Student Alert! It’s Scholarship Hunting Season at UNE

July 31, 2006

The University of New England’s undergraduate scholarships program is worth over $3 million a year and the call has gone out to students to apply now for a broad range of scholarship opportunities. The scholarships on offer provide the means to attend the highly regarded University of New England.

Based in Armidale, NSW, Australia’s first regional University’s reputation and appeal continues to grow. UNE recently announced it was debt-free and in the same week, received 10 Federal Government Carrick awards (the maximum), which promote and reward excellence in university teaching. Then, the Prime Minister announced funding to establish a rural Medical School at the University. UNE Scholarships will be in high demand and applicants are urged to get in fast.

The majority of UNE scholarships, such as the UNE Country Scholarships, allow recipients to pursue the studies of their choice and were established to help students from country areas with the cost of living away from home. UNE Country Scholarships are worth $5,000 p.a. for the duration of a degree and are open to Year 12 (and gap year) students, with a record of outstanding academic achievement and involvement in school and community activities. Up to 26 will be awarded in 2007.

The Vice-Chancellor of UNE, Professor Alan Pettigrew, said: “Once they come to UNE, these scholarship holders will continue to be involved in community, college and university affairs. We aim to be a vibrant living-and-learning community, and our Country Scholarship holders contribute to this.”

Five Country Equity Scholarships will be offered. Also worth $5,000 a year, they will seek to address nursing and teaching shortages, with preference given to students applying to those degree areas. Meanwhile, a nation-wide shortage of planners has prompted regional councils such as Wagga Wagga, Goulburn Mulwaree and the Moree Plains Shire Council to fund scholarships for UNE’s Bachelor of Urban and Regional Planning.

UNE is fortunate to have individual alumni and community members who recognise and sponsor the potential of rural and regional students who would otherwise not be able to attend university. One prominent Armidale based businessman, Mr. Scott Williams, has funded up to eight Opportunity Scholarships (at $5,000p.a. each) for both new and continuing students of business and information technology related degrees.

Indigenous students are encouraged to apply for all scholarships, including the $5,000p.a. Booroongen Djugun Scholarship for studies in natural resources.

The Faculties, SportUNE and UNE’s residential colleges offer a range of scholarships for students with demonstrated sporting and academic abilities. Community involvement is highly regarded.

To apply for scholarships, current HSC candidates should see their school careers adviser, contact UNE on 1800 818 865 or go to www.une.edu.au/scholarships. Applications for this round close on 30 September 2006. Information about scholarships for continuing students will be available soon for the round closing 31 January 2007.

Pictured with this story are two 2006 scholarship recipients, Keren Brown (UNE Country Scholarship for a Bachelor of Urban and Region Planning) and Kirsten Wilkes (an Inverell Shire Council Training Scholarship for a Bachelor of Urban and Region Planning).

Media Contact: UNE Scholarships Officer, Daphne Sauer: 6773 4438

Posted by Gary Fry at 05:01 PM

UNE to provide critical training for regional nurses

July 28, 2006

Registered Nurses working in regional and remote areas of Australia will soon be able to gain specialist knowledge of acute care nursing – knowledge desperately needed in many of those areas.

The University of New England will launch its new Graduate Certificate in Acute Care Nursing program at the beginning of next year. This one-year distance-education program will allow nurses with no access to existing city-based training courses to gain this much-needed qualification.

Planning the new program has involved extensive consultation with clinical nurses in both the Hunter New England Area Health Service and the North Coast Area Health Service. Jackie Lea (pictured here), Clinical Coordinator of Nursing programs at UNE, said the planning – initiated by Dr Mary Cruickshank in UNE’s School of Health – had focused initially on nursing in and around the operating theatre, and had then broadened to include emergency, intensive-care, and coronary-care nursing.

“There’s already enormous interest in the Graduate Certificate course from graduate nurses working in the Area Health Services,” Ms Lea said – “particularly from those who graduated two or three years ago. The certificate program will not only provide regional Health Services with well-qualified staff in these critical fields of nursing, but will allow nurses themselves to extend their professional skills – and their careers – in this new and important direction.”

Dr Glenda Parmenter, the Coordinator of UNE’s Bachelor of Nursing program, said the new postgraduate course would build on the University’s long-standing and highly-regarded expertise in the delivery of nursing programs by distance education. “And it will be another tangible UNE contribution to the work of our Area Health Services,” she added.

Ms Lea explained that the course would be organised into two streams, with students choosing to focus either on “perioperative nursing” (operating theatre and recovery room) or “trauma and critical care nursing”. “Also, the core units will provide an opportunity for articulation into our Master of Nursing program,” she continued.

Entry requirements for the Graduate Certificate in Acute Care Nursing course are a Bachelor of Nursing degree and current employment as a Registered Nurse. For more information, phone Jackie Lea on (02) 6773 2974.

Posted by Jim Scanlan at 03:20 PM

Kathleen Letters: a life of dedication to Armidale and its University

July 28, 2006

Mrs Kathleen Letters, the last surviving person associated with the foundation of the University of New England in 1938, died in Armidale on Tuesday at the age of 96.

Her late husband, Frank Letters, was the foundation lecturer in Classics at the New England University College, and later became Professor. His scholarship was recognised world-wide.

Mrs Letters was an acclaimed musician, artist, local historian and writer. She came to Armidale with an established reputation as a violinist in Sydney, and was particularly well-known for her ABC broadcasts. She continued to record concerts during the 1940s, using a phone link from St Peter’s Cathedral to the ABC’s Sydney studios.

She made an enormous contribution to the development of music in Armidale. In 1983, UNE awarded her an honorary Master’s degree in Music for her contribution to the University and the community.

Mrs Letters studied art at the Old Teacher’s College, held 13 solo exhibitions in Armidale, Sydney and Brisbane, and continued to paint well into her later years.

She took great pride in the part her husband had played in the establishment of UNE. At the age of 83 she learnt computer skills through a course at the University of the Third Age, bought a second-hand computer, and used it to write History Will Out, an account of her husband’s career and the early days of the University. It was published in 1987.

A vital and enthusiastic member of the Armidale community for 68 years, she is survived by her daughters Margaret, Helen, Leonore, and Frances, 12 grandchildren and 19 great-grandchildren.

Her funeral will be held at St Mary’s Cathedral at 11am on Tuesday August 1.

PHOTO: Danieli Studios.

Posted by Jim Scanlan at 10:04 AM

Students achieve record medal haul at University Games

July 27, 2006

by Murray Bruce

Students from UNE won a record 11 medals at the Drinksmart Northern University Games on the Sunshine Coast last week. Team UNE returned to Armidale with its most successful medal haul ever: two gold, five silver and four bronze.

