ADF and CSU strengthen ties

 Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) long-standing association with the Australian Defence Force (ADF) has received a boost at a contract signing in Canberra on Tuesday 31 January. Under the new agreement, CSU will maintain and expand current training initiatives especially developed for the ADF. The University provides postgraduate training in a three stage program, with many officers then enrolling in CSU’s Master of Arts (Communication – Organisational Communication). “Through its strong training focus, ADF is always trying to do things better, and we can work with them to develop that, and to continue to grow our relationship,” said coordinator of CSU’s postgraduate program for Defence, Zoe Hibbert. “I found the CSU academic staff always supportive and was grateful that they readily recognised the demands placed on students who had to juggle employment and a high study load,” said ADF Strategic Communication Adviser and CSU graduate, John Anderson. “Another benefit to me as a student was that most of my lecturers had been previously employed in the corporate or public sectors, so they were able to demonstrate their professional and practical experiences within an academic context,” he added.

Psychology lecturer receives CSU teaching award

 A Charles Sturt University (CSU) lecturer with a passion for providing support and guidance to first year students studying via distance education has been named the winner of the Vice-Chancellor’s Teaching Excellence Award for 2005. Dr Mir Rabiul Islam, from the School of Social Sciences and Liberal Studies on the University's Bathurst Campus, is course coordinator of the largest undergraduate psychology course, Bachelor of Social Science – Psychology. Including Education/Psychology double degrees, he is coordinating courses for over 450 students. In his online teaching, he strives passionately to use “online strategies” that empower students to be self-sufficient and adaptive to the ever changing needs of life. Student evaluations of his teaching of research methods are extraordinarily high, no mean feat in the area of Advanced Research Methods and Statistics in Psychology unit, a course often regarded as difficult and complex. He considers learning from students as a unique opportunity to assess and re-assess his own professional integrity. Each year the University recognises and encourages excellence in teaching through the presentation of this award. The award will be presented to Dr Islam in May at the Faculty of Arts graduation ceremony.

CSU students head to China

Scholarships totalling $35 000 will see seven Charles Sturt University (CSU) students expand their academic and cultural horizons when they travel to China this month as part of their business degrees at CSU. Funded through the Federal Government’s Cheung Kong Scholarship program as well as the University’s Faculty of Commerce, the students from the Albury-Wodonga, Bathurst and Wagga Wagga campuses will leave Australia for China in two groups on Monday 20 February and Monday 27 February. The students will spend one semester studying either at the Yunnan University of Finance and Economics in Kunming, Tianjin University of Finance and Economics in Tianjin or the Yangzhou University in Yangzhou. They will study basic elements of the Mandarin language as well as learn an appreciation and understanding of Chinese society and culture.

Identifying educational supports in mental illness

New research is being conducted at Charles Sturt University (CSU) to identify what support schools offer a child who has a parent with a mental illness. The study by CSU education lecturer Dr Andrea Reupert comes after research conducted at the University in 2005 found about 20 per cent of all Australian children live in families in which one parent has a mental illness. “Given the amount of time young people spend in the classroom, I want to hear how Riverina teachers, school administrators, school counsellors, canteen staff or anyone connected to a school, might have supported these children in both the public and Catholic education systems,” said Dr Reupert. Families who want to be involved in the research can contact CSU’s Dr Andrea Reupert on telephone (02) 6933 4376 or send an email.

New equity scholarships for CSU students

CSU academic visits Democratic Republic of Congo

Extending her annual trip to work with traditional midwives in Kenya, Charles Sturt University (CSU) academic Dr Elaine Dietsch has returned from the war-ravaged Democratic Republic of Congo. In an attempt to raise awareness of the plight of Congolese women and girls, Dr Dietsch has brought back stories of strength, courage and mere survival. An estimated three million plus people have died during a five-year regional conflict centred on the resource rich African nation. “The women I met in the South Kivu province requested their stories of war, sexual assault, torture, illness and malnutrition be shared with Australians,” said Dr Dietsch, who is a senior midwifery and nursing lecturer at CSU’s School of Clinical Sciences in Wagga Wagga. She is willing to share this international humanitarian issue with adults in the Riverina community through interviews and speaking engagements with groups, clubs, churches, community and professional organisations.

 

Acting and design students up for regional theatre awards

Warm winter for US visitors

New Head of Bathurst Campus appointed

The Bathurst Campus of Charles Sturt University (CSU) has a new Head of Campus with the appointment of Associate Professor Greg Walker to the position from 1 January 2006. Professor Walker replaces Professor Bob Meyenn who retired from the University in 2005. With more than three decades at CSU and its predecessor organisation, Mitchell College of Advanced Education, Professor Walker is Head of the University’s School of Marketing and Management. He has had extensive teaching experience in areas of financial economics, financial markets, macroeconomics, international finance and banking. He has also been actively involved in regional economic research conducted through the Western Research Institute. “The Bathurst Campus has a proud history of delivering quality education programs for the region and beyond,” said Professor Walker. “It is an honour to represent the Bathurst Campus and I look forward to working with the University and local communities to ensure our tradition continues,” he added.

Christmas wish