TEACHING students from Orange and across the state are signing on for a state government program that will see their HECs debts cleared if they head to the bush upon graduation.
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In an attempt to attract the best teachers to rural NSW and whittle down the 200 teaching vacancies, Education Minister Rob Stokes announced free university degrees for 60 people a year if they accept a posting at one of 150 eligible public schools in the bush.
Orange’s Meaghan Kempson is studying teaching at Charles Sturt University in Bathurst and already has plans to head west after she graduates next year.
The 21-year-old is studying to be a PE teacher, and is already guaranteed permanent work through a Teach NSW scholarship, which requires her to be placed west of the Riverina for a minimum three years.
She said the incentives could be a good way to lure more people to the bush, especially those without a natural affinity for the regions.
“There are obstacles for a lot of people in the cities or on the coast,” Ms Kempson said.
“Geographical isolation is a big one, and the social isolation and lack of facilities and resources.
“It could be a shock to not have a Westfield or ANZ Stadium just down the road.”
Ms Kempson said the lure of having her student loan wiped was not the program’s only drawcard, with the prospect of guaranteed employment a major tick.
“I think the biggest thing is being guaranteed permanent work if you go to certain places,” she said.
“For PE teachers that’s a big one because there aren’t a lot of places.”
The free degree is one of 16 new changes in government’s $140 million rural and remote rewards package, with teachers also now able to earn up to $30,000 a year more on top of their base salary at eligible schools, as well as getting a $10,000 sign-on bonus, a $5,000 retention benefit annually for up to 10 years.
More than a third of the eligible schools are in the Barwon electorate in the state’s west, with another 43 in Murray and 22 in the Northern Tablelands.
The rest are spread across Orange, Cootamundra, Albury, Lismore, Tamworth, Dubbo, and Monaro.
Rural education voices agreed the plan could work but were cautious to back it, saying money did not guarantee quality applicants who understood rural life.
