision. She acts as expert advisor on child participation to Child Rights Connect and has provided advice and/or training on children’s rights to other international organisations including the Committee on the Rights of the Child, OSCE, the Council of Europe, UNICEF, Terre des Hommes, Plan International and Save the Children. In 2019 she received the Human Rights Prize of the French Republic.