Twenty five senior students from Central West high schools and central schools will attend a three-day residential camp at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Bathurst from Tuesday 28 to Thursday 30 August to stimulate their interest in university study and careers in business and the creative arts. Ms Sue Rogan, manager of Pre-entry Programs / Academic Support at CSU, said, “The I-Manifest program will see students from schools partnered with the CSU Future Moves program divided into two groups, with tutors from the Faculties of Arts and Business and advertising industry professionals, to develop a new product, and learn how to launch and promote it in the market. This is an exciting concept that will lead the students through the process of conceptualising, researching, developing and promoting new consumer products. It will give the students a taste of what university study and life is like, and the professional careers options that might interest them.” The students will work with marketing and advertising academics from the School of Marketing and Management, the School of Communication and Creative Industries, and personnel from Sydney advertising agencies Droga5, and Satchi and Satchi. Future Moves staff and volunteer undergraduate leaders will coordinate and support the activities over the three days.

The role of women in higher education is being celebrated at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Bathurst and at universities across the country during Bluestocking Week from Monday 13 to Friday 17 August. Dr Kristina Gottschall, a lecturer at the School of Teacher Education in Bathurst, and the newly-elected President of the Bathurst sub-branch of the National Tertiary Education Union, said two events are planned. “All ‘Bluestockings’ and their supporters are invited to attend a screening of the new Australian film The Sapphires at 6.40pm on Tuesday 14 at the Metro Cinema, Bathurst, and there will be a special lunch at Café Mitchell on the University’s Bathurst Campus from 12.30pm on Wednesday 15 August ,” Dr Gottschall said. “In addition to providing a place for women, their friends and supporters in Charles Sturt University to get together, we want to stress the importance of women’s contribution to academic life, advancing feminism and equality through education and collaboration, and subverting the social constructs that narrow social roles, and women’s creativity, expression and thought. It’s essential to reconnect through such events, particularly given the tightly regulated and compressed nature of academic work life today, especially for women who tend to have higher rates of casual employment.”

How do you actually study? Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Bathurst will host a day of practical Skill Fix workshops to help Year 11 students from the region to answer this question. Ms Tonya Graham, the pre-entry program coordinator at CSU, said 53 students from Kandos High, Narromine High, Wellington High, Portland Central School, Yeoval Central School and Peak Hill Central School will visit CSU in Bathurst on Monday 25 March for Skill Fix, as part of the CSU Future Moves program. “The aim of the day is to equip Year 11 students with the skills to reach their potential in senior schooling and beyond,” Ms Graham said. “The Future Moves team will engage expert University staff, as well as headspace, Bathurst, to facilitate the Skill Fix workshops that provide students with valuable advice about learning styles, writing skills, effective internet research, note taking, time management, exam preparation, and coping with anxiety. An added benefit of the day is the exposure of regional students to university life. Students will visit various learning spaces on campus and interact with current uni students to get a real understanding of what university is actually like.” Find more information about Future Moves here.

A group of 12 graduate education students from Michigan, USA, will visit Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Bathurst on Saturday 2 June to attend a final rehearsal performance of Lost and Found, a new theatre-for-young-people production that is about to tour regional NSW schools. Ms Phoebe Lane, a lecturer at the CSU School of Communication and Creative Industries in Bathurst, said, “The students are visiting schools in Australia and New Zealand, as part of a Fulbright-Hays Group Project Abroad. It’s the first time that eight of the 12 students have travelled overseas, and because they have been undertaking a comparative study of either ‘culturally responsive teaching’ or ‘arts-infused teaching’ in a particular subject area, a visit to Charles Sturt University for its theatre/media course was recommended by another university because of the high regard for it. There are eight primary school teachers and four high school teachers in the group (eight women and four men), and they were chosen in a competitive process for their very strong academic and social performance and demonstrated leadership skills.” The group will tour the theatre/media facilities at CSU before attending a performance of Lost and Found which begins a tour of regional NSW schools on Monday 4 June.

