Several CQUniversity staff and students will be acknowledged for outstanding engagement within their local community, at the third annual ‘Excellence in Engagement' Opal Awards.  

The awards aim to recognise CQUniversity staff and students who build positive relationships that support the development of sustainable communities in the categories of learning and teaching, research, service and service learning.

From a large number of nominations, the finalist projects include:

• 10,000 Steps (Dr Mitch Duncan, Dr Corneel Vandelotte, Anetta Van Itallie, Kelly Corry, Cindy Hooker, Stephanie Hall and Luke Fallon)
• Domestic and Family Violence Database (Heather Nancarrow, Anne Webster and Clinton Rawsthorne)
• Growing Community Resilience in Theodore (Wendy Madsen and Cathy O'Mullan)
• Earth Day (Jessie Phelan and Gai Sypher)
• Sleep Education in the Community (Dr Sarah Blunden)
• From Time and Travel to Lunch and Learn - Creating Online CPD Training for Building Surveyors (Darryl O'Brien)

This year the Opal Awards were also extended to students who were actively engaged in the community through projects undertaken as part of their university studies.

Nursing students Patricia Callow and Sherrie Lee were awarded with a nomination in the category of Service Learning for their projects Clinical Handover at the Bedside and the CQUniversity Nepal Nursing and Midwifery Experience.

Winners will be announced at the CQUniversity Staff Awards in Rockhampton this Friday, November 16.