The UNE lawn bowls team, and the squash player Kathryn Sue, won gold medals. Silver went to the Rugby Union, men's and women's hockey, and men's and women's tennis teams, and bronze to the Rugby League 7s, men's and women's soccer, and men's touch teams. Team UNE also reclaimed the Clem Jones Shield after defeating the University of Queensland in six chosen sports.

Gold medallist Mark Crutcher from the UNE lawn bowls team described the games as "a well organised good time". "It was a privilege to represent the University, but even better to win the gold," Mark said. He credits the success of the team to the facilities and management of SportUNE. "We were really lucky to have a great team," he continued, "especially in our team manager, David Schmude. Without his organisation, our games would not have been as successful as they were."

Mark is now preparing for the Australian University Games to be held in Adelaide later this year. Of the 21 teams UNE sent to the Northern Games, 10 have qualified for the national games. These teams include the men's and women's hockey, soccer and tennis teams, the men's touch team, the women's squash team, and the lawn bowls team.

David Schmude (pictured here) was responsible for the 217 competitors from UNE who competed in 14 different sports. "All our individual teams performed well," he said, "especially our medal-winning teams. It was very pleasing to see Team UNE perform so well at these games. It is also a great achievement to have so many of these teams qualify for the national level."

Posted by Jim Scanlan at 03:00 PM

Students win national awards for community-based projects

July 26, 2006

A team from The University of New England has won a first prize and a second prize in a national competition that encourages students to use their business skills for the benefit of the community.

The seven UNE students travelled to Brisbane earlier this month to compete – with teams from 27 other Australian universities – in the seventh annual competition of Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE) Australia. This is the fourth successive year that UNE has sent a team to the national competition.

Karina Gill, President of SIFE UNE, said the competition, held at Brisbane’s Hilton Hotel, had been “a lot of fun”. “You get the chance to meet students from across Australia who are using the skills they have been taught at university to improve the community in different ways,” said Ms Gill, who is in the fifth year of her Bachelor of Financial Administration / Bachelor of Laws degree program at UNE.

The UNE team won equal first place (along with the University of Western Sydney) in an award for “best team sustainability strategy”, receiving a trophy and $1,000 in prize money. They also won second prize in an award for “best financial management skills project”. With the project that won them the latter award, they are helping UNE’s sporting clubs to counter the negative impact of voluntary student unionism by teaching them financial management, fundraising, marketing and recruiting skills. Their other projects include work with stall-holders at the Armidale Markets to develop a Web site and enhance their business skills, and with parents at Minimbah Primary School to develop fund-raising and other financial skills. The Minimbah project has attracted grants worth $1,350 from the banking organisation HSBC.

Along with Ms Gill (who is pictured here), the UNE team members are: Andrew Begg (who is in the fourth year of his Bachelor of Commerce / Bachelor of Economics degree program), Louise Hamilton (fifth year of Bachelor of Arts / Bachelor of Laws), Lex Henderson (second year of Bachelor of Arts / Bachelor of Commerce), Samantha Harris (first year of Bachelor of Economics / Bachelor of Laws), Rowena Bellingham (fourth year of Bachelor of Arts / Bachelor of Teaching), and Liz Walsh (first year of Bachelor of Business / Bachelor of Laws). Their Faculty Adviser, Gina Milgate (a Lecturer in UNE’s New England Business School) accompanied them to Brisbane.

Ms Gill explained that the judges in the competition, who come from some of Australia’s biggest companies, are looking for likely recruits. “A careers fair is held for participating students,” she said, “where they can speak with human resources representatives from those companies, and lodge their resumes and applications.”

“Being a part of SIFE develops skills in public speaking, event organisation, finance, marketing, teaching, and working with the Internet,” she continued. “You also make long-lasting friendships, and your chances of gaining employment upon graduation increase greatly. SIFE activities also count towards UNE’s New England Award, which recognises a student’s extra-curricular activities in education and community involvement.

“We will be recruiting students this semester from all Faculties, and we would also like to hear from interested external students. Skills we are especially seeking from new members this semester include Web skills, marketing, recruiting, photography, graphic design, public speaking, education, and teaching. But there are many ways that members can participate, whether it be raising money by selling chocolates, cooking sausages at our barbecues, or taking on a leadership role.”

Students interested in joining SIFE should contact the Recruitment Officer, Samantha Harris, on (02) 6773 1172 (e-mail: sharri34@une.edu.au).

Posted by Jim Scanlan at 09:34 AM

Writing and photography competitions open for entries

July 25, 2006

Sharpen those pencils and dust off those lenses. Services UNE is once again taking entries for its annual short story and photography competitions. There is $1000 in prizes up for grabs, not to mention the kudos that comes with winning a prestigious local competition.

Last year's competitions attracted 20 entries in the short story section and more than 50 in the photography section. The judges included local novelist Wendy James, whose novel Out of the Silence was published last year to national critical acclaim, and Armidale Express photographer Tim Barnesly. A new prize, the People's Choice Award, was introduced in the photography section and decided by popular vote.

“The People's Choice Award went down really well last year, and we'll definitely be awarding it again in 2006,” said competition organizer Tanya Graham.

Last year's sponsors United Campus Bookshops and The Armidale Express are back for another year. United Campus Bookshops manager Chris Hietbrink said she was delighted to support the event because it was “in support of what the UNE community is all about, and we feel that we are very much a part of that community”.

This is the third year Services UNE has run the competitions in their current format and the ninth year the student organisation has run a short story competition. The UNE Union Literary Awards ran from 1996 to 2002, attracting hundreds of entries and recognising dozens of talented writers with awards and prizes.

Ms Graham said the competition was part of Services UNE’s ongoing commitment to providing cultural activities for its members.

“We see it as giving students who are interested in writing or photography the chance to enter a competition and receive some recognition for their talent and hard work,” she said. “It might encourage them to enter other competitions or to go further with their creative interests. Last year's judge, for instance, won a short story writing competition while she was at university and went on to publish a novel.”

Entry to the photography and short story competitions is open to all current students of UNE. Entries close at 4pm on Friday, October 13. Entry forms are available at http://www.servicesune.com.au or from the Services UNE office at the University of New England. Prizes will be presented on Friday, November 3 and winners will be publicly announced on Monday, November 6.

For more information contact Tanya Graham on (02) 6773 3067.

