Fresh into his new job, the new Vice-Chancellor and President of Charles Sturt University (CSU) Professor Andrew Vann is clocking up the kilometres as he familiarises himself with the institution and its staff. During informal visits hosted by the Heads of Campus, Professor Vann will meet staff at CSU in Albury-Wodonga, Bathurst, Dubbo, Orange and Wagga Wagga in coming weeks. Professor Vann joined the University this month from James Cook University in Townsville, where he was Senior Deputy Vice-Chancellor. He will meet with CSU staff in Dubbo this Friday 27 January, Bathurst on Thursday 2 February, Wagga Wagga on Monday 6 February, and Orange on Friday 24 February. Read more about Professor Vann on CSU News here.

The CSU Media team wishes you a safe and Merry Christmas. We look forward to working with you in the New Year.

A young veterinarian who is soon to graduate from Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Wagga Wagga has found her niche in a practice in rural Victoria. Originally from a mixed farm near Geelong, Dr Stephanie Bullen will be awarded a Bachelor of Veterinary Biology/Bachelor of Veterinary Science with Honours Class 1 at a ceremony on Wednesday 14 December. Since taking her professional oath in August, Dr Bullen has been working as an Associate Veterinarian at Maffra Sale Veterinary Centres in Gippsland. “I love working with dairy cows and spending my days out on the road driving through some of Australia’s most picturesque countryside,” she said. “I’ve become not just a member of my practice but the community as a whole, which is very rewarding.”  The ceremony is the culmination of six years of study for the 37 students who will graduate from the veterinary science program at CSU in Wagga Wagga next week.  

More than 1 360 school leavers who successfully applied for courses at Charles Sturt University (CSU) through the Principal’s Report Entry Program (PREP) will be acknowledged during morning tea ceremonies in Albury-Wodonga, Bathurst, Dubbo and Orange this Friday 9 December. Coordinator of the University’s early entry PREP scheme, Mr Matthew Evans, said the scheme has grown in size and prestige in recent years. “We received almost 2 000 applications for the PREP scheme this year and the standard of the applications continues to increase, meaning we can offer the best students early entry into degrees. The successful applicants can then start preparing for their university education. PREP is an early entry scheme designed to attract academically talented students from high schools and TAFE in non-metropolitan areas in NSW, ACT and Victoria.” This is the first year CSU has formally celebrated the PREP offers with a morning tea ceremony.  

The enigmatic and much maligned mistletoes are native parasitic plants that are the focus of a new exhibition in Albury, starting this Saturday 10 December. “The mistletoes’ bizarre ways of life, variation in form and interactions with animals have inspired artists and scientists alike,” said CSU ecologist and mistletoe researcher Associate Professor David Watson. A recent book written by Professor Watson provides insights into mistletoe's secrets. A botanical artist visiting CSU, Ms Robyn Hulley, has produced watercolour pictures showcasing the mistletoes’ variation in form, their striking flowers, and resemblance to their host plants. The exhibition includes a selection of plates of Ms Hulley’s illustrations, and textile costumes by artist Ms Rebecca Mayo. Ms Mayo has used the mistletoes to explore ideas about women, families and values from a past era. The exhibition, Mistletoe Menace, will continue until Sunday, 12 February 2012 in the Albury LibraryMuseum, Kiewa Street in Albury.

Bunkers, runways, guns and shells all signify violent events in the Pacific during World War II. An expert on managing war relics from this period, Charles Sturt University (CSU) academic Associate Professor Dirk Spennemann has used his photographic talents to show such relics during an exhibition at Melbourne’s Shrine of Remembrance. The exhibition, to be opened this Saturday 3 December, shows relics in various locations, from Australia to the cold Aleutian Islands in the northern Pacific and tropical Saipan in the western Pacific Ocean. “The Japanese invasion after the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, and the Allied responses which ended when the US dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in Japan in August 1945, have shaped the physical and psychological landscape of the region. Many sites and memorials in the Pacific are evocative reminders of a violent period, which are shown in my personal interpretation through the distorted lens of art photography,” Professor Spennemann said. The exhibition, Pacific Reminders, commemorates the sacrifices on all sides of the conflict, including the military and the civilians unwillingly caught up in the events. The exhibition closes on Sunday 15 January 2012.

The full range of the visual arts at Charles Sturt University (CSU) will be on display as almost 50 local high school students spend four days at CSU in Wagga Wagga next week. Following its postponement in 2010 due to the floods, the Visual Arts Camp at CSU will be held from Monday 5 to Thursday 8 December with 49 teenagers from Years 8 to 11 staying in University student accommodation during the week. Supported by CSU’s School of Communication and Creative Industries and NSW Department of Education and Communities, the camp has attracted teenagers from schools in Albury, Colleambally, Corowa, Deniliquin, Finley, Tumut, Temora, Oaklands and Urana. The camp’s activities include workshops by CSU academics and visual arts practitioners on jewellery, television production, drawing, painting, photography, costume design and animation. There will be an excursion to the Wagga Wagga Art Gallery and also a HSC information session for the senior students. An exhibition of the artwork developed during the camp will be held from 12.30pm on Thursday 8 December. Acting Head of the School of Communication and Creative Students at CSU, Associate Professor Frank Molloy said, “This camp has been almost two years in the planning and is a wonderful opportunity for regional school students to experience the visual arts and life at university.”

More than 540 school leavers who successfully applied for courses at Charles Sturt University in Wagga Wagga through the Principal’s Report Entry Program (PREP) will be acknowledged during a morning tea ceremony on Wednesday 7 December. Coordinator of the early entry PREP scheme, Mr Matthew Evans said the scheme has grown in size and prestige in recent years with Charles Sturt University offering more than 1 360 students a place through PREP in 2011. “We received almost 2 000 applications for the PREP scheme this year and the standard of the applications continues to increase, meaning we can offer degree entry to the best students early and the successful applicants can start preparing for their university education. PREP is an early entry scheme designed to attract academically talented students from high schools and TAFE in non metropolitan areas in NSW, ACT and Victoria.” This is the first year CSU has formally celebrated the PREP offers with a morning tea ceremony.

Sustainability in all its forms – personal, professional, environmental and financial – is the focus of this year’s Building Bridges regional conference to be held at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Albury-Wodonga on Thursday 17 and Friday 18 November. One keynote speaker, Ms Tracey Young from Melbourne, believes early childhood education can play an important role in promoting environmental sustainability in the community. Ms Young has a background in early education and care and a lifelong interest in environmental and animal welfare. Head of CSU’s Murray School of Education, Associate Professor Louise Hard said the annual conference aims to strengthen partnerships between early childhood education professionals from both sides of the NSW –Victorian border. She said organising the event was a joint effort between CSU, Wodonga TAFE, Albury and Wodonga City Councils and Gateway Community Health. Around 100 participants are due to attend from cities, towns and organisations on both sides of the border.