A new student accommodation scheme to strengthen the links between Charles Sturt University (CSU), Riverina businesses and local governments has been formally proposed by the Head of the University’s Wagga Wagga Campus Professor David Green. The aim of the scheme is to construct additional on-campus residential cottages and provide scholarships for regional students from the rental income. Riverina businesses and local governments are being offered the opportunity to fund the construction of cottage a and a percentage of the rental income is then used to fund a scholarship through the Charles Sturt Foundation. Each room purchased by a benefactor would also be named after that donor. “The advantages of this scheme include CSU engaging with its regions and retaining regional students, the majority of whom pursue their professions in regional Australia,” said Professor Green. It is hoped that new student accommodation will be available under this scheme by 2007.

Charles Sturt University (CSU) student Alicia Fuller has been named the western region's Miss Indigenous at a ceremony in Dubbo on Friday 17 February. Organiser Michelle Davison told the Dubbo Daily Liberal newspaper that Miss Fuller's "great personality and confidence" made her stand out among the 23 competitors. Miss Fuller said it was “a blast” meeting young women from Narromine, Gilgandra, Mudgee, Trangie, and Cobar. “Young Aboriginal girls aren’t that confident in themselves and it was trying to get them to come forward and speak out and let their beauty shine”. Next up is the State Finals in Sydney, but meanwhile Miss Fuller has started her second year of primary education at Charles Sturt University's Dubbo Campus. “I definitely would like to be a role model for young Indigenous girls out there,” said the CSU student.

An informal arrangement which has existed for over 15 years between library services at Charles Sturt University (CSU) and the Goulburn Police College was today made official at a signing ceremony in Bathurst. CSU Executive Director Library Services Shirley Oakley said this is a significant step forward in what has already proved to be a successful and productive relationship, "The relationship we have is a really good one, but we wanted to make sure it didn’t just rely on goodwill from the personalities, that it was a robust relationship. This new Service Level Agreement is more collaborative and future looking, so as the requirements of the students change we can evolve our services to meet their needs." Tony Stephenson, Manager at the Goulburn Police College Library agrees, "the formal partnerships between the NSW Police and CSU for police education do impact on our libraries, so this agreement will officially cover all library arrangements". Shirley Oakley said the time was right to also look at expanding the relationship. "The agreement also establishes a partnership between the library staff, so that we will exchange skills and keep each other up-to-date on what’s happening in each other’s libraries, which is important for staff development," she said.

Charles Sturt University (CSU) Council has welcomed its newest member, Mr Chris Hancock, who brings more than twenty years’ experience in leadership and senior executive positions to the University and is a graduate of CSU. He is also Chief Executive Officer of Australia’s Academic and Research Network (AARNet). “I completed a Bachelor’s degree at CSU and I’m very fond of the University, but more importantly I’m excited about what the University is doing from a regional perspective," said Mr Hancock. “I’m delighted by the appointment of such a distinguished graduate to the CSU Council, the University's governing body. Mr Hancock’s background and skills will enable him to make an outstanding contribution to the University,” said acting Vice Chancellor Professor Ross Chambers. The University also welcomes the reappointments of Ms Susan Benedyka, Dr Geoffrey Wise and Ms Patricia Murphy. "The re-appointments are pleasing because their distinguished record for Council has been recognised,” added Professor Chambers.    

 Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) long-standing association with the Australian Defence Force (ADF) has received a boost at a contract signing in Canberra on Tuesday 31 January. Under the new agreement, CSU will maintain and expand current training initiatives especially developed for the ADF. The University provides postgraduate training in a three stage program, with many officers then enrolling in CSU’s Master of Arts (Communication – Organisational Communication). “Through its strong training focus, ADF is always trying to do things better, and we can work with them to develop that, and to continue to grow our relationship,” said coordinator of CSU’s postgraduate program for Defence, Zoe Hibbert. “I found the CSU academic staff always supportive and was grateful that they readily recognised the demands placed on students who had to juggle employment and a high study load,” said ADF Strategic Communication Adviser and CSU graduate, John Anderson. “Another benefit to me as a student was that most of my lecturers had been previously employed in the corporate or public sectors, so they were able to demonstrate their professional and practical experiences within an academic context,” he added.

 A Charles Sturt University (CSU) lecturer with a passion for providing support and guidance to first year students studying via distance education has been named the winner of the Vice-Chancellor’s Teaching Excellence Award for 2005. Dr Mir Rabiul Islam, from the School of Social Sciences and Liberal Studies on the University's Bathurst Campus, is course coordinator of the largest undergraduate psychology course, Bachelor of Social Science – Psychology. Including Education/Psychology double degrees, he is coordinating courses for over 450 students. In his online teaching, he strives passionately to use “online strategies” that empower students to be self-sufficient and adaptive to the ever changing needs of life. Student evaluations of his teaching of research methods are extraordinarily high, no mean feat in the area of Advanced Research Methods and Statistics in Psychology unit, a course often regarded as difficult and complex. He considers learning from students as a unique opportunity to assess and re-assess his own professional integrity. Each year the University recognises and encourages excellence in teaching through the presentation of this award. The award will be presented to Dr Islam in May at the Faculty of Arts graduation ceremony.

Scholarships totalling $35 000 will see seven Charles Sturt University (CSU) students expand their academic and cultural horizons when they travel to China this month as part of their business degrees at CSU. Funded through the Federal Government’s Cheung Kong Scholarship program as well as the University’s Faculty of Commerce, the students from the Albury-Wodonga, Bathurst and Wagga Wagga campuses will leave Australia for China in two groups on Monday 20 February and Monday 27 February. The students will spend one semester studying either at the Yunnan University of Finance and Economics in Kunming, Tianjin University of Finance and Economics in Tianjin or the Yangzhou University in Yangzhou. They will study basic elements of the Mandarin language as well as learn an appreciation and understanding of Chinese society and culture.

New research is being conducted at Charles Sturt University (CSU) to identify what support schools offer a child who has a parent with a mental illness. The study by CSU education lecturer Dr Andrea Reupert comes after research conducted at the University in 2005 found about 20 per cent of all Australian children live in families in which one parent has a mental illness. “Given the amount of time young people spend in the classroom, I want to hear how Riverina teachers, school administrators, school counsellors, canteen staff or anyone connected to a school, might have supported these children in both the public and Catholic education systems,” said Dr Reupert. Families who want to be involved in the research can contact CSU’s Dr Andrea Reupert on telephone (02) 6933 4376 or send an email.

In recognition of the financial concerns facing first year university students, Charles Sturt University (CSU) has introduced equity scholarships for new students in need of additional financial help. The scholarship scheme, valued at a total of $800 000 in 2006, will be available to first year, undergraduate students studying on campus. There will also be CSU Equity Scholarships available for continuing students. The scheme is in addition to the Federal Government’s Commonwealth Learning Scholarships and financial assistance available through the CSU Foundation Scholarships. “Access to higher education is an important issue for CSU and this new scholarship scheme aims to help students get a university education,” said Deputy Director of the University’s Division of Student Services, Les Burr. Further details about the CSU Equity Scholarship scheme are available here.