Staging a matinee session of the new Australian film Opal Dreaming is part of one Charles Sturt University academic’s effort to raise funds for the international aid charity Oxfam on Sunday 12 November. Ecotourism senior lecturer Dr Rosemary Black is raising funds for a bicycle tour of Cambodia, an Oxfam Challenge, to highlight severe development problems in this country. Starring Vince Colosimo, Jacqueline McKenzie, Christian Byers and Sapphire Boyce, Opal Dream is an enchanting, funny and profoundly moving story about some apparently imaginary friends in the opal capital of Australia. Proceeds from tickets to the screening go direct to Oxfam as part of Dr Black’s challenge. The film will be screened at the Regent Theatre in Dean St, Albury, starting at 4.15pm on 12 November with tickets costing $15 on sale at the door from 3.30pm.

Reports on support projects by graduating CSU speech pathology students in a number of Border schools will highlight the annual Speech Pathology Conference starting tomorrow (Wednesday 1 November) in Albury. The projects, completed in primary schools as far away as Corowa, Henty and Holbrook, introduced the latest communication speech and communication techniques into these smaller rural schools through student groups supervised by CSU academic Dr Ruth Beecham. The conference, titled Crossing Borders, allows all speech pathology students completing their studies this year to formally present their own clinical work experiences to peers. The conference will start at 2pm on Wednesday 1 November in the Nowik Auditorium, Guinea St, Albury, and continue to 3.30pm on Thursday 2 November.

As Year 12 students continue sitting their Higher School Certificate (HSC), latest performance research on the NSW HSC Online study resource by Internet research company Hitwise shows it is in the top 10 education websites in Australia. Now in its tenth year, NSW HSC Online was heralded for providing access to quality learning resources, especially for students in rural and remote areas. The current performance data support this success in providing equity, with high use by students living in provincial centres, who traditionally have below average use of the Internet. There were also more boys than average for an educational website going to HSC Online in the lead-up to the HSC, with 58 per cent males and 42 per cent females using www.hsc.csu.edu.au. The research also revealed excellent brand recognition and a strong association of the site with CSU. Acting Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Administration) Professor Lyn Gorman said the website’s success highlights its value in bringing high quality resources to all HSC students, regardless of where they live. The NSW HSC Online project was initiated and continues to be maintained and updated by the University in collaboration with the NSW Department of Education and Training.

The 42 volunteer members of the new Charles Sturt University (CSU) Staff / Student Choir from the Bathurst Campus has won the open choral section of the 61st Bathurst Regional Eisteddfod held last Friday 27 October. CSU choir master Dr Christopher Klopper was delighted by the choir’s performance, especially since it was formed only six months ago and has had only limited rehearsal opportunities. Dr Klopper said “this is just the start for us and we can only build from strength to strength. I’m so proud of the commitment everyone made”. The choir performed two distinctly different pieces, as required by the eisteddfod rules, within a ten minute time limit. The first piece was an “Irish Blessing” accompanied by flautist Stephanie Nicholls, followed by the jazzier ‘Fever’, accompanied on piano by Denise Wood. Dr Klopper is a music lecturer in the University’s School of Teacher Education. He comes from South Africa and began at CSU in February 2006.

Business performance has remained steady across the Central West region of NSW over the September quarter compared to the previous quarter, according to the latest Reliance Credit Union’s Central West Business Survey, compiled by Charles Sturt University’s Western Research Institute (WRI). Chief Executive Officer of the WRI Tom Watson said “despite the drought, more than three-quarters of Central West businesses surveyed reported that sales performance had been maintained or improved in the September quarter. Parkes, West Wyalong, Bathurst and Orange were the strongest performers. A marginal decline is expected in the December quarter, but on the whole performance should remain relatively steady.” The survey also addressed the issue of drought in the Central West. Central West Regional Development Board chair Sandy Morrison noted that nearly 90 per cent of businesses had not decreased staff numbers as a result of the drought, indicating that many regional businesses are relatively insulated from the effects of the drought and they understand it would be easier to retain workers than attract new workers in the future, given the skills shortage. However, almost 60 per cent felt business would decline if drought conditions continued for another six months. Tom Murphy in analysing survey results said, “Although agriculture is important in the region - the diverse nature of the Central West economy means it is resilient to the drought.” The business survey, released on Thursday 2 November, included 100 businesses in the Central West region of NSW and a further 299 across the rest of regional NSW.

