In May, Cairns’ Smithfield State High School was presented with the Secondary Student iAward for a school project, ATODS (Alcohol, Tobacco and Other Drug Services), which was designed for Queensland Health.

The driving force behind the project was Year 12 student Trang Phan.  Trang was the major developer, designer, programmer, animator and editor of the project.

Trang’s story is a particularly interesting one.  She was born in Vietnam and, in her own words, spent her early years in “a school where computers were alien objects, not only to students but also to all of the teachers.”

Trang migrated to Australia in 2004 and shortly after became interested in computing.  Since that time, Trang has won a number of awards, including five at the Far North Queensland Digital Expo.  Trang gained a scholarship to complete a Certificate IV in Multimedia at Smithfield State High School. 

As her enthusiasm for ICT increases, she’s broadened her skills.  “I’ve used my holidays to learn programs that I wasn’t taught at school and programs that I don’t know much about,” she says.

Trang is passionate about multimedia, but is also interested in programming and computer-aided design.  Unfortunately, because she is not an Australian citizen, she is not eligible to receive Austudy, which makes studying ICT at university an expensive exercise.

AIIA is calling on any interested companies with a passion for nurturing young ICT talent to consider sponsoring Trang on her ICT journey.

For more information on how your company can help, contact AIIA’s Projects Manager, Ineke Kennedy, on (02) 6281 9439 or email i.kennedy@aiia.com.au

As a result of the iAwards win, Trang and Smithfield State High School have been invited to represent Australia’s ICT industry at the Asia Pacific ICT Awards (APICTAs) in Singapore from 26-29 November.

Trang is just starting her ICT career, but she believes that she has “the ability, patience and passion to be in the ICT industry” and would love to be a 3D animator or a game developer in the future.

You can find out more about Trang from her website.

Cesare Tizi, former chief information officer at Australia's largest energy supplier, AGL Energy, has been awarded the title of ZDNet Australia CIO of the Year.

Tizi fought off competition from a shortlist which included Paul Williams from Campbell Arnott's, Michael Harte from the Commonwealth Bank and Stephen Tame from Jetstar.

If you’ve ever wondered how you can combine what you love with what you’re good at and turn it into a career, wonder no more!

Enrolments for ACS Computer Professional Education Program (November intake) close on 31 October.

Waugh Partners is hosting a "Meet the Open Source Industry" breakfast event in every capital city around Australia, where you'll hear about the value of Open Source, meet the local industry vendors in each city, and hear about the Open Source Industry and Community Census - the biggest ever research project into the dynamics and metrics of the industry and community behind Open Source in Australia.

The event is a breakfast event with time for networking afterwards. Please click through to RSVP to the event in your city.

The Australian Computer Society is hosting the 2007 Federal Election Panel Discussion on Friday 5 Oct at the Westin Sydney. 

This breakfast event is entitled Australia - The Next Wave or Just A Backwater?, featuring Senator the Hon Helen Coonan, Minister for Communications, Information Technology and the Arts and Senator Stephen Conroy, Shadow Minster for Communications & Information Technology.  More information and registration online.

The Minister for Immigration and Citizenship is writing to all employers who employ subclass 457 visa holders in Australia.

The letter advises sponsors of some important changes to the program and draws attention to the responsibilities of business sponsors. Minister Andrews advises that it is of fundamental importance that all 457 visa holders are aware of their rights and responsibilities. The Department has developed a 'Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) – Information for subclass 457 visa holders’ for this purpose.