Primary school students from Bathurst and Portland will attend special workshops at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Bathurst on Wednesday 23 May to help motivate them to explore study options for when they finish high school. A total of 83 Year 5 and 6 students from Bathurst West Public School, Bathurst South Public School and Portland Central School will participate in the Check It Out Day, which is part of the Future Moves program at CSU. The manager of CSU Pre-entry Programs,  Ms Sue Rogan, said, “The Check It Out Day is an exciting interactive experience for primary school students that encourages them to consider university as an option when they leave school. It exposes students at a young age to the university experience so they develop confidence to seek information about courses and pathways as they go through high school.” The six workshops will provide hands-on experiences in art and science education, sport, communication and media, nursing and paramedicine. The students will also tour the campus, participate in activities on the sports fields, and join in a mock graduation. The CSU Check It Out Day runs from 9.30am to 2.30pm Wednesday 23 May at Charles Sturt University, Panorama Avenue, Bathurst.

The Australian University Sports (AUS) association has conferred an award on a Charles Sturt University (CSU) student support officer at Bathurst in recognition of her dedication to advancing participation in university sports. Ms Jean Ryan received the Service to Sport Award from AUS Life Member, Ms Ann Mitchell, at a special dinner at the Crowne Plaza Coogee Beach in Sydney on Thursday 17 May as part of the annual AUS conference. “I am surprised and delighted to receive this award, but the successes of Charles Sturt University sport is only achieved through the talent and enthusiasm of our students,” Ms Ryan said. The award citation states, ‘Jean has held numerous roles in the sports sector both within the University and the local community, and was the sole contributor to the organisation of CSU sport in Bathurst for at least 15 years.’

Third-year theatre/media students at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Bathurst will stage their production of a new play, Reductio Ad, which premieres at the Ponton Theatre on Wednesday 23 May. Reductio Ad was written by award-winning screenwriter and playwright Mr Ray Harding, and is directed by Ms Kate Smith, both lecturers at the CSU School of Communication and Creative Industries in Bathurst. Reductio Ad is a black comedy that tracks one day in the life of a dysfunctional family living in the year 2027 as the last survivors on Earth, or so they think. Ms Smith said, "This play explores our reliance on technology, celebrity, and religion to solve life's inexplicable mysteries in the face of annihilation. Ray Harding has created a landscape inhabited by a barely functioning family - Bazza, Beryl and their four adult children - who cling to their sanity as they seek refuge inside an abandoned detention centre as they seemingly ignore the harsh reality of their existence in a world destroyed by the impacts of climate change. This comic and at times paradoxical portrait of Australian society in the face of massive global change is off-beat and deeply provocative.”

A group of Charles Sturt University (CSU) students will host a Mini Relay For Life at the University on Saturday 26 May to raise awareness and funds for the Cancer Council, and they invite the Bathurst community to join in. The students, Ms Jenna Campbell, Ms Sarah Dowling, Mr Jerrod Alexander and Ms Ella Dumbrell, have organised the event with the support of the Cancer Council to raise money for cancer research, support and education programs. Ms Campbell said, “Relay For Life is a fun, outdoor fundraising event where teams of 10-15 people take turns to walk or run around an oval to honour the lives of people touched by cancer. Teams are encouraged to theme their outfits and tents and do something about cancer in their community in a simple and social way. It’s a great team-building fun event!” The CSU Mini Relay For Life will be staged at the CSU soccer field from 4pm-10pm Saturday 26 May. For more information, contact Ms Jenna Campbell on 0430 490 865.

Treatment for the blood cancers multiple myeloma and Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma currently require some patients living in regional and rural Australia to travel considerable distances and stay for a period of time in major regional and metropolitan centres. Charles Sturt University (CSU) Honours student Ms Kerry Wagland is investigating how mothers living in regional areas with dependent children, and who have contracted these rare cancers, cope with their disease and treatment. Ms Wagland, with the support of CSU’s School of Psychology, is interviewing rural and regional women who have these diseases to understand how they impact on the mother’s daily life and her relationships. “I am seeking to gain insights into the challenges faced by these women, especially when they have to travel to and stay at a major treatment centre. I am hoping this will lead to improved support for these women,” Ms Wagland said. The interviews, to be carried out for up to one hour face-to-face or via telephone, will be conducted until 31 August 2012.