New uni planned for southwest

UNIVERSITY may no longer be out reach for Maranoa residents with plans for a Country Universities Centre to be established in Roma.

At the last Maranoa council meeting, the Economic Development Queensland office approached the council with the proposition of collaborating with them in the establishment of a Country Universities Centre.

Mayor Tyson Golder said it was a “no-brainer” for securing a brighter future for the region.

“We want a university here,” he said.

“The vote was unanimous, the benefits for the region would be astronomical.

“Being remote is a disadvantage when it comes to education and the more we can balance it the more opportunities we can provide residents to study.”

The concept has existed in New South Wales for five years with several regional centres having success, including Cooma, Grafton and Broken Hill.

After receiving the presentation, the council voted to request a report in order to consider formalising an investigation into the concept as part of its operational plan for 201920.

The campus will be in partnership with universities throughout Australia, not just one institution.

Economic development councillor Cameron O’Neil said the council was excited about the concept of a country university centre.

“Council has been working for a number of years more in the vocational training space, looking at how we make the Maranoa an education hub and this was one of the key initiatives that came out the Toowoomba Surat Basin Enterprise study tour to America and Canada back in 2013,” he said.

Cr O’Neil said it would allow for students to study closer to home, and would prevent a brain drain by removing the tyranny of distance.

The pre-feasibility study will be presented to the council before Christmas.