New students to Charles Sturt University (CSU) wanting to apply for scholarships for the coming year will need to get their applications in before Monday 18 February. The scholarships, which are offered through the Charles Sturt Foundation, are awarded to students who have demonstrated high levels of academic performance, leadership and motivation throughout their school careers. Some scholarships are also available for students undergoing economic hardship, are disadvantaged, are Indigenous or are undertaking distance education with CSU. In 2007, the Foundation provided 235 students with ongoing support for their University studies through the scholarship program.

The war against weeds in the NSW Central West continues and one Charles Sturt University (CSU) researcher is determined to help win the battle. A dominant weed in the region is serrated tussock, one of Australia's most noxious weeds estimated to cost NSW farmers more than $40 million each year in lost production. Dr Aaron Simmons from the University’s School of Agricultural and Wine Sciences will be talking at regional meetings organised by the NSW/ACT Serrated Tussock Working Party about results from research conducted over the past four years by researchers at CSU and the NSW Department of Primary Industries. “The research has been used to improve current guidelines on best management practice for controlling serrated tussock in native pastures,“ Dr Simmons says. “'Serrated tussock has no boundaries - it is not just a 'farmer's' problem, it's an environmental problem that belongs to the whole community.“

Charles Sturt University (CSU) will offer 20 scholarships that encourage joint studies between the University and TAFE colleges. The CSU Rural Learning Partnership Scholarships, each worth $2 000 for one year, are aimed at full-time students in need of financial assistance who are completing such courses such as the Bachelor of Business Studies in Griffith. Students with disabilities, from non-English speaking backgrounds or who are Indigenous are encouraged to apply for the competitive grants which can pay for accommodation, tuition fees, books and computers. CSU’s Head of School of Business and Information Studies, Associate Professor John Atkinson, said the Rural Learning Partnership Scholarships aim to redress some of the current financial inequities of tertiary study in regional Australia by helping students with genuine financial difficulties. The scholarships will be launched in Griffith on Thursday 20 November by CSU and NSW TAFE Riverina Institute at an integrated Business program information session.

People in and around Maryborough and Castlemaine in Central Victoria will soon be able to have their say on how communities value natural assets. Charles Sturt University (CSU) researcher and PhD student Ms Eloise Seymour is hoping for over 500 replies to a mail survey she is sending out which will give her feedback on how people value local environmental assets such as the local Box-Ironbark Forests, the Moorlort wetlands, and the Loddon River between Baringhup and Vaughan Springs. “The Moorlort wetlands have been dry for 10 years due to the drought but local farmers have said how important they are for bird migration and how spectacular they used to be. Survey participants should consider how they value wetlands now and in the past,” Ms Seymour said. The survey, which should take 20 minutes to complete, will be sent to people living in small towns, regional centres, on farms and with special interests such as field naturalists. “The survey results will help develop better ways for environmental organisations in Australia to decide what natural places should receive government funding and resources,” Ms Seymour said.

The Federal Government has finally got the plan right for the National Broadband Network (NBN) according to Charles Sturt University (CSU) adjunct researcher Mr Peter Adams. Mr Adams, who has studied household broadband adoption for the past seven years, said today's announcement by the Rudd Government that it would form a public-private partnership to build the NBN is the best outcome from what has been an issue poorly managed by successive governments."Having the Commonwealth control the building of such important national infrastructure will ultimately achieve the best outcome for broadband users by ensuring there is clear separation between the provider of the cables and the commercial companies who compete to service consumers.” The researcher from CSU's Centre for Research in Complex Systems warned the Rudd Government now has a big job: it will manage the building of the network, and needs to convince households they will be better off under the proposed NBN. "Research conducted at CSU in 2008 showed householders are not convinced they should spend their income on higher speed broadband.  Clear information must be provided to consumers about the benefits of NBN services."

Melbourne artist Mr Warren Lane has been named the winner of the 2009 Casella Art Prize at the Griffith Regional Art Gallery. Judge and Head of the Charles Sturt University (CSU) School of Visual and Performing Arts, Associate Professor Margaret Woodward, selected Lane’s work, The Accidental Activist to win the $2 500 Casella Art Prize for Excellence in Painting. "The exhibition's theme of urban and built environment has an important role to play in how we understand and reflect the places we inhabit, visit and construct,” said Professor Woodward. “Skilfully executed and very firmly set in an urban environment, Lane's painting invites us to consider the tension between the natural and built environment and to be mindful of the natural world in contemporary urban life.” Now in its fourth year, the Casella Art Prize aims to support new, emerging and established artists within Australia. The exhibition will run at the Griffith Regional Art Gallery until Sunday 26 April.

Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) Djirruwang Program Bachelor of Health Science (Mental Health) aims to create a critical mass of highly skilled Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander practitioners to deal with mental health problems in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. This innovative program has been acknowledged by the NSW Minister for Aboriginal Affairs and Minister Assisting the Minister for Health (Mental Health) the Hon. Paul Lynch, who described is as a “significant commitment” by CSU. Mr Lynch’s comments came during the official launch of the NSW Aboriginal Mental Health and Well Being Policy 2006-2010 last week on CSU’s Wagga Wagga Campus. “The Djirruwang Program meets the national practice standards of the mental health workforce, making Charles Sturt University the first university course to use nationally agreed practice standards in mental health,” he said.

For the second successive year, a Charles Sturt University (CSU) student has been selected as the Sydney Royal Showgirl. Twenty-one year old Ms Kimbalee Morris was named the 2009 Sydney Royal Showgirl during a ceremony on Saturday 18 April. Ms Morris, from Coonabarabran in Northern NSW, is a fourth year human movement student at CSU at Bathurst. “It was such a surprise, but I am so honoured to have been selected as an ambassador for both youth in agriculture and women in agriculture, and also for my local community. It is going to be a very busy 12 months but I am so excited by what is ahead,” said Ms Morris. As part of the title, Ms Morris receives $11 200 from the Royal Agricultural Society and The Land newspaper. She must also undertake activities as part of her role as an ambassador for rural NSW, including opening shows, public speaking events and promoting the showgirl competition. In 2008, pharmacy student at CSU at Orange Ms Anna Unger was named the Sydney Royal Showgirl.

Parents of Newcastle senior high school students will be able to discuss life after high school with regional university advisers at the Hunter School of Performing Arts on Wednesday 21 April. Local mother of two, Ms Brenda Powell, whose youngest son is in Year 12 at the Hunter School of Performing Arts, believes the session will be of great benefit to anyone with a senior high school-age child. “It’s a great opportunity to look at the alternatives to our closer universities,” she says. “I don’t think a lot of people realise that regional universities can give their children a fantastic university experience. Living away from home means students can immerse themselves into university life and develop skills they wouldn’t necessarily get if they were living at home and just visiting the campus to attend lectures.” The Parent Information session is part of the Regional Universities Road Show which sees Charles Sturt University, Southern Cross University and the University of New England pooling resources to bring university information to those who need it.