Prof. Kevin Rafter served as Arts Council Chair from 2019 – 2023. He is Head of the School of Communications at Dublin City University and is the author/editor of over a dozen books on Irish media and politics. Kevin is an experienced independent non-executive director with significant governance, stakeholder and communications expertise, and has a strong track record of regulatory oversight in the broadcast, legal and financial sectors. He was previously a board member of Dublin Bus, Oxfam Ireland and the Galway International Arts Festival and also served as Chair of Culture Ireland. He is also currently Chairperson of the Compliance Committee of the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland. Prior to 2008, Kevin worked as a senior political journalist with the Irish Times, the Sunday Times and the Sunday Tribune as well as editor of Magill magazine, while for RTÉ, he presented several flagship radio programmes including This Week, Morning Ireland and the News at One, as well as working as a correspondent for Prime Time. He has a BA (Mod) and MLitt in economics and a MA and PhD in political science, and a Diploma in Corporate Law & Governance.