Australia’s Young Endeavour national youth sail training program “builds positive social capital” according to a study released by the Federal Government. Charles Sturt University students Sarah Poulos and Tom Fisher agree. “I sailed a few years ago and met a whole group of absolutely fantastic people,” says Sarah, currently in her fourth year of a special education teaching degree on Dubbo Campus and the recipient of a two-year scholarship from the Royal Institute for Deaf and Blind Children. Tom sailed in July and says “it was awesome. It exceeded my expectations tenfold. You build personal confidence which gives you the ability to do anything you want.” Tom is an agribusiness student from Wagga Wagga Campus who went on a student exchange to Kentucky, USA last year for six months, and is off to Japan soon on a Mitsui travel scholarship.

A passion for rural health has inspired Dr Debbie Burton in her role as senior lecturer in biomedical science at Charles Sturt University’s Orange Campus. “My son and father both have asthma,” Dr Burton says, “and my cousin died from a pneumonia-related illness so I am very passionate about research into how the lung functions.” Her research into the rural prevalence and management of asthma has looked intensely at the implementing of new techniques, rural health access, and environmental triggers. Australia has the third highest prevalence of childhood asthma in the world, with over 2.2 million people suffering from asthma including one in six children. Dr Burton will demonstrate her work as part of the Community Day to be held on Orange Campus this Saturday 9 September, from 10.30am to 4pm.

Charles Sturt University (CSU) will officially welcome the Orange Campus to the CSU family this Friday 8 September. The new Head of Orange Campus, Professor Kevin Parton, says staff are optimistic about the move to CSU. “There has been a sense that the Orange Campus has been trying to find its natural home,” he said. “The campus really should have become part of Charles Sturt University when it initially moved from being a college. The Orange Campus is now seen as a jewel in the crown for the University,” he said. The opening ceremony, to be lead by Professor Parton and Acting CSU Vice-Chancellor Professor Ross Chambers, starts at 2.30pm in the Templer's Mill Bar, also known as the Student Association Function Room.

Artwork by the contemporary painter and printmaker David Serisier, who was born in Orange in 1958, has now entered the Charles Sturt University (CSU) Art Collection and is on permanent display at CSU’s Orange Campus. Produced in 2001, the two large images are formed by layers of rectangles glued on on paper and stacked like ”Quisenaire” rods. The works were chosen to display the great range of his colour palate – one very dark and the other light. “We’re thrilled to have the paintings hanging in our main administration building,” Head of Campus Professor Kevin Parton said. “They certainly have provoked a great deal of conversation amongst staff and visitors to the campus.”

Six Charles Sturt University (CSU) early childhood education students will undertake a community project in Dubbo that will focus on the importance of transition to primary school for small children. Titled Working Together for Children: Strengthening Transition Pathways, the project will highlight the importance of a positive transition experience to ensure children move into the school environment successfully. The Working Together for Children project aims to help the community recognise that the early years are the most important of a child’s life and their early experiences can influence their learning in following years. “Positive relationships between early childhood professionals, families, carers and schools are an integral aspect of supporting transition from the home or early childhood setting into the school,” said project representative Corina Windsor.

Charles Sturt University (CSU) journalism graduate, Courtney Trenwith has won the Minister’s Award for Excellence at the Australian Council of Deans of Education (ACDE) Excellence in Education Journalism Awards. Ms Trenwith received $3 000, as well as high praise for her work. Chair of the ACDE, CSU’s Associate Professor Jo-anne Reid, said Ms Trenwith’s submission was “absolutely outstanding. I was especially impressed that Courtney looked at the human side of education, not just the big issues”. Ms Trenwith says she arrived at the Awards ceremony in Canberra expecting to receive the News category, and was stunned to receive the overall excellence award. She says she loves her work at the Illawarra Mercury newspaper, saying “education was the only round I ever wanted to do”.

As the Orange Campus celebrates new beginnings with Charles Sturt University, spring is also being celebrated on the Campus with the birth of the first CSU Orange foal for 2006. The black colt was delivered in the early hours of Saturday morning 16 September. The colt has joined the greatly expanded equine course at CSU, with extensive facilties at Orange joining those on the Wagga Wagga Campus. “The colt’s grandsire is a renowned European dressage stallion, so he is quite a ‘special little man’ and he seems to know that already,” says Equine Centre Manager Cheryl Gander.

Earlier this year Braidwood in the Southern Tablelands of NSW was listed on the State Heritage Register – the first town on the east coast of Australia to be recognised in this way. Now the residents will find out how Braidwood will be affected economically by the listing when the Western Research Institute (WRI) of Charles Sturt University begins its study to monitor the town’s future. Kathy Sloan, a senior research officer with the WRI says “the listing does restrict what can happen to buildings and what people can do on their properties. On the other hand, a heritage listing can be a good way to attract more tourists, and they already market themselves that way.” The study has commenced with an economic profile of Braidwood, including an analysis of the local economy. Once benchmarks are identified, a business survey will be conducted every year for five years. The WRI will then compare Braidwood’s economic trends with trends across regional NSW.

Charles Sturt University (CSU) is expanding the number of student Accommodation Residences as a major initiative in response to demand from prospective students and their families. CSU’s acting Executive Director of Student Services, Andrew Callander said the University is planning to substantially increase the number of beds available for students and to increase the variety and type of accommodation available. Initially CSU will add around 170 beds by 2009 on all its major campuses: Albury-Wodonga Campus: 48 new beds to come onto the Thurgoona site; Bathurst Campus: Four eight-bed cottages to open by February 2007; Dubbo Campus: Fully commissioning of new student accommodation totalling 62 places; Orange Campus: Converted cottages for 20 students on the CSU Orange Campus; Wagga Wagga Campus: Two eight-bed cottages to come on stream by February each year from 2007 to 2009. A 20-bed complex using funds from a bequest to the University will be built in 2007. “We are also planning for a large scale project to add 600 new beds to meet increasing demand for on-campus accommodation on our Albury-Wodonga, Bathurst and Wagga Wagga campuses,” Mr Callander said. The project will expand the range of accommodation offered and take the total beds available for students on campus at CSU to around 3 000.