Posted by Leon Braun at 03:49 PM

Rural Science graduates to celebrate 'the McClymont vision'

July 24, 2006

The University of New England is about to celebrate the 50th anniversary of a degree program – UNE’s Bachelor of Rural Science – that has gained a worldwide reputation for excellence.

The anniversary events in September will celebrate the vision of the program’s founder, Professor Bill McClymont, and the achievements of its more than 1,500 graduates. Through those graduates, the “McClymont vision” has made an impact throughout Australia and the Asia Pacific region – and beyond.

Titled “Celebrating the McClymont vision”, the events will include a full-day forum on Friday 22 September with the theme “Rural science in the context of Australian agricultural education”, and a reunion dinner at UNE’s Austin College that evening.

Dr Bernie Bindon, one of the organisers of the anniversary, explained that Professor McClymont – a distinguished veterinary researcher – had wanted to produce graduates with an integrated knowledge of animal husbandry and agronomy, and thus of the entire soil-plant-animal complex. “The ‘McClymont vision’ was one of ‘agricultural ecology’ as a whole,” Dr Bindon said. “He wanted graduates to be able to think about an integrated system.”

Dr Bindon (pictured here), who was the founding Chief Executive Officer of the Australian Cooperative Research Centre for Cattle and Beef Quality in 1993 – a position he held for 12 years – is just one of many distinguished graduates of UNE’s Rural Science program. (He was one of the third intake of undergraduates, and went on to gain a Master of Rural Science degree at UNE.) Another is Dame Bridget Ogilvie, the program’s first University Medallist, who became Director of the Wellcome Trust in the UK. Dr Geoffrey Fox, who graduated Bachelor of Rural Science in 1965 and PhD (also from UNE) in 1969, held several important positions in the World Bank, including that of Director, Rural Development and Natural Resource Management, for the East Asia and Pacific Region. Dr Fox (who, like Dr Bindon, is an Adjunct Professor at UNE) will be the guest speaker at the reunion dinner.

Reunion events will begin on the afternoon of Thursday 21 September with pre-dinner drinks at Austin College at 5.30 pm, followed by a buffet dinner. The Vice-Chancellor of UNE, Professor Alan Pettigrew, will officially open the forum at 8.45 the following morning. On Saturday, after a leisurely brunch, there will be tours of UNE (including the Livestock Industries Institute), Booloominbah, and Armidale. Activities that afternoon and evening will centre on a reunion of Wright College residents, who will also be celebrating their 50th anniversary.

Dr Bindon said the organisers had contacted all the Rural Science graduates for whom they had current addresses, and were keen to reach those who had dropped off their contact list. “As well as being a chance to meet up with classmates, other Rural Science graduates, and staff members past and present,” he said, “there will be opportunities for them to contribute to thinking about the future of Rural Science at UNE. We’ve asked them to take part in a survey on the effectiveness and possible revision of the Rural Science program. And, at the end of the forum, there will be a chance for everyone to discuss this.”

For more information about the Rural Science 50th Anniversary Celebrations, contact Associate Professor Geoff Hinch on (02) 6773 2202 (e-mail: ghinch@une.edu.au) or Shirley Fraser on (02) 6773 2148 (e-mail: sfraser@une.edu.au), or go to
http://une.edu.au/alumni/whats.htm#rst50, where registration forms can be downloaded.

Posted by Jim Scanlan at 01:35 PM

UNE helps winegrowers fight the big freeze

July 21, 2006

Scientists from the University of New England have come up with a new way to protect Australian cool-climate wine grapes from their worst enemy, frost. If successful, the technology promises to save the wine industry a fortune and replace frost protection methods ranging from the inelegant to the downright dirty.

“Right now there are only three methods for winegrowers to resist frost,” said David Lamb, the physicist in charge of the project. “Frost fans, overhead irrigation and smudge pots (pots of burning oil placed near the vine to prevent frost). Every one of these has serious disadvantages. We thought there had to be a better way.”

The “better way” Dr Lamb and his colleagues have devised employs the same type of cables that are used in underfloor heating systems to raise the temperature of the vines and prevent the fragile grape buds from freezing. Although grapevines can survive under six feet of winter snow, in spring the young grape buds are vulnerable to overnight frosts, which destroy the nascent grape bunches inside the buds. A severe frost can wipe out crops for two years. Dr Lamb and his colleagues believe their technology will protect the vines during these crucial spring months.

A three-year trial of the technology has begun at Peterson's Winery in Armidale, New England. The trial will be conducted on two blocks of Riesling and Sauvignon Blanc. For cool-climate winegrowers, results can't come a moment too soon.

“Frosts are our number one problem, early or late,” said Doug Hume, co-owner of Walden Woods Farm, a boutique winery located north of Armidale. “Rain around harvest time is also a problem, but I'd have to say it comes number two. Frost can be devastating.” Three years ago Mr Hume lost 95 per cent of his shoots to a severe frost. “These were our primary fruiting buds. The frost was so severe it actually damaged the bark. We still got a (secondary) yield, but it wasn't a good crop.”

Mr Hume said he hoped the new technology would provide an affordable, effective way of protecting regional crops from frost. “Right now we live with it, but it's a painful living,” he said. “If this heated cordon wire will make it safer to grow young buds in spring then many New England growers will definitely be interested.”

Remarkably, the three-year trial was established without a cent of grant money, thanks to the generous support of a number of corporate sponsors. Country Energy donated linework and three year's free electricity. DEVI Heating Systems, a Sydney-based underfloor heating company, supplied the insulated heating cable. Peterson's Winery are providing the grapes.

“All up, the in-kind between all the parties comes to about $90,000, yet not a cent has changed hands,” Dr Lamb said. “This project is a great example of researchers working with industry to get an outcome, as well as creating a whole new market for the sponsors to sell their products.”

The project will be officially launched by NSW minister for energy Joe Tripodi at 12.30pm on Friday, July 21 at Peterson's Vineyard, south-east of Armidale on Dangarsleigh Rd.

THE PHOTOGRAPH displayed here shows (from left) Mr Joe Tripodi, Professor Alan Pettigrew, and Associate Professor David Lamb.

Posted by Leon Braun at 11:06 AM

Minister launches 'ambitious' report on rural education

July 20, 2006

The Federal Minister for Education, Science and Training, Julie Bishop, visited The University of New England today to launch the results and recommendations of the largest education survey concerning rural and regional issues ever carried out in Australia. Accompanied by the Federal Member for Gwydir, John Anderson, she also took the opportunity to formally announce the Government's commitment to the establishment of a new, collaborative rural medical school, with 60 undergraduate places at UNE and 20 at the University of Newcastle.

