Charles Sturt University (CSU) School of Nursing and Midwifery and Greater Western Area Health Service (GWAHS) have entered into a partnership to offer the CSU nursing degree by distance education to Enrolled Nurses to commence study in February 2008. Residential schools for the students will held be at the Dubbo campus with students able to undertake clinical placements in GWAHS, reducing personal and financial cost to the students. Heather Latham, CSU nursing course manager, says that the University and GWAHS recognise this partnership is important in addressing the critical shortage of Registered Nurses in rural hospitals. “This partnership model provides additional support for Enrolled Nurses to upgrade their knowledge and skills to Registered Nurses while continuing to live and work in their local communities,” Ms Latham said. “GWAHS has allocated a Nurse Educator to support the students during the four year course and this person will work closely with the School of Nursing and Midwifery.”

Interested in studying clinical sciences, nursing or pharmacy? Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) School of Biomedical Sciences is holding an information session on the Orange Campus on Saturday 22 September between 2pm and 4pm for students interested in enrolling in these courses. Dr Debbie Burton, Course Coordinator for the Bachelor of Clinical Science, says people from the Orange region can see what CSU offers in health and medical science courses and to learn about the University’s commitment to alleviating the shortage of health and medical practitioners in inland Australia. “CSU is playing a crucial role in educating health professionals for inland communities. We have seen 60 to 70 per cent of CSU health graduates gaining work and staying in the country. As the range of health courses offered by CSU increases, so will the number of practicing health professionals in inland communities,” Dr Burton said. Information will also be available on the new School of Dentistry and Oral Health that will be established in 2009.

Charles Sturt University (CSU) is sending a 115-strong team of students to compete in the annual Australian University Games on the Queensland Gold Coast from Sunday 23 to Friday 28 September. This year the games organisers expect around 6 000 students from over 40 universities from across Australia to compete in a range of sports. While CSU has competed successfully before, this is the first year that CSU has representatives from all its major campuses as well as Distance Education students at the games. CSU individuals or teams have entered in athletics, beach volleyball, fencing, golf, men's and women's hockey, women's and mixed netball, mixed touch football, rugby union 7s, water polo and ultimate frisbee. CSU team manager Niklaus Granger said, "The Australian University Games boast previous Commonwealth and World University Games participants. CSU is usually strong in hockey, touch football and rugby union, but who knows what 2007 will hold for the combined CSU team?" Go, CSU, go!

Two third year nursing students from Charles Sturt University (CSU) have been awarded 2007 Australian Rotary Health Research Fund Rural and Remote Nursing Scholarships. Ms Susie McCalman, from Peak Hill, and Ms Janet Paine, from Warren, won the only two scholarships available for country NSW, each worth $12 500. Ms Cathy Maginnis, lecturer in nursing and course coordinator at the University’s Dubbo Campus, said this was a great achievement for the students and for CSU’s nursing course on the campus. “We are very proud of these two students, and their achievement confirms why CSU is the University of inland Australia. The Rotary scholarships acknowledge their hard work and commitment to nursing, as they are both are from rural properties and travel long distances to attend the University,” she said. The students are currently undertaking their final clinical placements in hospitals in rural and remote NSW.

Charles Sturt University (CSU) has announced it is a major sponsor of Career Central Australia, an online career advisory service designed, developed and maintained by careers advisors and teachers. Ms Zelma Bone, lecturer in management communication at CSU’s Orange Campus, said that the CSU sponsorship enables 2 500 students at thirteen schools in western and central western NSW to become regional members for a greatly subsidised annual fee. Another 27 schools are waiting to join. “This is a wonderful initiative that demonstrates CSU’s commitment to the professions as the University of inland Australia by assisting schools and students to access online careers information every hour of every day, all year around,” Ms Bone said. Career Central Australia provides the latest careers information and job services, a careers newsletter, email bulletins and notices, and customized careers profiles, letters, applications and apprenticeship information.

Mr Karl Shead, Theatre Technical Officer with Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) School of Communication, has won the individual staff member Vice-Chancellor’s Awards for Performance Excellence (General Staff) for 2007. Mr Gerard Boland, a lecturer in theatre and media at CSU, nominated Mr Shead for his outstanding services. “Karl manages the teaching and theatrical spaces that over six hundred students and staff use weekly during the academic year. Theatre/Media staff could not provide the quality learning and teaching interactions for which the course is renowned without his technical knowledge and artistic design skills. Karl has contributed technical supervision to around 30 productions in the past twelve months, and has been an integral member of the executive committee of the successful Catapult Festival since its inception in 2004, helping it attain national prominence among the members of the Australian Circus and Physical Theatre Association (ACAPTA) and other professional practitioners. Karl also shows his commitment to the wellbeing of others as a member of the Bathurst SES,” Mr Boland said.

Charles Sturt University (CSU) staff will meet on Thursday 14 February to propagate native plants on the CSU Orange Campus for the Summer Hill Creekcare group as one of several community projects taking place in 2008. New staff have been invited to join the CSU group who spend a few hours each month collecting seed in the field, cleaning and propagating seed and potting seedlings. The seedlings are then planted on Orange Campus and in other parts of the Summer Hill Creek catchment. “This is a great way to get involved in the community,” rural management lecturer and group coordinator Cilla Kinross explains. This conservation project - propagating trees, shrubs and grasses - is one of many undertaken by CSU, Australia’s largest inland university.

Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) Dubbo Campus farewelled 26 graduating nurses at a barbeque on Monday 12 November following their return from a four week placement that focussed on the transition to practice as Registered Nurses. Lyn Croxon, lecturer and clinical coordinator in the School of Nursing and Midwifery, said that having completed a three year CSU nursing degree, the students can register with the NSW Nurses’ and Midwives’ Board. “CSU’s nursing students received great support from staff in the various western region hospitals in which they undertook their clinical placements,” she said. “The University thanks all the personnel in the various health settings for their support of our programs and the clinical practicum which is an integral component of the nursing course.” The graduating nurses come from Dubbo, Parkes, Peak Hill, Narromine, Warren and Gulgong. The majority have accepted positions as Registered Nurses at hospitals and health facilities across the western NSW region, while several will pursue careers in Sydney, Gosford and Canberra.

Cadet journalists working at National Radio News (NRN) at Charles Sturt University (CSU) have gained a number of paid internships with leading media organisations. NRN manager Mr Peter Hetherington said that the success of NRN staff in gaining outside internships and other placements is quite significant. “This is the pilot for an ongoing program, and those who show aptitude during the internship will be fast tracked into fulltime work at the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC),” he said. “It demonstrates that the training our students receive in their CSU journalism course and the practical experience they gain through their NRN cadetships equips them to step straight into on-air roles with major broadcasters.” Three NRN cadets - Rebecca Bruce, Frank Ienco and Cameron Green - commenced paid internships with ABC Radio in Sydney from 5 November. Former NRN journalist Matthew Reardon has been accepted for an internship with Deutsche Vella, Germany’s major public broadcaster NRN cadet Patrick Cronan has commenced with 2TM Tamworth as on-air news journalist, while CSU graduate Rochelle Nolan has commenced as fulltime journalist with NRN.