Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Dubbo will host special visitors and a public lecture in the weeks ahead. Head of Campus, Dr Bev Moriarty, said the Dubbo Men’s Probus club will visit the campus on Tuesday 2 August to inspect University facilities, including the new CSU Dental Clinic. “I’m also delighted that two representatives from Dubbo City Council’s sister-city, Minokamo, in Japan, Mr Ryohei Sago, a retired head master, and Ms Hiroe Yamauchi, an elementary school teacher, will tour the campus and the CSU Dental Clinic on Wednesday 3 August,” Dr Moriarty said. “And on Wednesday 10 August, the University will host a free public lecture, Water, Drought and Climate Change, by Professor David Mitchell from the CSU School of Environmental Sciences and Institute for Land, Water and Society. This very interesting and relevant topic is already attracting strong local interest from around Dubbo.”

Former and current police officers and school teachers are sought to participate in Charles Sturt University (CSU) research about decision-making in their careers. The study by Ms Loene Howes, a psychology student and a teacher for 14 years, will focus on the career decision-making of police officers and teachers who stay in these professions or enter new careers. “In particular, I need former school teachers and police officers who have gone into other fields, as well as current police officers and school teachers, to complete an anonymous online survey,” said Ms Howes. "The survey usually takes 10 to 30 minutes to complete, depending on how many questions are relevant to the experience of the individual completing the survey. I hope my research will be of use to police officers and teachers considering career change, counsellors assisting police officers and teachers with career transitions, and police and education departments in addressing the needs of staff and keeping experienced staff in the professions.” The survey can be found here. 

The first group of Aboriginal students enrolled in the new Teacher in Community program at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Dubbo will attend an introductory residential school starting on Monday 27 February. Ms Maria Bennet, lecturer at the CSU School of Teacher Education in Dubbo, said the students enrolled in the four-year mainstream Bachelor of Education (Early Childhood and Primary) will be on campus for their first residential school from Monday 27 February to Friday 2 March, inclusive. “My colleagues, Professor Jo-Anne Reid who devised the program, and project officer Ms Kathryn Walford, and I are delighted with the strong interest in and support for this program from communities across western NSW,” Ms Bennet said. “We look forward to welcoming the three male and 16 female students who come from rural and remote locations in NSW: Dubbo, Wagga Wagga, Gilgandra, Walgett, Wilcannia, Bourke, Darlington Point, Brewarrina, Narrabri, Broken Hill, and Dareton. As part of their first orientation program, the students will attend on campus classes and be introduced to the technology and systems that will then support them to continue to study in their communities.” Three other residential schools are scheduled for 23 April, 9 July and 3 September. The pilot project is funded by the Higher Education Participation and Partnership Program (HEPPP) of the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations.

Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Dubbo and Orange will come alive with science when the Science@CSU comes to town next week. The Faculty of Science at CSU is among the largest and most diverse science faculties in Australasia, with approximately 9 000 students and hundreds of staff in seven schools across six campuses. The Faculty teaches and conducts research in a variety of science and health disciplines including veterinary science, dentistry, nursing, environmental studies, forensic biotechnology, wine science, agriculture, and allied health. Dean of the Faculty of Science, Professor Nick Klomp, will present a summary of some of the exciting initiatives currently planned or being implemented in the various science disciplines at CSU, including new courses, current and future collaborations in research, and professional training made possible because of new international staff appointments and multi-million dollar investments in research and training facilities across CSU campuses. Science@CSU will visit the Dubbo Campus from 4pm to 5pm on Monday 19 March and the Orange Campus on Tuesday 20 March. Read more about Science@CSU here.

The expenses of attending university have been demystified in a new booklet published by Charles Sturt University (CSU), giving students the power of understanding when it comes to their study options. CSU’s Student Equity and diversity officer, Ms Carissa Perkins is excited to launch the publication. “The Making University Affordable booklet was developed by Charles Sturt University to instil a sense of empowerment, arming students with the knowledge they need to plan and succeed at university,” Ms Perkins said. “Making University Affordable addresses the costs to consider when thinking about further study and how to plan for them, and demonstrates how attending university increases future job prospects and earning capacity. The booklet helps, no matter what life stage students are in. Whether they are a school leaver, wanting a change of career, are returning to work or looking at increasing their skills, this booklet aims to inform those who presently feel future study is beyond their means by showing them practical and achievable ways they can make it happen.”