The National Survey was in response to the fact that students in rural and regional schools have not been achieving to the same levels in science, mathematics, and information and communication technology (ICT) subjects as their city counterparts.

Conducted in 2005 by the National Centre of Science, ICT and Mathematics Education for Rural and Regional Australia (SiMERR), based at UNE, the survey elicited responses from about 3,000 primary and maths/science secondary teachers - and nearly 1,000 parents - in 1,400 schools across all States and Territories. It found that rural and regional schools had a higher annual staff turnover than city schools, fewer opportunities for their teachers' professional development, and a greater unmet need of resources and support. Country parents, while they appreciated the commitment and enthusiasm of teachers, were concerned about whether their children had adequate access to a good range of learning experiences and opportunities such as excursions and visits by experts.

Minister Bishop referred to the survey as "ambitious" and the report as "comprehensive and authoritative". "Its recommendations should be taken seriously," she said, and suggested that "we should look at incentives: rewarding teachers for working in challenging environments, and for their outcomes".

The report's principal recommendation is the formation of a National Rural School Education Strategy that would coordinate all government and non-government education jurisdictions - and develop collaborative research and support programs - to address these educational inequities. Referring to this as a "serious recommendation", Minister Bishop said it was one that she would "certainly take on board".

UNE's Professor John Pegg, Director of SiMERR and Leader of the National Survey team, acknowledged the vision of John Anderson, who played a leading role in the establishment of SiMERR with Commonwealth Government funding, and who (as Deputy Prime Minister) officially opened the Centre just two years ago.

"I believe the underachievement of rural school students, approximately one-third of our student population, is one of the most pressing issues in education in Australia today," Professor Pegg said. "This National Survey has been a vital first step in addressing that issue." Professor Pegg thanked all his colleagues - including Dr Terry Lyons for the "quality work, energy, conscientious approach, and good humour that he has brought to his role as the SiMERR National Survey Manager and as the editor of the report".

Professor Alan Pettigrew, Vice-Chancellor of UNE, welcomed and thanked the Minister and Mr Anderson, commended Professor Pegg and his team on the report, and pointed out that members of SiMERR at its State and Territory "hubs" throughout Australia were watching the launch via a video link.

The National Survey was conducted with funding of $250,000 from the Australian Government. The report launched today is contained in three separate volumes: the full report on (and recommendations from) the National Survey, an abridged National Survey report, and a report of findings from a series of "focus group" interviews with teachers, parents and students in 38 rural and remote schools across all States and Territories. These interviews, organised by the SiMERR "hubs", gave "hope of real and sustainable change", Professor Pegg said, through "glimpses of new, alternative ways of working and thinking in difficult circumstances".

The report can be found at:
http://simerr.une.edu.au/national_survey/index.html

THE PHOTOGRAPH displayed here shows (from left) Professor John Pegg, the Federal Minister for Education, Science and Training, Julie Bishop, the Federal Member for Gwydir, John Anderson, and Professor Alan Pettigrew at today's launch of the National Survey report.

Posted by Jim Scanlan at 03:33 PM

Scholarship helps researcher explore 'connections to place'

July 19, 2006

An Associate Lecturer and researcher at The University of New England has won a scholarship that will enable her to broaden her documentation of oral history – and her understanding of people’s connection with the land – in the small rural community where she grew up.

Lorina Barker (pictured here), from UNE’s School of Classics, History and Religion, grew up in Weilmoringle in far north-western NSW. Her postgraduate research includes a study of the extent to which people like herself, who have moved away from Weilmoringle, are able to maintain a feeling of connection with the land. Most of the participants in her project are Aboriginal members of the community, but she is hoping to involve non-Aboriginal people as well.

Ms Barker has won the inaugural Minoru Hokari Memorial Scholarship, which honours the work of a brilliant young scholar who died in 2004 after making outstanding contributions to cross-cultural understanding and the development of a respectful collaborative research strategy with Indigenous Australians. The scholarship was established by Dr Hokari’s family and colleagues in the Australian Centre for Indigenous History in the Research School of Social Sciences at the Australian National University. Ms Barker travelled to Canberra earlier this month for the presentation ceremony, meeting Dr Hokari’s father (from Japan), his sister (from the United States), and the Japanese Ambassador to Australia. “It was a very special and moving ceremony,” she said.

Ms Barker said she had great admiration for Dr Hokari’s work, and felt honoured and grateful to be the first recipient of the scholarship. She explained that she would use the scholarship money to extend by several weeks her planned field trip to north-western NSW at the end of the year, and to hire a four-wheel-drive vehicle to negotiate some of the outback roads she plans to travel. “I’ll be able to collect much more data than I had originally thought possible,” she said.

She will be visiting members of the Weilmoringle community who now live and work in Bourke, Brewarrina, Enngonia, Goodooga, and Lightning Ridge. “A lot of us moved away because of education,” she said. “There’s no high school in Weilmoringle, so many families moved to bigger places – such as Bourke – when their children reached high-school age.”

One focus of her interviews is the sense of “belonging to Weilmoringle” that many of its former inhabitants are able to retain. “I don’t have it myself,” she said. “I haven’t returned often enough to feel that I still belong there. But it’s a connection that I would like to regain. Many of the participants in my project have managed to maintain the connection by regular visits and by being involved in reunion events, and I’m hoping that my connection will be renewed through my work in recording the community’s oral history. I believe such a connection is very important to people, but won’t have a complete picture of how it works within their lives until I analyse my data.”

Posted by Jim Scanlan at 03:21 PM

UNE plans to make 'global regional impact'

July 18, 2006

The University of New England has begun planning for a strong future with the release of a discussion paper outlining how the University can make a “global regional impact”. The vision presented in the discussion paper will form the basis of the UNE Strategic Plan 2007-2010.

The paper proposes that under a new plan, UNE would focus its research, learning, knowledge and graduate career outcomes on the “big space” of Australian and global regions.

To open the planning process, UNE’s Vice-Chancellor, Professor Alan Pettigrew (pictured here), distributed an open letter to staff and stakeholders, along with a discussion paper titled “Global Regional Impact – research, learning, knowledge, careers”. “UNE is acutely conscious that Australian universities now operate within a regulated and highly competitive environment, and Australia is only part of a very tough global competition," Professor Pettigrew said. “Student and research marketplaces, as well as policy-makers, are looking to higher education institutions to develop differences built on their strengths.”

The discussion paper outlines a proposed vision and strong positioning for UNE. The vision emphasises three fronts of development. The first, “powerful performance”, would see UNE in 2010 as a “successful, exciting, uniquely-positioned, modern and engaged” university. The University should have a strong discipline platform at the forefront of creating and delivering smart and relevant research, education and knowledge services into Australian and international regional marketplaces.

