The Premier of New South Wales, the Hon. Bob Carr MP, recently launched the 2004 Premier’s Teacher Scholarships, which this year will include four Xstrata Coal Rural and Remote Scholarships.

"Our future rests with today's youth and initiatives such as the Premier’s Teacher Scholarships and AusIMM’s Education Endowment Fund provide an excellent opportunity to unlock this potential,” said Peter Coates, chief executive Xstrata Coal.

“The Premier has established a wonderful initiative whereby companies such as Xstrata Coal have the opportunity to assist teachers undertake research in their chosen field for the ultimate benefit of our youth. The merit of this initiative inspired us to commit to four Xstrata Coal Rural and Remote Education scholarships valued at $15,000 each, representing an annual commitment of $60,000. At the outset, we have committed to providing these annual scholarships for a three-year period.

Coates said Xstrata elected to support rural and remote education as a means of championing education in those NSW communities in which the company operates, including the Hunter Valley and the Central West. Two of the scholarships will be made specifically available to teachers from these areas, with another scholarship for teachers from isolated schools. The fourth scholarship is open to educators from distance education providers, such as the NSW Centre for Learning Innovation and Distance Education Centres (DECs), who are responsible for developing innovative teaching resources for distance education.

“This year we have also elected to support AusIMM’s Education Endowment Fund, which has a charter to promote the mining industry to students and encourage them to make their way as professionals in our industry upon their graduation. We hope that the establishment of the Xstrata Coal Education Endowment Fund Scholarship, made possible by our donation of $200,000 to the Fund, will assist more young people to join our industry.”

The AusIMM Education Endowment Fund was established in 1989 with donations from across its broad membership. The interest from this fund is used to provide valuable scholarships, awards and support for students in minerals industry courses. Funds are also provided to assist the Australian Student Mineral Venture (ASMV) program, which gives Australian senior secondary students a two-week practical introductory experience of the minerals industry each year.