While Georgia Tech Was in Ireland, Atlanta Got a New Irish Consul General

While Georgia leaders were in Ireland taking advantage of a nationwide platform provided by a Georgia Tech football game there, the country’s new consul general took up his post. 

Frank Groome’s arrival in Atlanta in August coincided with the biggest delegation to his country from Georgia perhaps since 2016, the last time a Georgia Tech team played in Dublin. 

Both times, the Yellow Jackets came away with victories, perhaps boding well for Dr. Groome’s tenure, during which he hopes to further advance the close ties between Ireland and the five states under his jurisdiction. 

“The U.S. Southeast is an incredibly diverse and dynamic region, bursting with economic potential. While the Irish footprint in the region is already significant, I am focused on growing our connections in the region and supporting the mutually beneficial two-way economic relationship,” Dr. Groome told Global Atlanta.

Dr. Groome becomes Ireland’s fifth top diplomat in the Southeast U.S. since it set up the consulate in 2010, its first in the U.S. in 75 years. Since then, Ireland has steadily expanded its diplomatic presence in a region it views as ascendant economically, opening new consulates in Miami and Austin. 

He takes up the role vacated by Caoimhe Ni Chonchuir, whose last unofficial duty before becoming political director for Northern Ireland at the Department of Foreign Affairs was to cheer on the Jackets during the Aer Lingus Classic at Aviva Stadium. 

Ms. Ni Chonchuir played a key role in coordinating the various groups traveling over from the state, from the Georgia Tech athletic department to a group of 25 or so state legislators who made the trip to both Dublin and Belfast. 

A major economic-development contingent also crossed the pond, including representatives from the Metro Atlanta Chamber, Georgia Power and the Georgia Department of Economic Development, among others. 

Global Atlanta on Oct. 3 is convening a group of leaders for a debriefing on the trip with the goal of highlighting the interwoven threads of engagement with Ireland that the football game helped advance. Dr. Groome is set to give opening remarks.

Showcasing Ireland’s sports technology prowess was a major goal of Enterprise Ireland, which brought a group of buyers over from the Atlanta Hawks and other key franchises (and provided support for Global Atlanta to cover the mission). 

For his part, Dr. Groome comes from a post as the deputy chief of mission at the Irish embassy in The Hague. Before that stint in the Netherlands, he was Deputy Director for Disarmament and Non-Proliferation in the Department of Foreign Affairs in Dublin. He has also worked in the U.S. before, at the United Nations in New York.  

Before joining the foreign service, Dr. Groome worked in the energy sector. He holds a master’s degree in law from King’s College London and Ph.D in diplomatic history from University College Dublin. He arrives in the United States with his wife and two children. 

Learn more about the 10/3 Ireland Georgia Tech debriefing event featuring opening remarks from Dr. Groome: Ireland: Beyond the Field