There’s a dentist in Dubbo who is all smiles about his new position at the Charles Sturt University (CSU) Dental and Oral Health Clinic  in Dubbo. Dr Janaka Nishantha Rupasinga and his family recently moved to Dubbo so he could take up this exciting new challenge and give Dubbo more accessible dental care. “My wife is also a dentist and she is hoping that once our two year old gets older, she will be able to start practicing in Dubbo too.” The CSU Dental and Oral Health Clinic boasts 16 dental chairs in total, with the aim of CSU’s dentistry students providing patient care alongside professional dentists. “We hope to work alongside other local dentists and take the pressure of their waiting lists to ensure everyone living in the region receives fast and efficient dental care.” To book an appointment with Dr Janaka contact 1300 278 642 (1300 CSU OHC).

Teaching and education courses at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Bathurst are the focus of the MyDay promotion at the University on Friday 13 May. CSU Prospective Student Adviser, Ms Fran Dwyer, said, “This MyDay will provide senior high school students from around the region with general information and interactive sessions with academics from the School of Teacher Education at Charles Sturt University. This enables students to have a clearer view of their tertiary study options and career opportunities in the important field of education.” Approximately 68 senior students from 22 high schools in the region and beyond will attend.

As part of the 60th anniversary of teacher education being offered in Bathurst, a time capsule at Charles Sturt University (CSU) will receive a new deposit on Wednesday 11 May. A new book, Tales and Tidings from the Pioneers of Bathurst Teachers College 1951-52, written by Mr Royce Levi, one of the first teacher education graduates, will be added to the time capsule. The Dean of the Faculty of Education, Professor Toni Downes, said, “We’re delighted that Mr Levi will visit Charles Sturt University to share his book which captures more stories of the first graduates, many of whom have gone on to hold distinguished positions in education. The book will be entered into the teacher education time capsule which contains wonderful memorabilia, such as the first graduation ball photograph and the dance program for the first graduation ball held in the Walshaw Hall, Bathurst, in 1952.” The time capsule will be sealed once again at 12 noon Wednesday 11 May, at Heffron House (building N4) at CSU in Bathurst. A date has not been set for the next opening of the capsule.

A special presentation ceremony will be held on Wednesday 11 May for postgraduate information technology (IT) graduates following the Faculty of Business graduation ceremony at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Bathurst on Wednesday 11 May. Mr Martin Hale, an adjunct senior lecturer in computing at CSU and the chief executive officer of IT Masters Pty Ltd, a partner organisation with the University, said the special ceremony recognises the achievement of these higher degree graduates following their formal graduation that day. “This event helps to celebrate the students’ achievements, and provides the opportunity for many who have studied by distance education to meet their fellow students,” Mr Hale said. “They will also be presented with their special IT Masters graduation jackets by the Head of the CSU School of Computing and Mathematics, Associate Professor Irfan Altas. The IT Masters special graduation celebration will be held from 5pm onwards on Wednesday 11 May after the conclusion of the Faculty of Business graduation ceremony. The event is on the first floor of the Mansfield Building (building C2, the main lecture block near the Library) at CSU in Bathurst.

Fresh from his presentation at a conference in the United Kingdom, the Manager of Residential Operations at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Albury-Wodonga and Wagga Wagga, Mr Peter Bell will discuss an innovative youth educational program at a public lecture in Narrandera on Wednesday 18 May. At the Association for Student Residential Accommodation conference in Edinburgh in early April, Mr Bell delivered a presentation on the program, Putting Youth in the Picture. He discussed how CSU is rolling out the program across its regions after securing the first NSW licence in 2010. Designed to assist local communities in dealing with confronting issues for young people, Putting Youth in the Picture has already been implemented in the University’s Halls of Residences. “This program is about empowering local communities through their local councils, school or sporting groups to use the program’s resources to hopefully prevent their young people from getting into difficulties,” Mr Bell said.

The challenges of working to improve the lives of subsistence farmers in war torn African countries will be featured in a public lecture at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Wagga Wagga on Wednesday 11 May 2011. In the lecture titled Sex, babies, money, violence and genetics, international genetics consultant and adjunct senior lecturer with the School of Animal and Veterinary Sciences, Dr Sara McClintock will share her experiences working with the International Livestock Research Centre in Kenya, Tanzania and Ethiopia.  “I was running a lab trying to produce cheap embryos that would produce 95 per cent female calves to increase the profitability of a local farmer’s cow so she could afford to send her children to school and feed them a little milk.” Dr McClintock said in times of civil unrest, crops are often destroyed, seed stocks stolen and farm animals eaten by the tribal militias. “These animals are usually a local breed that has survived in tough conditions, may be worm resistant or have a low feed requirement,” she said. “One of the solutions is to conserve germ plasma, such as semen, in liquid nitrogen but this can be politically sensitive because many developing countries are paranoid about developed countries stealing their genetic material.”

Accessibility and human rights, instead of rigid funding models, should be the priorities when planning health care services for rural and remote Australia says Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) Professor of Rural and Remote Pharmacy, Patrick Ball. “A model of health care funding for rural and remote Australia should be developed based on fundamental human rights and access to services rather than ‘bricks and mortar’,” Professor Patrick Ball said. The CSU academic studied two communities in central west NSW between 2006 and 2008 as part of his examination of the provision of health services outside metropolitan Australia. “We have the evidence to show that what is needed by rural and remote areas is more flexibility in allowing individual communities to meet their health needs, and more emphasis on access to services, rather than what hospital and which health facilities are located where. Albury can play a crucial role in providing back-up services that cannot be delivered on the doorstep.” Professor Patrick Ball will present a free public lecture on his research from 6pm in Albury on Wednesday 11 May.

Charles Sturt University (CSU), in association with the Islamic Council of NSW, will present a free screening of documentary In the Footsteps of the Ancestors: Muslims Down Under at CSU in Orange on Friday 13 May. The film captures the ethnic, linguistic and cultural diversity of Muslims in Australia, and tells the stories of Muslim pioneers and their descendants, beginning with the pivotal, fundamental role the Afghan camel herders played in the development of outback Australia, to the successful integration Muslims have made into modern Australian society. Documentary producer Ms Nada Roude says the documentary encourages a greater effort in understanding and appreciation of Islam and Muslims where sharing knowledge and stories is one of the most important ways of building a genuine sense of community in Australia. “It strengthens the belief in fairness, equality and respect, the values we aspire to in Australia.”

Veterinary science students at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Wagga Wagga are lending their support and knowledge to the annual Millions Paws Walk organised by the RSPCA. Members of the official CSU student club, the Veterinary Students Association (VSA) will work with animal lovers and their pets to make sure the fundraising event runs smoothly on Sunday 15 May. The VSA’s Ms Caitlin Mack will be one of 40 students taking part. “I’ll be able to put my veterinary science skills to use to support this worthy charity while walking my pet dog Bella,” she said. Head of the School of Animal and Veterinary Sciences at CSU in Wagga Wagga, Professor Nick Sangster, said the School works with RSPCA vets in a number of ways, while volunteer work by students also involves finding pets new homes. The RSPCA Millions Paws Walk aims to raise funds for the animal welfare organisation.