On the second front, UNE would build on its strengths by delivering social and economic outcomes in focused areas such as regional and rural business, culture, education, heath and sciences. UNE would provide more career-ready graduates, and higher-degree researchers with local-regional-global perspectives.

On the third front, UNE’s discipline platform and focused areas would be prominent in offering a strong Australian and international portfolio of research, education, business and community activity – all reaching out strongly from Armidale.

Professor Pettigrew said: “This University is well along this integrated path. We know we have a range of regional strengths, built from UNE work in the New England North-West, and across Australia, and extending well into Asian regions. UNE will earn recognition by further focusing research and teaching, building synergies, and producing quality outputs and impactful outcomes.”

The framework for this positioning and the associated developmental change will be discussed through wide consultation over the next few months, leading to a UNE Strategic Plan 2007-2010 to be completed by the end of the year.

Posted by Jim Scanlan at 04:02 PM

Leading mathematicians renew strong links with UNE

July 17, 2006

An international mathematics conference at The University of New England this week is bringing several leading mathematicians back to the university that fostered their careers.

The conference is in honour of Professor Norman Dancer – now at the University of Sydney – who was a member of the Mathematics staff at UNE from 1973 until 1993 and Professor from 1987. Professor Dancer is a leader in the field of “nonlinear partial differential equations”, the subject of this week’s conference. He and about 40 other mathematicians from Europe, the United States, Asia and Australia are meeting at UNE to share and discuss their recent research results.

Among the participants are two mathematics professors from the Australian National University – Alan McIntosh and Neil Trudinger – who both gained their first degrees from UNE. All three of these distinguished professors are Fellows of the Australian Academy of Science, and Professor Trudinger is a Fellow of the Royal Society.

One of the UNE organisers of the conference, Associate Professor Yihong Du, said that UNE was a centre of research activity on nonlinear partial differential equations. “Nonlinear mathematical science is a vibrant area of modern international research,” Dr Du explained. “Work on nonlinear partial differential equations such as that conducted at UNE contributes not only to an important branch of pure mathematics but also to the mathematical foundations of applied sciences such as ecology, chemistry, and material science.” Dr Du and his UNE colleague Dr Shusen Yan (another organiser of the conference) both work closely with Professor Dancer in their research, and UNE has, over the years, been home to several other prominent researchers in the field.

Dr Du conducted his postdoctoral work at UNE under the direction of Professor Dancer, and they are now collaborating on a research project funded by the Australian Research Council. Dr Yan’s postdoctoral work was with Professor Dancer in Sydney.

Professor Dancer said it was a pleasure to be spending a week at UNE. “I always liked this place,” he continued, “and I’m glad I still have strong research ties with my colleagues here.”

Mathematicians from the United States, Switzerland, Germany, France, Italy, Poland, England, China, Japan, Hong Kong and Australia have travelled to Armidale for the conference, which runs from Monday to Friday this week. Funded by the Australian Mathematical Sciences Institute, UNE and the University of Sydney, it follows a conference on the same theme at UNE in 2003.

Dr Du explained that a conference such as this was the most efficient way of exchanging current research results. “It usually takes about two years for results to be published,” he said, “but we need to know what our colleagues are doing in the meantime. Very often, new research directions and new collaborations are formed at conferences.”

UNE regularly receives visits from internationally prominent mathematicians, and a conference as recently as January this year (on “several complex variables”) attracted specialists from Europe, Asia and New Zealand as well as from around Australia.

THE PHOTOGRAPH displayed here shows Professor Norman Dancer (second from right) with three of the conference organisers: (from left) Dr Shusen Yan (UNE), Dr Daniel Daners (University of Sydney), and Associate Professor Yihong Du (UNE).

Posted by Jim Scanlan at 03:33 PM

Prime Minister announces UNE Rural Medical School

July 13, 2006

“We are delighted by the Prime Minister’s announcement and look forward to establishing the UNE Rural Medical School”, was an initial reaction by UNE Vice-Chancellor, Professor Alan Pettigrew on hearing the good news last night.

The University of New England and The University of Newcastle welcomed the Prime Minister's announcement indicating the Australian Government's support for an additional 80 Commonwealth-supported medical places for the Universities to establish a joint medical program.

This commitment, to be discussed at the meeting of the Council of Australian Governments (COAG), involves the funding of 80 places for medical students, and $3 million in capital funding to establish the program. The Commonwealth's offer rests on outcomes to be agreed at the COAG meeting.

Earlier this year, the two universities and the Hunter New England Area Health Service proposed to the Australian Government that it provide up to 80 additional Commonwealth-supported medical student places each year from 2008 for a joint medical program, of which 60 will be enrolled at The University of New England and 20 at the University of Newcastle.

Professor Alan Pettigrew, Vice-Chancellor of The University of New England, said, "I am delighted that the Australian Government recognises the merit of our joint proposal, and the benefits of having rural-trained graduates.

"This is an exciting development for The University of New England," Professor Pettigrew continued. "It will help us move into a new phase of working to support regional Australia.

"This project represents a national vision combining the reputation and strengths of Australia's oldest regional University and the experience of a highly regarded urban-based medical school. The program will deliver up to 80 new medical practitioners into the workforce each year who have been trained - and are therefore more likely to stay - in a rural setting."

Professor Pettigrew recognised the support of the Australian Government Minister for Education, Science and Training, Julie Bishop, and Minister for Health and Ageing, Tony Abbott, for the proposal, and their "faith in the ability of our two Universities to deliver something really effective".

Professor Nicholas Saunders, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Newcastle, said the joint medical course was a first for Australia.

"Never before has a medical program been run across two universities. This innovative approach to ease Australia's chronic health workforce shortage provides medical students with rural opportunities with a high quality regional university, and urban opportunities with a high quality city university. We will provide medical students with the best of both worlds.

“The program will attract medical students to the area by capitalising on The University of New England's strong rural standing and expertise in delivering nursing, health, and science programs, and the University of Newcastle's highly respected medical course - one of the first in Australia to emphasise rural medicine." The Universities aim to include a significant cohort of Indigenous students in the program.

The Prime Minister's announcement also included provision at the University of Newcastle for 118 new health related places, six clinical psychology places and 60 mental health nursing places. The University of New England has also received provision for an additional 20 nursing, 12 clinical psychology, and 20 mental health nursing places.

Mr Howard's announcement follows a commitment last month by the NSW Government to support the project.

