Students will get their first taste of their new life at university during Orientation Week next week. With the theme ‘Superher-O’, commencement activities for new students start on Monday 21 February at Charles Sturt University (CSU) on all its campuses, including Orange. More than 190 students have enrolled in undergraduate courses as varied as agricultural business management, clinical science, pharmacy, physiotherapy and dental science. Head of Campus at CSU in Orange, Professor Kevin Parton, said Orientation Week activities were vital to introduce the students to study and life at CSU. Orientation Week allows students to become familiar with their surroundings, staff and other students. CSU staff are ready to respond to queries about courses and subjects, help students find accommodation, and help them make the most of the cultural and sporting activities available in Orange,” Professor Parton said.

While Orientation Week at Charles Sturt University (CSU) gives new students a chance to familiarise themselves with their campus and each other, it will also raise funds for a worthy cause. Youngcare is a fundraising program assisting young Australians with full-time care needs. One such person is Mr Jock Watson who studied at CSU before a car accident left him with an Acquired Brain Injury (ABI). Mr Watson’s family was left with no option but to put him in a nursing home. Through Market Day raffles and gold coin donations at social events, the CSU students will raise money for Youngcare in the hope of helping people like Mr Watson gain more independence. CSU Orientation Week leader Ms Emily Heckendorf believes the cause is close to the students’ hearts. “This kind of injury could happen to any one of us and hopefully with Charles Sturt University’s support, we can be part of a solution.”

Ms Lara Cowling, an administration assistant in the Division of Student Administration at Charles Sturt University (CSU), may only have lived in Orange a short time, but she has fast become a local sports-figure and will represent New South Wales (NSW) at the International Sport Shooting Federation (ISSF) / Pistol Australia (PA) National Championships in April. Ms Cowling, gained recognition at the recent Australia Day ceremonies when she received a certificate of achievement in pistol shooting. She began the sport back in her home town of Gauteng, formally known as Johannesburg, in South Africa. “I’ve probably been involved in the sport for about 10 years. Besides personal protection in South Africa, I was a Reservist for the South African Police Service for about five years and that’s how I got interested in shooting.” Ms Cowling took up the sport in Australia when she arrived here three years ago, and will represent NSW in the national titles for the second time when she travels to Adelaide this Easter. “It’s a physical and mental test and I take it very seriously. Pistol shooting is approximately 90per cent mental and only 10 per cent physical.”

For the first time, Orange Buslines has included Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Orange on its bus route this week. Travelling on the first bus to the campus, Head of Campus at CSU in Orange, Professor Kevin Parton, said the service is of great convenience to the staff and students. “The Charles Sturt University campus is on the outskirts of Orange so in the past students have needed a bike or car to travel to classes. Now they can catch the bus almost anywhere in town to attend classes and return home in the same fashion. It’s good to know students don’t have the pressure of purchasing a bike or car when they first arrive here. It is hoped that more staff can leave their cars at home and catch the busy to work, to reduce our carbon footprint even more,” Professor Parton said. At this stage, the bus will travel to CSU and back three times a day picking up passengers from Hill Street, Summer Street and Dalton Street bus stops and dropping off at the Orange campus.

Staff and students at Charles Sturt University (CSU) are being urged to do their bit for Clean Up Australia Day. CSU Green is calling for volunteers on its five major campuses - Albury-Wodonga, Bathurst, Dubbo, Orange and Wagga Wagga - to participate in the national event on Friday 4 March, the day designated for schools. Volunteers are encouraged to register their interest in the clean up on their local campus through the Clean Up Australia Day site here. “We hope to see staff and students and their family and friends turn out between 8am and 11am to pick up rubbish and conserve the local environment,” CSU Green’s Ms Nicole Hyde said. “The event will be a positive start to the commencement of on campus classes during the week. Volunteers are asked to bring along some gloves to wear and of course a hat and sunscreen.”

As part of an extensive research project driven by the Charles Sturt Universitys (CSU) Faculty of Education, regional and remote CSU Early Childhood and TAFE Diploma of Children’s Services students will attend forums this weekend in Griffiths and Parkes. Associate Head of School of Teacher Education at CSU in Dubbo, Dr Alison Lord, says the forums are part of a project that aims to build workforce capacity in Early Childhood Education and develop training pathways that are accessible and locally supported in these areas. “This project is a great example of how Charles Sturt University has collaborated with partners to create a valuable resource,” Dr Lord said. “Along with TAFE NSW Western Institute (WIT), TAFE NSW Riverina Institute (RIT), and Batchelor Institute of Indigenous Education (BIITE), CSU will hold public forums for students and volunteer mentors to discuss the wellbeing and rights of children who are part of inland and Indigenous education.” The project team plans to develop online resources for teachers studying and working in regional and remote Australia.

Orange is set to be the home of a new $10 million planetarium thanks to the hard work of a group of astronomy enthusiasts who will present a public lecture hosted by the Central West Branch of the Royal Society of New South Wales at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Orange on Friday 18 March. Orange Planetarium Inc. President, Mr Rod Sommerville, and Vice-President, Mr Nat Burgio, will provide a detailed overview of this unique and visionary project, which will help advance community understanding of astronomy, and science generally, and will be a major educational and tourism attraction for the Central West. “The Orange Planetarium group has been planning the Southern Skies Earth and Space Centre for more than eight years and it’s exciting to see the project develop,” said Professor Kevin Parton, Chair of the Central West Branch of the Royal Society of New South Wales and Head of Campus at CSU in Orange. “The public lecture will showcase final design concepts which will include internal and external rendered images of what the facility will look like.”

Students from a range of science degrees at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Orange will graduate at a ceremony on Friday 25 March. The Head of Campus at CSU in Orange, Professor Kevin Parton, said, “There are 160 students from allied health, medical sciences, and agricultural sciences graduating from Charles Sturt University in Orange this year, and a large proportion of these students will take up employment in regional NSW, contributing to our workforce and communities.” The Occasional Address will be delivered by CSU medical school consultant Professor John Dwyer, AO, with active student Ms Nicole Forbes giving the vote of thanks on behalf of the students. The graduation ceremony starts at 10.30am at the Orange Civic Theatre, Byng Street, Orange.

Members of the Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) Ag Club will host a qualifying round for the Royal Agricultural Society’s Young Farmer Challenge on Friday 25 March at CSU in Orange. Students from the Bachelor of Agricultural Business Management are just some of those competing in the event which is designed to promote excellence in farming and showcase the involvement of youth in agriculture. “The Charles Sturt University Ag Club has a team competing in the Young Farmer Challenge but there is also an Orange Fire Brigade team, rugby teams, and students from St Stanislaus and Mackillop colleges taking part,” said CSU Ag Club president Mr Richard Connell. “We’re hoping to have about 40 competitors donating their entry fees to mental health agency Beyond Blue.” The teams of ten will compete in challenges including basic farm skills such as fencing, carting hay and shearing. “We encourage those interested in agriculture to join the CSU Ag Club which is not just for students.  It’s for anyone keen to be part of an agricultural network.”