Carers of people with a mental illness are the focus of a new research project by a psychology student at Charles Sturt University (CSU). Bachelor of Social Science (Psychology) Honours student Mr Gerald Haslinger is seeking participants in a confidential survey which aims to find out more about the experience of unpaid carers and mental health service providers in caring for someone with a mental illness. “I am interested in hearing from unpaid carers and service providers, and what they understand about the Recovery approach to caring for someone living with a mental illness, an approach that is widely accepted within the mental health sector.  My study seeks to find out the level of awareness of this approach amongst mental health service providers as well as unpaid carers.” Mr Haslinger, an education and training officer with a non-government agency in Sydney, has extended the survey until Friday 13 July.  He is completing his degree by distance education through the School of Psychology at CSU in Wagga Wagga. For further details about the survey, contact Mr Haslinger on his email  or take the survey here.

The importance of education to individuals and communities in regional Australia is the focus of a public lecture by a leading Indigenous academic at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Dubbo on Wednesday 24 October. Professor Jeannie Herbert, AM, the Foundation Chair of Indigenous Studies at the Centre for Indigenous Studies, at CSU will reflect on her own research when she delivers her lecture titled Empowering Communities. Professor Herbert has 25 years experience as a teacher in schools and 17 years in tertiary education. Before joining CSU in November 2009, she served in a range of roles at the Batchelor Institute of Indigenous Education in the Northern Territory, Queensland’s James Cook University and the University of New England in northern NSW. The public lecture is at 6pm on Wednesday 24 October in lecture theatre/room 422 at Charles Sturt University, 8 Tony McGrane Place, Dubbo. Please RSVP to Ms Christine Stewart on (02) 6885 7370 or send an email.

Tickets have almost sold out for the biennial Tony McGrane Memorial Scholarship Dinner at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Dubbo on Monday 24 September. The late Mr Tony McGrane, OAM, was a Mayor of Dubbo from 1991 to 1999, and was then the Independent NSW Member for Dubbo. The dinner’s guest speaker is the Independent Federal Member for New England, the Hon. Tony Windsor, MP. Mr McGrane and Mr Windsor served together as Independent in the NSW Parliament. Head of CSU in Dubbo Dr Beverley Moriarty said the dinner would raise money for the Tony McGrane Scholarship, which gives students from the Orana region and Dubbo electorate an opportunity to gain a higher education. “It’s fantastic to see the level of support the community has given us and a testament to the lasting impact Tony had on the area,” she said. “Tony was very well-known in the community, he was very much loved and respected and he was instrumental in bringing Charles Sturt University to Dubbo. He passed away in 2004, but everyone you talk to in Dubbo remembers him and gives a little smile whenever they speak about him. They all have a story to tell about him.” Tickets for the Tony McGrane Memorial Scholarship Dinner are on sale for $130 per head. To purchase, contact CSU on (02) 6885 7370.

The public lecture at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Bathurst on Wednesday 5 September by leading Australian medical expert, Emeritus Professor John Dwyer, AO, has received a boost with the release of a report last week by the Senate’s Community Affairs References Committee. The University made a written submission to the Committee, and Professor Dwyer, and the Vice-Chancellor and President of CSU, Professor Andrew Vann, made submissions in person at a public hearing in Albury on Tuesday 5 June. Professor Vann has also responded to the report. Mr Col Sharp, Head of CSU in Bathurst, said, “Professor Dwyer is a leading advocate for structural reform of Australia’s health care delivery system, and he argues that current health outcomes for rural Australians are not acceptable. His public lecture will examine the rationale for and progress with CSU’s bid to establish a new rural medical school to boost the supply of ‘doctors for the bush’, and Professor Dwyer will also reflect on the broad endorsement of the University’s proposed approach to rural medical education in the Senate Committee report.” The Dental Clinic and the new Interdisciplinary Clinical Simulation Centre for nursing and paramedic students at CSU in Bathurst will be open for inspection by the public in the hour prior to the lecture.