"When you find a goldmine, you keep digging," says Mark Green, Studio Communications Manager at Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (SCEE) of Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) Games Technology course. Chip Bell, Michael Blaha and Daniel Hotop are all CSU graduates who travelled to England to undertake the industrial placement component of CSU’s Bachelor of Computer Science (Games Technology) degree. As a result, all three were offered employment at Sony’s Cambridge Studio. Mark Green says Sony is returning to CSU for more potential staff because “it is hard to get good quality staff members so we are going back to those universities who have supplied great people. We are just one of 14 studios worldwide and we are all looking for who is out there. And it is not just programming, we need art or design or production people as well”. Daniel Hotop is acting as the point of contact between SCEE and CSU. “If you told me four years ago that I would be working in England for Sony Computer Entertainment Europe, I would not have believed you."

Charles Sturt University (CSU) is inviting the private sector to take part in the University’s plans to significantly increase student accommodation on or near its main campuses in Albury-Wodonga, Bathurst, Dubbo, Orange and Wagga Wagga. Later this month, CSU is calling for expressions of interest to finance, plan and build student accommodation next to or near the CSU campuses, with the option to also manage the facility. “We want to provide well-located and competitively priced accommodation for our students that is also commercially sustainable and in keeping with our ecologically sustainable development goals,” said CSU Executive Director of Financial Services Jim Hackett. As part of the University’s expansion of student accommodation, CSU is also developing and financing facilities to house 200 students in self catering accommodation on its Bathurst, Albury and Wagga Wagga sites.

Superlatives flow like fine wine when it comes to the James Halliday Australian Wine Companion: “a must have for any serious lover of Australian wine”, “the No. 1 bestselling guide to wineries and wine in Australia”, “keenly anticipated by winemakers, faithful collectors and wine lovers alike”. In the 2007 edition, it is James Halliday who waxes lyrical about the Charles Sturt University (CSU) Winery, giving it, and its 2005 Orange Chardonnay, the highest rating. Only “outstanding wineries capable of producing wines of the highest calibre” can receive five stars from Halliday, while the 2005 Orange Chardonnay was an “outstanding wine of the highest quality” and “outstanding value”. CSU’s winemaker Andrew Drumm says the Winery is “very pleased to receive this honour, especially from someone like James Halliday. It makes the students feel proud of the time spent in the winery and reinforces our education and research activities.”

Writing for publication is a new addition to the workshops on offer at the Riverina’s premier creative arts school to be held at Charles Sturt University (CSU) early in 2007. Enrolments are now being taken for the Murrumbidgee School of Creative Arts summer school at CSU’s Wagga Wagga Campus from 14 to 19 January 2007. The writing workshop has been introduced in response to demand and the tutor will be Kerri Lane, an internationally published author of more than 30 books and “ghostwriter” for some of Australia’s top business personalities. She has tutored in writing for 14 years, 12 of those with CSU’s enrichment program. Described as a “week of indulgence”, the summer school will also include workshops in beading, clay, calligraphy, fine art, jewellery, mosaics, photography, sculpture and textiles. The Murrumbidgee School of Creative Arts has doubled in the number of participants and workshops since its inception three years ago and tutors will travel from as far as New Zealand, Queensland and Victoria for the next program. Program Coordinator Linda Tillman said all workshops are aimed at specific skill levels with something for everyone. The Murrumbidgee School of Creative Arts is held on the Wagga Wagga Campus in summer and winter each year. For enquiries or enrolments, contact Linda Tillman on 02 6933 2064 or email commed@csu.edu.au