Photo Caption:
Acting Head of the UNE School of Nursing, Dr. Mary Cruickshank and UNE Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Alan Pettigrew inspect model patients in UNE's Clinical Nursing Laboratory.

Media contacts:
UNE Vice-Chancellor, Professor Alan Pettigrew, 02 67732144
UNE Executive Dean of The Faculty of Health Education and Professional Studies, Professor Victor Minichiello 02 67733862
Director, UNE Marketing and Public Affairs, Ms Ingrid Rothe 02 6773 3402

Posted by Jim Scanlan at 03:21 PM

Independent study confirms discovery of new human species

July 13, 2006

An independent study has corroborated the work of Professor Peter Brown, the University of New England scientist who analysed skeletal remains found on the Indonesian island of Flores and concluded that they represented a hitherto unknown human species.

Professor Brown (pictured here), UNE’s Professor Mike Morwood (the leader of the archaeological team that discovered the remains) and their Australian and Indonesian colleagues, in momentous publications in the international journal Nature in 2004, named the tiny human species Homo floresiensis (while the media quickly nicknamed it “the Hobbit”).

Professor Brown said today that the newly-published study by a team of scientists from the Australian National University and the University of Sydney had come as “a complete surprise – but a pleasant surprise”.

“The study – which uses a different approach to the analysis of our published data – is a good example of the process by which the scientific community verifies new findings,” he said. “There have been unsubstantiated suggestions that the remains could be those of a deformed – or very short – modern person. While such suggestions can be seen as part of that process of verification, the newly-published study is an important step towards the general acceptance of our conclusions.”

Professor Brown will tell the story of the discovery and its epoch-making implications in a public lecture in Brisbane this evening [Thursday 13 July]. Titled “Once upon a time .... The life and times of Homo floresiensis”, the lecture will be at the Queensland Museum (Lecture Theatre 2), Southbank, at 6.30 pm. It will be followed by a light supper and drinks, during which people will have a chance to talk to Professor Brown about his work.

The new paper, published in the most recent issue of the Journal of Human Evolution, is titled “Homo floresiensis: Microcephalic, pygmoid, Australopithecus, or Homo?” The researchers used a sophisticated technique called “multivariate analysis” to compare skull measurements of Homo floresiensis with those of diseased (microcephalic) modern humans, other modern humans including African pygmies and Andaman Islanders, a “pygmoid” excavated from another cave on Flores, and the extinct human relatives Australopithecus and Paranthropus. They concluded that, as the Homo floresiensis remains could not be identified with any known species, their original identification as representing a new human species was justified.

The paper supports the proposal of Professor Morwood and Professor Brown, published in Nature in 2004 and 2005, that Homo floresiensis, after emerging from Africa several million years ago, reached Indonesia and survived on Flores until 12,000 years ago. “It’s good that an Australian team has been the one to come up with this independent verification,” Professor Brown said. “There will be many more articles – by me and my colleagues, and by others – on this subject, but I’m sure the substance of the discovery will stand up.”

FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THIS EVENING'S LECTURE, contact Kerry De Jong (UNE Events Coordinator) on 0400 428 441.

Posted by Jim Scanlan at 11:41 AM

UNE student wins award at international conference

July 12, 2006

Naruanard Sarapaivanich, a postgraduate student from The University of New England, has won the prize for “best Australasian paper” at an international conference of more than 400 delegates in Melbourne.

Ms Sarapaivanich (“Jane” to her friends and teachers), comes from Thailand, and is in the final year of her PhD research in UNE's Faculty of Economics, Business and Law. She presented the prize-winning paper at the 51st International Council of Small Business World Conference last month. She and her UNE supervisor, Dr Bernice Kotey, are joint authors of the paper, titled “The effect of demand-side issues in accessing external funds on performance of small and medium enterprises in Thailand”. (Dr Kotey, a Senior Lecturer in UNE's New England Business School, is pictured here, at left, with Jane Sarapaivanich.)

The paper is based on the results of Jane’s research. Her work demonstrates that, in government policies on the external funding of small and medium enterprises, a greater emphasis on the preparedness of a business to receive funding would lead to a more competitive and efficient small business sector. “At the moment, such policies are focused more on issues of supply than of demand,” she said.

She has already sent a revised version of the paper to the international Journal of Enterprising Culture, and hopes that her findings will influence government policy in Thailand and other countries. “In fact, my research results apply to funding policies in developed as well as developing countries,” she said.

Dr Kotey added that a focus on supply issues had led to the protection of inefficient businesses. “This interferes with competitiveness,” she explained. “And the whole external funding process is more efficient if the recipients of funding are better prepared to receive and use it. Such preparedness, backed by high-quality information, enhances a company’s confidence in applying for funding.”

Jane pointed out that greater emphasis on the “demand side” would boost national economies by encouraging the survival of the most efficient companies. “Those will be the companies that want to get information to help them perform better,” she said. “Healthy small businesses contribute to economic growth.”

Posted by Jim Scanlan at 11:51 AM

UNE allocates funds to protect campus and community services

July 11, 2006

The Vice-Chancellor of The University of New England, Professor Alan Pettigrew, has announced that the University will provide more than $700,000 a year to ensure the continuation of services that not only contribute significantly to the life of the University, but extend out into the Armidale community.

Professor Pettigrew's announcement follows detailed discussions with the Board of Services UNE and the management of Sport UNE about their loss of revenue as a result of the introduction of voluntary student unionism (VSU) on July 1.

He said these discussions indicated that there would be a combined annual loss of $2.8 million in student fee income to both organisations. "This will necessitate considerable restructuring of their operations," he said, "and financial support from the University's operating budget, to enable them to continue to deliver a range of important services for students from 2007."

"The University will provide $300,000 per year to support Services UNE, comprising $230,000 cash and $70,000 in-kind support," Professor Pettigrew explained. "In addition, the University will take over the provision of several services previously provided by Services UNE. Sport UNE will receive $400,000 per year to support its range of sporting facilities and programs that are so essential to the student life at UNE and the Armidale community. The operating costs of both organisations will also be reduced by having some administrative functions provided by the University."

He indicated that a major part of the contribution to Services UNE would support the operations of the Booloominbah Collection restaurants and the radio station TUNE! FM. "The Booloominbah Collection is open to staff, students and the general community and is at the heart of the University," he said, "and TUNE! FM makes an important contribution to both the education and campus life of our students, and the University's contact with the wider community."

Professor Pettigrew explained that UNE management would continue to work closely with the Board of Services UNE to ensure that student services related to welfare and advocacy services were adequately maintained. He said that discussions between the University, Services UNE and student representatives during the second half of this year would reveal the extent to which the University needed to provide an extra amount of up to $50,000 a year to support these services.

