Jenny Dickinson, a graduate of Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) double degree in psychology and teaching in Bathurst, is one of five young Indigenous people featured in a booklet urging Aboriginal people and Torres Strait Islanders to “join our mob” and become teachers in the New South Wales public school system. The booklet was produced by teach.NSW Public Education, and Jenny was nominated by her principal at Moree East Public School. “I was the first Aboriginal student to accomplish the double degree at CSU,“ Ms Dickinson said. “I became a teacher because it allows me to indulge my passion for Indigenous education. I think it is very important to encourage Indigenous people into teaching. Discrimination is still alive and well in my opinion.”

Being described as a “Walkley winning journalist of the future” must be a heady feeling for any communication student. Matthew Brann, a Charles Sturt University theatre media student in Bathurst has just taken out the radio section of the 2006 JUST Super Student Journalist of the Year Award, announced by JUST Super and the Walkley Foundation. Matthew says his radio item, A Darling Place grew out of his major work last year. “I travelled the Darling River doing stories about the river and its impact on the local communities, where the drought is really affecting small towns. I focused on my own style, which uses a lot of music and actuality.” The judges obviously liked what they heard, saying A Darling Place was a “lovely, whimsical yarn. It provides a wonderful slice of country life that is not often heard in mainstream Australian media”.

Charles Sturt University (CSU) will once again host the Wagga Triathlon Club ‘Come and Tri’ Triathlon. CSU has hosted the popular event in Wagga Wagga for the past two years and in January 2013, the tradition continues. Race day is Sunday 20 January and the course includes Pine Gully Road, Valder Way and Nathan Cobb Drive, as well as the pool complex at CSU in Wagga Wagga. Runners will compete in some of the most beautiful surroundings with lemon scented gum trees and gentle undulating hills providing a very scenic and competitive course. Manager of Operations and Maintenance at CSU in Wagga Wagga, Mr Terry O’Meara, said, “We are pleased that the triathlon will once again be held at Charles Sturt University. We have completed a considerable amount of work on the campus and it is great to be able to share facilities with the wider community.” Race director, Ms Trudi Beck, said, “We are thankful that Charles Sturt University has allowed the Wagga Triathlon Club to use their facilities again.” A race briefing will be held 15 minutes prior to the start at 8am.

A Charles Sturt University (CSU) researcher is looking for Border residents to help her find out whether measuring blood pressure in a person’s feet is a good indicator of heart disease. Ms Kelsey Cook, an Honours student in podiatry at the CSU School of Community Health, is looking for people from Albury-Wodonga aged between 33 and 55 years to take part in the research, which involves having a free check of blood pressure in your feet as well as a free blood test to screen for cholesterol and other signs of heart disease. “We are investigating the relationship between the risk factors for heart disease and their effect on blood flow to the lower legs and feet,” Ms Cook said. “If blood pressure in the foot is related to heart disease this could have important implications for the early detection of heart disease, which is particularly important for people living in rural and remote communities,” Ms Cook said. This will be the first research project to be based in the new Community Engagement and Wellness Centre (CEW) at CSU in Albury-Wodonga. To be involved in the study please contact the CEW on (02) 6051 9299.

School leavers whose Australian Tertiary Admission Rank (ATAR) was not as high as they had hoped have been told they don’t have to give up their university aspirations, with Charles Sturt University (CSU) continuing its Pathway Program in 2013. The program, a partnership between CSU and TAFE, runs for one year full-time and provides entry options for students who applied to CSU but were unsuccessful, or who need further preparation. Pathway coordinator Ms Sandra Fisher said the program offered multiple benefits. “Upon completion, students receive a Diploma of General Studies from Charles Sturt University and the Certificate IV in Further Education, or Tertiary Preparation Certificate from TAFE,” she said. “They are also guaranteed entry into a range of CSU degrees and may receive credit for some subjects.” The program is offered face-to-face at CSU in Bathurst, Wagga Wagga and Albury-Wodonga, and this year will be offered at CSU in Dubbo as a blended distance education option.

A series of science and technology activities will be held at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Wagga Wagga over the next three days as part of the annual program, The Science Experience. Eighteen Riverina students from Years 9, 10 and 11 will engage with CSU scientists and researchers from 9.15am on Wednesday 16 January until 3pm on Friday 18 January in the fields of computing science, agriculture, chemistry, biology, oral health, and allied health. The students will work in CSU facilities such as the nursing laboratory, the new National Life Sciences Hub, computer laboratory, and oral health laboratory. A catered lunch will also be held for the students and their parents from 1.30pm on Friday 18 January, to be followed by an information session about the variety of careers available in the sciences. The Science Experience is hosted by the CSU Faculty of Science, and is part of a national program held at more than 37 universities and tertiary institutions. Read more about the program here.

The changing global communications environment and the increasing role of the consumer were the hot topics when the CEO of the International Advertising Association (IAA) World Secretariat spoke to Charles Sturt University (CSU) advertising students last week. Michael Lee, also the immediate past IAA President, was invited to the Bathurst Campus by Rod McCulloch, CSU’s Advertising course coordinator. “Mr Lee is very familiar with CSU because we have won the IAA’s student advertising competition InterAd three times in six years, the only university in the world to have done so. He is very supportive of what we do here”. Mr McCulloch says the IAA is the industry’s peak body. “It has a presence in over 70 countries and has over 4 000 members. The IAA supports the role of advertising in the community and the fostering of professional development and education.”

Whether noodles and bread are made out of the same flour will be discovered by high school students at an agriculture enrichment day in Wagga Wagga on Monday 4 September. One hundred students from around the Riverina region will receive hands-on experience during the day at the E H Graham Centre for Agricultural Innovation between 9am and 2.30pm. The Year 10 and 11 students will see what it is like to work in the field of agricultural science with practical activities that are currently used to solve problems in agriculture. Other activities include “What weed is that?”, ”Check out salinity in our waterways”, “How do you transfer a virus in the plant world?” and ”Explore the world of plant DNA”. The E H Graham Centre is an alliance between Charles Sturt University (CSU) and NSW Department of Primary Industries.

"I thought it would be useful to have some industry qualifications,” says Tristam Horn, an Accelerated Teacher Training Program student, of his decision to gain certification in Microsoft® Office. Coming first in Australia in his Excel examination saw the Charles Sturt University (CSU) student win a trip to Orlando, Florida in the USA, where he was then crowned World Champion for Microsoft® Excel. “I learnt a lot that I didn’t know Excel could do. It gave me a better understanding of what it is capable of as far as recording students marks, scaling, grading and graphing, both for my benefit and also for the students to see where they are in the class and in the year. It is an easy way to see how students are going in different areas of their study, and I can see where I need to improve my teaching and hopefully deliver a bit better the next time."