Simonetta Ryan is a former Assistant Secretary General with the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection (now retired). She previously worked in the Department of Health and the Department of Finance.

She has broad experience in public administration – in social policy, legislation and policy implementation and has worked with a wide range of stakeholders during her career in the public service.

Martin Scully is Chief Executive of Oyster Capital Partners and was appointed to the Board of Jigsaw in October 2018. Martin is a director of Titan HQ, Amarenco Solar Holdings Limited and Movell European Transport Limited.

He was previously Chairman of Advanced Environmental Solutions (Ireland) Limited, Complete Telecoms and Dolmen Securities (since renamed Cantor Fitzgerald Ireland) prior to the sale of those businesses. Previously, Martin was a partner for 12 years in a major financial services firm RSM Farrell Grant Sparks (now part of Grant Thornton).

Jacinta Stewart served as Chair of the Jigsaw board from 2019 until completion of her six-year term in July 2025. She was appointed Chair of the State Examinations Commission in July 2024 and served as Chief Executive Officer of CDVEC/CDETB from 2005-2016. Having graduated from UCD with a BA and Higher Diploma in Education, Jacinta began her career as a teacher in Dundalk Regional College (now Dundalk Institute of Technology).

She joined CDVEC as an Adult Education Organiser in 1985. In January 1993, she was appointed to the post of Education Officer in CDVEC with special responsibility for Adult Education and for a number of the Committee’s schools/centres. In 1997 she was awarded a Masters’ Degree in Education and Management from Trinity College Dublin. In 2005 she was appointed CEO of CDVEC (now City of Dublin Education and Training Board – CDETB). Jacinta has served on a wide variety of boards and committees, including the Residential Institution Redress Unit, the Grangegorman Development Agency, the Grangegorman Audit Committee, the Education and Finance Board, the Teaching Council, the Expert Group on Future Skills Needs, the Children’s Acts Advisory Board, the CDETB Benevolent Fund and the CDETB Sports and Cultural Council. Jacinta had a great interest in life-long learning. She played a prominent role in the development of national policies with DES and was a long-time member of CEEOA.

Research Professor at the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI). Her main research interests centre on education, school-to-work transitions, gender and comparative methodology. She has conducted a number of studies on the effects of schooling contexts on student outcomes, including Do Schools Differ?

She led the Post-Primary Longitudinal Study (PPLS), which followed a cohort of young people from the first year of second-level education onwards. This study was the first of its kind in the Irish context and yielded insights into important processes such as the transition to second-level education, the factors influencing examination performance, the impact of ability grouping, and gender and social differentiation in educational outcomes.

Tammy Donaghy is a youth mental health advocate. Tammy comes from a youth work background, has completed an undergraduate degree in youth and community studies and is currently pursuing a Masters in comparative criminology and criminal justice.

She has experience of working with, or advocating for, young people at many levels and is currently a youth employability support worker in Finglas youth resource centre.

Tammy has sat on the Boards of Community Creations (spunout.ie and text 50808), City of Dublin Youth Service, and Jigsaw. She has also sat on the Children’s Reference Group and represented this body at the advisory group for the development of overarching national standards for the care and support of children using health and social care services. She regularly presents to organisations on youth mental health.

Ruth is a Senior Clinical Psychologist / Clinical Lead, and a researcher in the area of digital technology and mental health. She is an experienced clinician having worked across primary care, CAMHS and disability services, and a senior lecturer in clinical psychology.

Ruth obtained her Masters and Doctorate degrees at Trinity College Dublin, and her undergraduate degree at Maynooth University. She also holds a Masters in Healthcare Management and Leadership from the Irish Management Institute / UCC. Ruth is a previous chair and current member of the Psychological Society of Ireland Division of Clinical Psychology. She is Principal Investigator on the SafePlan research trial. Ruth is currently a Fulbright HRB HealthImpact scholar and was previously a Fulbright Scholar 2016 / 2017 based at the Suicide Prevention Research Lab, Stanford University.

Liz Chaloner is an experienced senior manager and independent consultant in the not-for-profit and public sectors and has held many senior positions, including the Centre for Effective Services (Senior Manager), Samaritans Ireland (Interim Executive Director), Dyslexia Association of Ireland (Interim CEO) and Barnardos (Assistant Director).

She was a specialist consultant to the review of Aras Attracta in Swinford, Co. Mayo, a member of the Ombudsman for Children’s Panel of Investigators and Programme Manager in Combat Poverty Agency. She was a non-executive director with the Irish Refugee Council, the Family Support Agency and the National Advocacy Service. Liz originally qualified and worked as a social worker and social work educator in both Ireland and the UK and holds a B.Soc Studies and CQSW from Trinity College, Dublin, a MA in Women’s Studies from the University of Wolverhamption (UK) and M.Sc in Social Research Skills from University of Ulster.

Karen is a Consultant Psychiatrist and the National Clinical Lead for the Early Intervention in Psychosis Programme. Dr. O Connor is a graduate of University College Cork. She completed most of her postgraduate training in Psychiatry in Dublin.

She completed a fellowship at Orygen Youth Mental Health Service in Melbourne, Australia. Karen has a Medical Doctorate in Early Intervention in Psychosis. She is the clinical lead of the RISE Early Intervention in Psychosis service in South Lee, Cork. Dr. O Connor is the Vice Dean for postgraduate basic specialist training in psychiatry in the UCC Deanery.

John is an energetic leader with a proven track record in driving business strategy, leading edge Risk Management Consulting & Training and Business Turnaround.

As an out-of-the-box thinker, John has a proven ability to devise wide-ranging solutions for resolving complex organisational issues. An Accountant by profession, John has been running and advising organisations in the Public and Private Sector, both as an advisor and a non-Executive Director since 2003. Prior to that John spent 23 years in various Executive positions with the Ulster Bank / Natwest Group.

Paul Crone is the Director of the National Association of Principals and Deputies, NAPD. Previously Paul was the Director of Schools for the City of Dublin Education and Training Board and before that he spent 11 years as Principal in Old Bawn Community School. Paul has experience supporting and representing school leaders through his work on the executive committee of the Association of Community and Comprehensive Schools, ACCS, through his work with the Professional Development Service for Teachers, PDST and the Centre for School Leadership, CSL.

Paul started his career as a teacher of woodwork graduating from the University of Limerick in 1991 with first class honours. In 2008 he completed the post graduate diploma in school leadership and more recently the post graduate certificate in governance. Paul has extensive experience in school leadership at both local school and system level. Having been a school leader in two of the sectors in Irish education has prepared Paul for his current role to empower, support and represent school leaders nationally.

Celine Moore is a senior leader with deep knowledge and experience in HR, operational policy and corporate governance. She is currently a member of the Jigsaw HR and Governance sub-committee.

Celine’s wide experience as a senior official in the Department of Social Protection includes HR Director (approx.7500 staff), and Deputy Director of Regions, responsible for operational policy and the delivery of frontline working age services across Ireland. Her experiences of dealing with people, frequently in very difficult circumstances, gives her a real understanding of the need for a customer centric approach to developing policy where it impacts people’s lives and the importance of treating people with dignity.

She currently volunteers as a paired reader in a nearby National School. She is also the Chairperson of a Community Choir.