Proud legacy: CUC continues 'search for knowledge'

By MADELINE BLACKSTOCK An expanded Country Universities Centre is opening the way for Forbes students to pursue further study closer to home. The "search for knowledge" continues at 7-9 Court Street - the building once known as the home of the Parkes Champion Post, sister publication to The Forbes Advocate. Centre director Jacob Cass acknowledged the local newspaper's legacy and that the search for knowledge had taken place for many decades, and would hopefully continue for many more. "Now here with the Country Universities Centre we get to do that across 15 disciplines and we have 86 students this semester who are all seeking knowledge, and that's something truly special," Mr Cass said. The new CUC location welcomed students on 22 April after five years at the Parkes Library and Cultural Centre, a space the facility ultimately grew out of. The new facility is already serving as a hub for students from across the region, including a growing cohort from Forbes. Since the CUC opened in Parkes, more than 33 Forbes based students have accessed its resources. This semester alone, 11 Forbes students travel to Parkes to to access the study centre. To officially open the new centre on 18 June, CUC students and Mr Cass joined Federal Member for Parkes Jamie Chaffey, State Member for Orange Phil Donato, Parkes Shire Mayor Neil Westcott, Forbes Shire Mayor Phyllis Miller and CUC Parkes board members, including chair Tracie Robertson. Mr Donato acknowledged the opening of the first CUC Centre at the library and said it was great to see the centre grow, prosper and develop into what it is today. "Facilities like this embedded in our towns provide pathways for young and mature aged students to upskill and contribute back to the community," Mr Donato said. Cr Westcott knows the centre's value to both Parkes and Forbes, and looked back on his own academic journey and how a Country Universities Centre would have been valuable to him advancing his studies. "I finished my HSC in 1977 and all my peers and friends but one left town, and there was a sadness in that for me who stayed behind to run the farm," he said. "I've taken on different opportunities but it's not lost on me that if an opportunity like this (CUC) was available to me in 1977, how different life would be. "What you have done Jacob and in conjunction with the board and the great group that is the CUC around the state, it's important work and is something that is so important for young people." Tracie Robertson, chair of the CUC Parkes board, has been instrumental in bringing this project to life alongside Mr Cass. Ms Robertson began her own tertiary journey in 2012 when asked by Parkes Shire Council's then economic development manager if she would be interested in studying a masters in business administration. Despite fears of not being "smart enough," she persevered and completed two masters degrees over nine years. She was supported and with a group of other mature aged business people. "I can honestly say I would have never finished it if I wasn't with that group of supportive people," Ms Robertson said. "Recognition has to go to our Council for long ago recognising that this was necessary, and that was over a decade ago. "I am forever grateful for that and I hope that our students in Parkes, Forbes and Condobolin, no matter how old they are will take this opportunity to use the facility." Ms Robertson's own experience now drives her passion for the facility. CUC Parkes brings opportunity and hope into the region which is something Federal Member for Parkes Jamie Chaffey emphasised the importance of. "For regional communities we have the young people the rest of the country needs but we don't necessarily want to see them go, so having the opportunity like this where they can stay, do their studies and remain in our communities is fantastic," Mr Chaffey said.

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