The Charles Sturt University (CSU) Winery will showcase some of its finest vintages during NSW Wine Week starting in Sydney Sunday 9 March. Around 100 NSW wineries taking part in the event, which is aimed at showcasing NSW wine to Sydney consumers. Each NSW wine region will highlight a Regional Hero variety and CSU will showcase its recently released 2007 Sauvignon Blanc at the Orange region stand, and the 2003 Limited Release Cabernet Sauvignon from the Hilltops region. CSU will also showcase its 2007 Chardonnay, which used grapes from the CSU vineyard at Orange and which was recently rated in Australia’s top 100 wines by wine commentator James Halliday.  CSU Winery Marketing Manager Richard Lawson says “This is the first event of its kind to be held in Sydney. It involves wineries from the state’s eight wine growing regions and will be an invaluable opportunity for consumers to learn, taste and see the fantastic wines being produced across NSW.”

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.

A Charles Sturt University (CSU) psychology student is looking for volunteers from the Blayney-Bathurst-Orange area to participate in her research project on victims of mistreatment. Ms Belinda Harris said her research is designed to assist people aged 18 years or older who continue to experience distress, hurt or pain caused by others. “Participants will be invited to take part in a group treatment program that has been designed to assist people who believe they have been abused or significantly hurt by the actions of another individual or group,” Ms Harris said. “The treatment is for people who want to reduce the anger, hurt and discomfort they may feel as a result of interpersonal injustice.” For further information, with no obligation to participate, contact Ms Harris on 0401 276 322 or via email.

A book on economic globalisation with local, national and international contributions edited by CSU academics will be officially launched by the Vice-Chancellor and President of Charles Sturt University (CSU), Professor Ian Goulter, on Wednesday 13 February. Engagement & Change - Exploring Management, Economic and Finance Implications of a Globalising Environment, examines the issue of globalisation from diverse perspectives. Co-editor Dr PK Basu, Associate Head of the School of Marketing & Management at CSU’s Bathurst Campus, said the book contains “23 papers by Australian and international researchers from different disciplines and addresses the effects of globalisation on areas such as management, economics, finance, accounting, marketing and human resources”. Contributors included 19 academics from CSU and from seven other Australian universities, as well as from the United Kingdom, New Zealand, South Africa and the United States.

With a background in business planning and policy development, Mr Stephen Butt has been appointed the new Executive Director of Facilities Management at Charles Sturt University (CSU). Mr Butt, who is an experienced engineer and project manager, comes to CSU from the Greater Southern Area Health Service based in Wagga Wagga. The former fitter and turner who trained in Wollongong, has post graduate qualifications in engineering management. At CSU he will oversee the largest set of building projects ever embarked on by the University, with academic facilities and services and student residences worth $240 million being constructed over five years from 2007 on its campuses in Albury-Wodonga, Bathurst, Orange, Dubbo and Wagga Wagga. This includes nearly $45 million to be spent by 2009 on the expansion of the Albury-Wodonga Campus.

Charles Sturt University (CSU) staff will meet on Thursday 14 February to propagate native plants on the CSU Orange Campus for the Summer Hill Creekcare group as one of several community projects taking place in 2008. New staff have been invited to join the CSU group who spend a few hours each month collecting seed in the field, cleaning and propagating seed and potting seedlings. The seedlings are then planted on Orange Campus and in other parts of the Summer Hill Creek catchment. “This is a great way to get involved in the community,” rural management lecturer and group coordinator Cilla Kinross explains. This conservation project - propagating trees, shrubs and grasses - is one of many undertaken by CSU, Australia’s largest inland university.

Third year Early Childhood students enrolled in Child Language and Literacy 2 at Charles Sturt University (CSU) are providing one-on-one reading tuition to Stage One children at Buninyong Public School. Working with students at their identified level of development, this nine week individual literacy program targets learning in the areas of reading and writing. “This individual attention has resulted in individual improvement,” says CSU School of Teacher Education lecturer Maria Bennet. Ms Bennet explains the children have developed in confidence and are moving towards independence in strategy application. “Writing skills have improved and developed, with more elaborated thoughts, improved spelling and attention to the construction of ideas.” The program has benefited CSU students who have gained valuable hands-on experience and professional development. This program has provided students with an opportunity to work with literacy and develop their understanding of this area.

New Charles Sturt University (CSU) students living off campus will receive a helping hand in the initial challenging weeks of university life. First trialled in 2007, a mentor scheme aims to help new students settle into University and their accommodation in the wider community. The Off campus Student Community Advisors (OSCA) Scheme will be trialled on CSU’s Bathurst and Wagga Wagga campuses during the first six weeks of the 2008 Autumn Session. “This scheme mirrors the long running and highly successful Residential Advisers (RA) scheme for students living on campus,” said OSCA supervisor Chris Roche. “It will help new students living in the wider community to find their way through the maze of early days at university,” he said. The scheme aims to improve retention rates in the critical first session of a student’s study. The Off campus Advisors are recruited from existing CSU students. In addition to being the first point of contact for support, the Advisers will offer the new students a six week program of social activities. Orientation 2008 at CSU began on Monday 11 February.  

Charles Sturt University (CSU) researchers and staff will consider the latest results of a program that aims to strengthen the cultural knowledge and educational achievements of Indigenous youth in inland NSW. Tirkandi Inaburra is an Aboriginal community-controlled initiative that looks to reduce the risk of 12 to 15 year old Aboriginal boys, from south western NSW, which includes the Riverina, becoming involved in the criminal justice system. The program, which commenced in 2005, is being evaluated by a team that includes Ms Elizabeth Moore from CSU’s Institute for Land, Water and Society and is led by Dr Catherine Spooner from the University of NSW. Dr Spooner will outline the research project and the challenges in evaluating it at a meeting to be held on CSU’s Wagga Wagga Campus on Wednesday 23 January.