Education & training

Emma Pritchard. Local rowers made a splash on the Clarence River last week when the Grafton Rowing Club hosted the 2022 Combined High Schools (CHS) Rowing Championships. Blessed with a mixture of sunshine and light showers during the two-day event, 162 athletes took to the waters of the Clarence River.

LHI welcomed St Gregory’s College to the island last week to celebrate our annual Discovery Day. Assistant Principal, Mr. Joel Weekes, and Director of Boarding, Mr. Luke Morrissey travelled to the island to represent the College. LHI currently has 6 young men boarding at St Gregory’s in grades 8 through to 11, and a long history of young men attending the College from the island.

Chris Oldfield. Naracoorte and Millicent have welcomed three new paramedic trainees to their dedicated SA Ambulance Service (SAAS) teams. Jasmine White has joined Naracoorte, while Ben Merchant and Amy-Lee Hay have teamed up with Millicent's SAAS.

Charles Sturt, in collaboration with Lockhart Shire Council and The Rock Progress Association, officially opened The Rock Regional Observatory on Friday. The observatory will be used for educational astronomical observation and research activities for residents and visitors.

New research into ironstone gravel soils in the western and southern regions of Australia is working to unlock potential and increase the yields of crops planted on this challenging soil type.

A website launched in 2018 to give farmers practical strategies to cope with factors beyond their control has proved so successful with rural communities that it has now been expanded. With further input from farmers and generous funding from multiple philanthropic organisations, ifarmwell has updated its content and features and broadened its reach and expertise.

Gabrielle Duykers. Naracoorte High School has gained a new principal, Lynette Corletto, who says she is passionate about inclusive education and helping students link their learning to future pathways.

A Charles Sturt engineer, a world-famous architect and a renowned composer have transformed a water tank in Cobar into a globally recognised, sound-art masterpiece putting Cobar on the global tourist map.

A Charles Sturt University research project into planned burning ignites possibilities for conservation and restoration of critically endangered grassy ecosystems.

A female shearer is encouraging young people to consider taking up the profession as the country continues to face a shortage spurred on by the pandemic ... While Ms Doll had never expected to spend her working life in a shearing shed, the 29-year-old now couldn’t imagine her life being any different.

Charles Sturt University has contracted with Iberdrola Australia to supply renewable grid electricity for its large market sites from the Bodangora Wind Farm. The contract, established with support from energy consultant World Kinect Energy Services, will account for more than 95 per cent of Charles Sturt’s total grid electricity consumption.

Ecological planned burning is a land management tool applied to promote positive benefits for a local environment. These benefits include stimulating dormant seed banks in the soil profile, reducing the vigour or eliminating weeds, nutrient cycling and the removal of biomass - all of which promote biodiversity and ecosystem health.

For the month of February, if you have an interest in hairdressing and are between the ages of 11 and 17, you have the chance to participate in a program provided by the Deadly Hair Dude in collaboration with Julalikari, who managed to win a grant from the Department of Health to bring the program to Tennant Creek as a part of the Alcohol and Other Drugs initiative.

Geographical location is no barrier in experiencing the sounds of the Murrumbidgee wetlands, thanks to Charles Sturt University researchers ... To celebrate World Wetlands Day on Wednesday 2 February, researchers are presenting the public with the opportunity to eavesdrop on the sounds of the Murrumbidgee wetlands.

More investment in aerial incendiary fire management, greater communication and collaboration between landholder groups and neighbours, and more information about opportunities in the Carbon industry were among some of the key call-outs from the 2021 Fire Forum held in Cairns in December. Organised by Cape York Natural Resource Management, the Forum brought more than 130 people together from Cape York, the Tablelands, Brisbane and Darwin.  

Serena Kirby. Denmark Senior High School is one of only 11 public schools to make it onto WA’s list of top 50 performing schools for ATAR results. DSHS principal Katherine Ward said the results of all students over ATAR, general and VET pathways were the product of the hard work put in by students and staff.

“Denmark Baroque is about making live music in Denmark and the Great Southern. We’re about creating high-quality musical events and opportunities, normally not available outside the metropolitan areas, specifically for local and regional residents” : Vicky Wilson, Denmark Baroque chairperson.

A TAFE NSW Narrandera youth work graduate whose childhood was punctuated by hardship has vowed to help break the cycle of disadvantage in her community by pushing for the town’s first ever youth centre. Proud Wiradjuri woman Jasmin Pietsch, 26, has just completed a Certificate IV in Youth Work at TAFE NSW Narrandera and has been accepted into a Bachelor of Mental Health Science in 2022.

Kendall Jennings. Koondrook Fire Brigade rolled out the red carpet for potential recruits on Wednesday, January 19. A slideshow presentation showing what volunteer members can do in the CFA was shown, as well as a display of the unit capabilities.

Kirstin Nicholson. “With so many pools closing across the regions, kids will be using creeks, rivers, lakes and dams as their local swimming holes. If we don’t teach them how to be safe in these situations, it is highly likely that we see drowning rates increase in the future”: Mikayla Gibson, Cohuna teacher in charge.

School leavers looking for a lucrative career in the bush have the chance to join an iconic industry and help Australia recover from COVID. NSW Farmers Wool Committee Chair Helen Carrigan said a shortage of shearers meant there was good money to be made by young people who were willing to learn. Find out the details of courses between January and June 2022.

Charles Sturt University is running a survey for landholders to share their experience of carbon farming and drought planning. The insights from this research will be used to inform a formal guideline for carbon farming participants to help them plan and include drought resilience into the design of their carbon farming project.