Murray Children’s Centre shares the new purpose-built early childhood building at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Albury-Wodonga with Aspire Support Services, formerly Woodstock Early Intervention. Dr Sydnye Allen, Murray Children’s Centre director, and Ms Rachael Webb, early intervention manager at Aspire, work collaboratively to provide professional and practical support to CSU and Aspire. “Families of young children benefit from having convenient access to high-quality early childhood education and early intervention specialists located in one building,” Dr Allen said. CSU early childhood education students participate in placements with Murray Children’s Centre and Aspire, with three education students currently working in the infant and toddler classrooms. “For many Charles Sturt University students, this may be their first opportunity to work with children with learning difficulties,” Ms Webb said. Dr Allen and Ms Webb are also engaged in a research project on transitions in early childhood environments, with Dr Laura Piazza from CSU’s School of Education and pre-school teacher and Murray Children’s Centre assistant director, Ms Michelle Smith.

Students from the ACT, NSW and Victoria will be recognised during the annual scholarship ceremony at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Wagga Wagga on Wednesday 16 May. Eighty scholarships, valued at almost $220 000 dollars and donated by a variety of individuals and organisations, will be presented to students during a ceremony from 4pm to approximately 5.15pm in Joyes Hall, Pine Gully Road, CSU in Wagga Wagga. The University’s Deputy Chancellor, Ms Kathryn Pitkin, will attend the annual event along with the mayors of Junee, Temora and Tumut local councils as well as Wagga Wagga’s deputy mayor. The scholarships are distributed through the Charles Sturt University Foundation Trust. Read more about CSU scholarships here.

Some of the cognitive, cultural and biological reasons for belief in extraordinary phenomena will be examined at a seminar for staff and students at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Bathurst on Wednesday 16 May. Dr Krissy Wilson, a lecturer at the CSU School of Psychology who established a new research unit called the Science of Anomalistic Phenomena (SOAP) at CSU in March this year, will present the seminar. “Consistent and wide-spread belief in the paranormal is a striking facet of the human condition, and belief in phenomena that contradict known scientific laws and principles is a common feature of all western societies,” Dr Wilson said. “There is little evidence to suggest that widespread paranormal beliefs are on the wane, and recent polls tend to suggest that such commonly held beliefs are on the increase. Whatever the truth might be, and whatever reasons people might have about why they believe, there can be little doubt that believers are not basing their beliefs upon scientific evidence. Indeed, most of the evidence put forward to support paranormal claims is anecdotal and open to alternative explanations.”

Seventy five Charles Sturt University (CSU) Foundation scholarships worth $142 700 in total will be presented to 70 CSU students at a luncheon ceremony in Bathurst on Friday 25 May. The ceremony will be attended by the Chancellor of CSU, Mr Lawrie Willett, AO, the Vice-Chancellor, Professor Andrew Vann, the Head of Campus in Bathurst, Mr Col Sharp, and the Mayor of Bathurst, Councillor Greg Westman. Prominent guests include Ms Lyndey Milan, a food and wine broadcaster, author, TV personality and presenter of Lyndey and Blair’s Taste of Greece, who will present the inaugural Blair Milan Memorial Scholarship in honour of her son Blair, a CSU theatre/media alumnus, who died of cancer in 2011. Ms Milan will be accompanied by her partner, businessman Mr John Caldon, as well as colleagues, friends and family of Mr Blair Milan. Other inaugural CSU Foundation scholarships to be presented include the Lodge Chelmsford Masonic Scholarship, the Moree Plains Shire Council Scholarship, and the Widgiewa School Scholarship. Six students will also receive CSU Excellence Scholarships, awarded to students based on a combination of academic merit (an ATAR score of 95 and above) and evidence of demonstrated leadership and citizenship within the community.

Primary school students from Bathurst and Portland will attend special workshops at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Bathurst on Wednesday 23 May to help motivate them to explore study options for when they finish high school. A total of 83 Year 5 and 6 students from Bathurst West Public School, Bathurst South Public School and Portland Central School will participate in the Check It Out Day, which is part of the Future Moves program at CSU. The manager of CSU Pre-entry Programs,  Ms Sue Rogan, said, “The Check It Out Day is an exciting interactive experience for primary school students that encourages them to consider university as an option when they leave school. It exposes students at a young age to the university experience so they develop confidence to seek information about courses and pathways as they go through high school.” The six workshops will provide hands-on experiences in art and science education, sport, communication and media, nursing and paramedicine. The students will also tour the campus, participate in activities on the sports fields, and join in a mock graduation. The CSU Check It Out Day runs from 9.30am to 2.30pm Wednesday 23 May at Charles Sturt University, Panorama Avenue, Bathurst.

Charles Sturt University (CSU) Agricultural and Wine Sciences lecturer Dr Igor Novak has been recognised for his outstanding work in the field of science with the Croation Academy of Sciences and Arts Award. Along with a Croatian collaborator, Dr Novak has published 50 articles in international refereed chemistry journals in the last 10 years. “The award was given specifically for our work published in 2011, which deals with the relationship between the electronic structure and biological activity of the pesticides Atrazine, Bromoxynil and Organochlorine insecticides,” he said. “Our work described details of such activity at the molecular level and is the first of its kind where electronic structures of pesticides molecules had been studied experimentally.” Dr Novak was pleasantly surprised by the recognition. “I was surprised and very pleased by the award, especially since the award is mostly given to scientists working in Croatia.”

Budding nurses from Charles Sturt University (CSU) have returned to school to lend a helping hand with health education at an Albury primary school. Seven first year nursing students are developing and delivering messages on healthy living over winter for pupils and teachers at St Anne’s Primary School in North Albury. “The students also carried out a health and safety audit of the school and developed newsletter items for parents, reinforcing what their children have learned in the classroom,” said project coordinator and CSU nursing academic, Ms Sharon Laver. “The school project also helps our students develop skills in leadership, negotiation, collaboration, health education and research while working with teachers and children in the real world.” Later this week, the CSU students will present their work to pupils and teachers at St Anne’s.

Cloudstreet - the acclaimed Australian play based on Tim Winton’s novel of the same name – will be presented by the University Theatre Ensemble (UTE) in Wagga Wagga from Thursday 31 May. Adapted for the stage by Nick Enright and Justin Monjo and directed by Kim Hardwick from the School of Communication and Creative Industries at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Wagga Wagga, Cloudstreet follows the relationship between the Lambs and Pickles families, who live in the same house in post-war Perth. The UTE production involves third year Bachelor of Arts (Acting for Screen and Stage) and Bachelor of Arts (Design for Theatre and Television) students . The play runs until Saturday 9 June at the Civic Theatre, Burns Way in Wagga Wagga. Tickets are available on 02 6926 9688 or here.

Parents of children aged three and under can be part of an expo of resources this week in Lavington aimed at supporting parents and carers of babies and toddlers through their early lives. Presented by Charles Sturt University (CSU) students in the final year of their early childhood and primary education degree, the one-day event, titled the Early Years Parent Information Expo, aims to be fun and interactive for children and parents, full of information to take home. Topics on show for mothers, fathers, grandparents, carers, professional teachers, children and siblings include early literacy, learning through play, sleep issues, toilet training, feeding and separation issues. Event coordinator and education lecturer with the CSU School of Education, Dr Laura Piazza, said the event, “is a great opportunity for families to draw on the expertise of our pre-service teachers and ask questions about ways to best support children’s learning in the early years”. The expo will be held on Wednesday 23 May, from 9.30 to 11am in Mirambeena Community Centre in Lavington.