"We will be working with both Services UNE and Sport UNE to find ways to increase their income from commercial activities," he said, "and, in the case of Sport UNE, government grants. Our aim will be to maintain and improve services while reducing dependency on the University's resources that are provided to support essential teaching, research, capital works and related operations. There is an important opportunity here for the Armidale and surrounding communities to show their support for their University and its students by participating in and supporting facilities and functions operated by Services UNE and Sport UNE."

THE PHOTOGRAPH displayed here shows Professor Alan Pettigrew (seated) in the TUNE! FM studio with (behind him) UNE's Chief Financial Officer, Mr Adrian Robinson, and Mr Ed Campbell, Station Manager of TUNE! FM.

Posted by Jim Scanlan at 10:20 AM

Full marks for teaching and learning at UNE

July 10, 2006

The University of New England has received the ultimate accolade in this year's Carrick Citations - an initiative of the Australian Government to promote and reward excellence in university teaching.

UNE has been awarded the maximum number of 10 Citations for 2006. UNE's Vice-Chancellor, Professor Alan Pettigrew, said today that he had been delighted to learn that all 10 of the University's submissions had been successful. "I'm pleased and proud of what our people have achieved on behalf of the University," he said.

Professor Pettigrew commended UNE's Pro Vice-Chancellor (Academic), Professor David Rich, and staff in UNE’s Teaching and Learning Centre, for their leadership and assistance in the University's innovative approach to enhancing student learning. (Professor Rich is pictured here with Robyn Muldoon, Academic Skills Coordinator, who is a member of two UNE teams that won Carrick Citations.)

The Carrick Citations for Outstanding Contributions to Student Learning are an element of the Australian Government's "Our Universities: Backing Australia's Future" initiative. They recognise and reward the diverse contributions that individuals and teams make to the quality of student learning, and are awarded to general as well as academic staff.

Professor Pettigrew explained that each university had been invited to make up to 10 submissions, and that UNE had thus achieved the best possible result. "Our University has a strong reputation for teaching and learning built up over many years," he said. "These Citations represent the Australian Government's recognition of UNE's outstanding achievements in distance education, online learning, on-campus teaching, and the linkage of research and teaching."

The Citations will be presented at an award ceremony in Sydney on Tuesday 8 August. The awards (210 in all) are each worth $10,000.

List of nominees and their citations.

Posted by Jim Scanlan at 09:29 AM

Peter Sculthorpe composes for climax of choral festival

July 07, 2006

About 90 people over the age of 60, from NSW, Queensland and Victoria, have come together in Newcastle this week to rehearse for a choral concert they will present tomorrow [Saturday 8 July].

The internationally renowned Australian composer Peter Sculthorpe (pictured here), the Patron of the event, will attend the public concert, for which he has composed a new choral work.

The inaugural Australian National Seniors’ Choral Festival is a joint project of The University of New England (UNE) and the University of Newcastle. Dr Terrence Hays from UNE, the Artistic Director of the festival, said it was a celebration of the passionate engagement of many older people with music.

“There are five intense days of workshops, which began last Tuesday,” Dr Hays said. “These will culminate in tomorrow afternoon’s concert. The music they’re singing is challenging for any choir, and includes anthems, traditional and modern spirituals, arrangements of well-known folk songs, and Vaughan Williams’ Five Mystical Songs.”

“The festival grew out of my realisation of the need for activities that would engage older people in music at a high level,” he explained, “and that would provide opportunities for those who have a passion for music to connect and share their enthusiasm.”

Dr Sculthorpe said he felt honoured to be Patron of the National Seniors’ Choral Festival. “I am 76 years old and still composing full-time,” he said, “just as people of my age and more still sing in choirs.”

The ages of participants in the festival range between 60 and 85. “What they’re achieving is phenomenal,” Dr Hays said today. “They’ve been working very hard – from 9 am to 4.30 pm every day. It’s been a fabulous experience for them to rehearse with Heather Buchanan, the festival’s Principal Conductor. Heather is Director of Choral Activities at Montclair State University, New Jersey, USA, and has worked with some of the great conductors in New York.”

The workshops have all been in the Newcastle Conservatorium Concert Hall, where the concert will take place at 2 pm tomorrow [Saturday]. The Vice-Chancellor of UNE, Professor Alan Pettigrew, and the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Newcastle, Professor Nicholas Saunders, will both attend the concert.

Media contact: Dr Terrence Hays on 0410 562 452.

Posted by Jim Scanlan at 02:38 PM

Debt-free UNE plans for bright future

July 06, 2006

The University of New England entered a new era of development yesterday, making the final payment on a $26 million loan taken out 10 years ago.

The Vice-Chancellor, Professor Alan Pettigrew, said that UNE's settlement of the loan - 10 years to the day after entering into it - meant that the University was now debt-free.

"It's a significant advance," Professor Pettigrew said. "The interest payment on the loan was $1.4 million a year; now we can redirect those funds in the pursuit of new strategic goals."

UNE's Chief Financial Officer, Mr Adrian Robinson, said he was "delighted to announce the settlement of the loan". He explained that the University had borrowed the money to finance several major building projects, including the construction of the Information Technology and Ecosystem Management Buildings and the Livestock Industries Institute.

"We can now align our finances more closely with our strategic planning," Professor Pettigrew said, pointing out that the University was just entering into the process of developing its Strategic Plan for 2007-2010. "With this new financial flexibility," he continued, "we can move ahead – building on our considerable strengths in teaching and research, and expanding our role in regional development."

THE PHOTOGRAPH displayed here shows Mr Adrian Robinson (left) and Professor Alan Pettigrew discussing (and celebrating) the settlement of the loan.

Posted by Jim Scanlan at 03:25 PM

Sunspot cycles a key to drought prediction

July 05, 2006

New discoveries linking rainfall patterns on Earth with the periodic twisting of the magnetic field within the Sun could provide a powerful tool in the prediction of drought.

Associate Professor Robert Baker from The University of New England outlined the results of his research yesterday at the Regional Congress of the International Geographical Union in Brisbane. He said his model could be used – in conjunction with other indicators such as the Southern Oscillation Index (SOI) – as a significant decision-making tool in agriculture and natural resource management. The paper he presented to the Congress was titled “Predicting drought in south-east Australia using solar cycles”.

