The Vice-Chancellor and President of Charles Sturt University (CSU), Professor Ian Goulter, has announced the University’s new Head of Campus at Dubbo. Dr Beverley Moriarty, who is Associate Head of the School of Teacher Education at Dubbo, will take on the Head of Campus role for three years, effective from Wednesday 15 July. Professor Goulter welcomed Dr Moriarty’s appointment and looks forward to working closely with her to develop further the campus at Dubbo. Dr Moriarty said she was honoured to accept the new role. “These are exciting times for the higher education sector and I am delighted that I can contribute to realising the opportunities for Charles Sturt University as it moves ahead as the University of Inland Australia,” Dr Moriarty said. “I also want to acknowledge the contribution of my predecessor, Mr Gary Shipp who has taken on an important new role in the University as Special Adviser, Indigenous Affairs.”

Fifteen nursing students who have completed a three-year degree at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Dubbo will be farewelled by staff at a special luncheon at the University on Tuesday 15 October. They are among a cohort of 207 nursing students from across the CSU School of Nursing, Midwifery and Indigenous Health who will graduate at the end of this semester, and who are now are eligible to register with the Australian Health Practitioners Regulatory Authority. Ms Lyn Croxon, program leader for the Bachelor of Nursing in the CSU School of Nursing, Midwifery and Indigenous Health, said, “The students have just returned to the campus after eight weeks of placement, four weeks of which focused on the transition to practice as a Registered Nurse. They received invaluable support from the staff in the various hospitals in which they undertook the clinical placement. Clinical practice is an integral and valuable component of the course, preparing our future nurses for the workplace, and the University thanks the regional health services for their support of our programs.” The students come from Dubbo and the surrounding regional towns of Gilgandra, Cobar, Narromine, Parkes and Narrabri. The majority of graduates will accept positions as Registered Nurses with the Western NSW Local Health Network, while some individuals have been offered positions in Newcastle, Wollongong and Gosford.

The hospitals and health facilities across rural NSW will soon get a boost after 15 nursing students celebrate their last days at Charles Sturt University (CSU) at Dubbo with a barbeque on Monday 9 November before their exams and graduation. Ms Cathy Maginnis, lecturer in nursing and academic advisor for the Bachelor of Nursing  at Dubbo, said, “CSU's School of Nursing and Midwifery has an excellent rapport with the many health facilities across NSW, both rural and metropolitan, to ensure the clinical experience for our students is second to none so they are ready to fulfill their duties as Registered Nurses upon completion of their degree. These students have just completed their last clinical placement which enables them to integrate the theory and skills taught at university to the workplace setting. Students are currently being notified of their acceptances into postgraduate programs for next year as Registered Nurses. As most will be staying in Dubbo and surrounding areas, this reinforces the importance of CSU at Dubbo in providing professional, qualified nurses for regional NSW.”

The earthquake and tsunami that hit Chile on Sunday 28 February are reminders of the harshness of nature and the need for governments, emergency services and relief agencies to plan for natural disasters, says an expert in disaster management from Charles Sturt University (CSU). Mr Ian Manock, lecturer in emergency management at CSU’s Australian Graduate School of Policing, said that with a burgeoning world population and in spite of increasing technology, research shows that the incidence of damage to facilities and harm to people from the impact of natural and technological hazards is increasing exponentially. He said the disaster will no doubt have emergency service agencies in Chile pushed beyond their limits and the international community will be called on to assist.

Charles Sturt University (CSU) will be one of three universities to provide senior high school students in Dubbo with the chance to discover more about university life and potential career paths when the Regional University Road Show comes to town on Thursday 4 March. Dubbo Senior College will host one of the road show events, which career advisor, Mrs Denise Latta, describes as a wonderful opportunity for local students. “A large percentage of Dubbo school graduates complete their tertiary education at regional universities and this is a chance to hear from three different universities in the one session. This enables them to consider a number of options for future study,” Mrs Latta said. “Often regional students have difficulty attending university open days, so here the universities come to the students. The sessions are very informative and give lots of time for questions about both the study options and the admissions process."

The newly-appointed Professor of Paramedic Practice and Leadership at Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) School of Biomedical Sciences in Bathurst, Professor Peter O’Meara, has returned from teaching a one week course for paramedics from several states centred around the  US state of Illinois. “They have a very different system in the US to ours in Australia,” Professor O’Meara explained. “The professional practice and management issues are similar, however they have 17 000 ambulance service providers compared to eight in Australia. Services range from very small to moderately sized organisations serving a city or regional community and there are no state-wide services. Many are run by the fire brigade, others by city councils, hospitals and private companies, some for profit and others not-for-profit. In Australia we are well advanced in the education and training of paramedics and ambulance service managers. However, we can learn from experiences in the US where they face challenges over a very large and diverse country. I see potentially great opportunities for the University to extend into the US paramedic education market in partnership with professional associations and other universities involved in paramedic education. I am also pursuing opportunities for CSU paramedic students to undertake clinical placements in the US.”

Charles Sturt University (CSU) will recognise academic excellence among its graduating students and the wider community at the CSU Graduation ceremony in Dubbo on Wednesday 24 March. Associate Professor Joe Canalese, OAM, has accepted the Vice-Chancellor’s invitation to be the Occasional Speaker at the Dubbo graduation to be held at the Dubbo Christian School starting at 10.30am. Associate Professor Canalese received his national award in the 2010 Australia Day Honours List “for service to medicine, to rural health, and to the community of Dubbo”. Dr Canalese has lived and worked in Dubbo for 30 years as a physician and gastroenterologist and is known as a staunch believer in the value of good education. This is the first time the Graduation ceremony will be held at the Dubbo Christian School.

Aboriginal students considering a tertiary degree are encouraged to apply for Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) Koori Admissions Program (KAP) within the next week to ensure they are considered for study in 2010. The annual KAP is an alternative entry program designed specifically for Indigenous students. The KAP provides potential students with a supportive and caring environment to assess whether or not they are likely to be suited to university life. It is free of charge to eligible participants, with travel, meal and accommodation costs funded by the Commonwealth Department of Education, Science and Training. Students who successfully complete the KAP will be offered a place in their chosen course at any CSU campus or via distance education. Koori students interested in being part of the program should register their interest with the University’s Indigenous Student Services (ph 6338 4236) in the coming weeks or visit here.

The cohort of nursing graduates from Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Dubbo will be farewelled with a luncheon by staff and fellow students from the School of Nursing, Midwifery and Indigenous Health on Thursday 11 October. Lecturer in nursing, Ms Cathy Maginnis, said the 17 students graduating from CSU in Dubbo are among 163 students across the University’s five campuses who are graduating from the Bachelor of Nursing in December. “This is the 11th year of internal nursing graduates from Charles Sturt University in Dubbo,” Ms Maginnis said. “The students are primarily mature-age women who have juggled family, employment and study. We also have two males in the group, and students who have travelled each week to attend classes from regional towns such as Coonabarabran, Tooraweenah, and Gilgandra. All have offers of new graduate nursing positions to commence in 2013, so this will be a great boost to our regional registered nurse workforce. They aim to work in a variety of discipline specialisations including medical, surgical, emergency, intensive care, and paediatrics. The majority will take up roles in Dubbo and the surrounding areas of Coonabarabran, Gilgandra and Wellington, and one student will practice in Orange.”