Changing patterns of dark spots on the surface of the Sun are a visible indication of changes in the magnetic forces within. Dr Baker has correlated these sunspot patterns – which have been recorded since 1745 – with historical rainfall records in south-eastern Australia. The correlation shows that periods of high rainfall are associated with periods of increased sunspot activity.

The most well-known sunspot cycle is the 11-year cycle, which comprises alternating five-and-a-half-year periods of relatively high and low sunspot activity. Once every 11 years, too, there is a sudden reversal of the polarity of the Sun’s magnetic field, so that there is a complete magnetic cycle (the “Hale cycle” or “double sunspot cycle”) every 22 years. The 11-year sunspot cycle, however, is part of a more complex pattern that includes cycles of 500 and 1,500 years. (Some of the climatic effects of these longer cycles can be deduced from ice-core data and historical records.)

Dr Baker’s model, which incorporates all these factors, indicates that south-eastern Australia – much of it currently drought-affected – could be heading for a period of even lower rainfall. This is because of an imminent coincidence of several of the solar cycles. The sunspot minimum in the 11-year cycle due in August this year coincides with that phase of the Hale cycle in which the magnetic field lines emerge from the Sun’s south pole. Dr Baker said historical records showed that this coincidence was associated with reduced sunspot minima, and more severe droughts in eastern Australia. On top of this coincidence – and contributing to the potential for drought conditions – the Sun is entering a longer, 500-year period of reduced sunspot activity.

Dr Baker explained that the power of his predictive model lay in the fact that solar activity as a whole occurred in regular cycles. “In this respect,” he said, “the Sun is like a musical instrument – vibrating in a complex manner, but with all the components (like the ‘harmonics’ of music) related to a vast ‘fundamental’ vibration by simple numbers.” As he told the Congress: “This predictive potential of the sunspot cycle is available because much of solar behaviour is quasi-periodic, governed by the operation of the magnetic fields generated by a peculiar ‘dynamo’ in the Sun.”

A special feature of the Congress, which is continuing till Friday at Queensland University of Technology, is discussion on arid zones – particularly in Australia, New Zealand, South-east Asia, and the south-west Pacific.

PHOTO: NASA.

Media contact: Associate Professor Robert Baker, UNE, on (02) 6773 2884.

Posted by Jim Scanlan at 04:20 PM

Multi-talented performer to give Archibald Lecture

July 04, 2006

The multi-talented Aboriginal performer Noel Tovey will give the 2006 Frank Archibald Memorial Lecture at the Armidale Town Hall this week. The lecture, including supper, will begin at 7.30pm on Thursday 6 July.

Mr Tovey (pictured here) is an internationally renowned actor, director, choreographer and author, with more than 50 years’ experience as a professional in the visual and performing arts.

After starting out as a dancer and actor in Australia, he left for Europe in 1960 to work in London’s West End. He subsequently worked as a performer, director and choreographer in Europe, South Africa and Australia.

In his recently published memoir, Little Black Bastard: A Story of Survival, Mr Tovey wrote about his abusive upbringing and life as a street kid, his determination as a young performer that led to recognition in Europe, and his return to Australia in 1990 as a leading Indigenous theatre director and performer.

Mr Tovey founded and taught the performing arts course for the Eora Aboriginal College of Visual and Performing Arts in Redfern, and has been a member of many arts organisations, including the Australia Council for the Arts.

Some of the highlights of his career include directing all-Aboriginal casts in productions of The Aboriginal Protestors, which he staged in Sydney and Germany, and A Midsummer Night’s Dream, for the Festival of the Dreaming – part of Sydney’s Olympic Arts Festival. He was the recipient of the Queen Elizabeth Jubilee Award for writing and directing The Living Floor Project for Casula Powerhouse. He recently established the Noel Tovey Fellowship Fund, which, in association with the Flying Fruit Fly Circus, enables financially disadvantaged children to continue their education and be trained in all areas of performing skills. Since 2003 he has been performing in Australia his one-man play Little Black Bastard, based on his own life story.

Frank Archibald, a revered member of the Armidale community, was renowned for his interest in all issues affecting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people – particularly education. To honour his memory, The University of New England established the Frank Archibald Memorial Lecture, featuring Indigenous speakers who are leading professionals in fields such as education, law, social justice and government. Previous speakers include Aden Ridgeway, Pat O’Shane, and the late Charles Perkins, the first Aboriginal person to become a permanent head of a Federal Government department. The lecture, organised by the UNE's Oorala Centre, forms part of NAIDOC Week celebrations in Armidale.

For more information, phone (02) 6773 2768 or e-mail rsvp.archibald@une.edu.au.

Posted by Jim Scanlan at 02:31 PM

UNE proudly raises the Aboriginal Flag

July 03, 2006

This year’s NAIDOC Week flag-raising ceremony at The University of New England took place today not far from the site where construction of a new building to accommodate the University’s Oorala Centre is under way.

UNE’s Vice-Chancellor, Professor Alan Pettigrew, speaking to an audience of people from both the University and Armidale communities (including many members of the Aboriginal community), said the new building, funded by grants from the Australian Government and UNE, would help the University to “support Indigenous culture and Indigenous education, and the development of a united society”.

The Oorala Centre provides educational resources and advice – and academic support – to Aboriginal students, as well as being a link between the University and the Aboriginal community. In addition to the Oorala Centre, the new, multi-purpose building will include areas for use by the entire University community.

Professor Pettigrew pointed out that this year’s NAIDOC Week theme, “Respect the Past – Believe in the Future”, was particularly relevant for the University, which “is about everyone’s future”. He said that one of the “great traditions” of UNE was that of “contributing to society”, and he looked forward to the University’s continuing role – enhanced by the new building – in “bringing everyone together” and “moving forward as a united community”.

The representative of Armidale’s Aboriginal community who spoke at the ceremony, held on the lawns of Booloominbah, was Toni Widders, a Senior Education Officer in the Armidale office of the Australian Government Department of Education, Science and Training. Emphasising that “our future is in our own hands to shape”, Ms Widders said: “’Believing in the future’ is a statement of faith in our young people.”

NAIDOC events are being held around Australia this week to celebrate the achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Historically, NAIDOC Week is linked to the National Aboriginal Day Observance Committee, formed in 1957 to organise events around the country. From 1988 the committee became known as the “National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance Committee”, and it was from this name that the celebrations became known as “NAIDOC Week”.

THE PHOTOGRAPH displayed here shows Professor Alan Pettigrew with (at left) Diane Mumbler, Director of the Oorala Centre, and Toni Widders. They were photographed during a morning tea in the Booloominbah Collection that followed the flag-raising ceremony.

Posted by Jim Scanlan at 03:49 PM