Charles Sturt University (CSU) at Bathurst will host the first national Mensheds Australia conference on 16, 17 and 18 June. CSU is the major sponsor of the conference which has the theme ‘Sustaining your Menshed’. Dr Pat Bradbery, Director of the Professional Development Unit in the CSU Faculty of Business, said this is the first-ever national conference for Mensheds Australia participants, with about 70 indigenous and non-indigenous men attending from all over Australia. “The Mensheds movement is relatively new, has grown rapidly to about 300 individual Menshed groups/locations, and has a strong focus on educational development. The conference will include a half-day workshop to consider the CSU-TAFE education initiative developed for Mensheds, and CSU looks forward to building a relationship with Mensheds Australia into the future,” Dr Bradbery said. Conference participants will be welcomed to Bathurst by Mr Greg Westman, a Bathurst Regional Councillor, and to CSU by the Head of Campus, Mr Col Sharp.

Frost and fog greeted athletes on the first day of competition at the 2009 Eastern University Games that started at Charles Sturt University (CSU) at Bathurst on Monday 6 July. The cool weather remained but cleared for the successful completion of all rounds of competition. Teams manager for the CSU teams, Mr Nik Granger, said that the more than 1 500 participants from 15 universities were assured that while Bathurst weather isn’t always like this, it could be worse. “At least it’s not windy and snowing,” Mr Granger joked. “Last week, the Vice-Chancellor, Professor Ian Goulter, suggested that the weather could provide our CSU teams with a home-town advantage, but I suspect that all the competing students come from such a wide range of geographical backgrounds that whatever the weather, it will still be a level playing field. Our main wish is that all the participants enjoy a wonderful competition and return safely to their home campuses with fond memories of their time at Bathurst and CSU.”

When three days of intense competition concluded in Bathurst yesterday, Charles Sturt University (CSU) was named the Australian University Sport 2009 Eastern University Games Overall Champions, for highest overall points scored by all its teams. CSU also placed third in the points-per-capita category. The Vice-Chancellor and President of CSU, Professor Ian Goulter, congratulated the students and praised the organisers for the smooth management of the Games. “I am delighted that the Games have been staged here so successfully and thank everyone involved for a job well done,” Professor Goulter said. “I am particularly proud that Charles Sturt University won in the University’s 20th anniversary year, as well as winning gold medals in several individual sports. My thanks also go to Bathurst Regional Council and local businesses for their support for the Games.” CSU teams Manager, Mr Nik Granger, said “This is a great way to top off what has been a fantastic week of competition for our nearly 300 competing students who come from a number of CSU campuses. They have represented their University and participated in the right spirit, and should all be proud of their efforts. We would also like to thank the University for supporting this event, as it has been a great way to celebrate our 20th anniversary year by hosting – and winning - the games here in Bathurst.” The 2009 Australian University Games will be held on the Gold Coast from Monday 28 September.

The Vice-Chancellor and President of Charles Sturt University (CSU), Professor Ian Goulter, has announced the University’s new Head of Campus at Dubbo. Dr Beverley Moriarty, who is Associate Head of the School of Teacher Education at Dubbo, will take on the Head of Campus role for three years, effective from Wednesday 15 July. Professor Goulter welcomed Dr Moriarty’s appointment and looks forward to working closely with her to develop further the campus at Dubbo. Dr Moriarty said she was honoured to accept the new role. “These are exciting times for the higher education sector and I am delighted that I can contribute to realising the opportunities for Charles Sturt University as it moves ahead as the University of Inland Australia,” Dr Moriarty said. “I also want to acknowledge the contribution of my predecessor, Mr Gary Shipp who has taken on an important new role in the University as Special Adviser, Indigenous Affairs.”

The Charles Sturt University (CSU) School of Human Movement Studies is hosting a three-day symposium in the NSW Blue Mountains for national and international experts in exercise and exercise rehabilitation. Professor Frank Marino, Head of the CSU School of Human Movement Studies at Bathurst, said The Future of Fatigue in Exercise: An International Symposium on the Limits to Exercise Performance, which runs from Monday 20 to Wednesday 22 July, is the first symposium of its kind in Australia. “The symposium provides an opportunity for leaders in the field from around Australia and the world to come together to discuss a range of issues related to exercise, rehabilitation, health and wellbeing. We expect it will advance our research and the way in which we work together to solve problems that affect many of us, particularly athletes, at some stage in our lives.” Presentations at the symposium include Anticipating fatigue during exercise by Professor Marino and Cancer-fatigue in exercise by CSU’s Dr Jack Canon.

A visiting community critical psychologist with an international reputation will deliver a public lecture at Charles Sturt University (CSU) at Bathurst on Thursday 30 July that examines ‘Why the wretched of the earth kill’. Professor Mohamed Seedat, from the University of South Africa, is a guest of the CSU School of Social Sciences and Liberal Studies. His lecture will critically examine the viability of explanations for violence such as that in South Africa in May 2008 that primarily targeted foreign nationals and resulted in 69 deaths, thousand of displaced people, and untold psycho-social trauma. “Most prominent among these explanations is the idea that xenophobic violence arises from the interplay of various socio-economic issues - poverty, inequality, joblessness and poor delivery of municipal services,” Professor Seedat said. “In particular, I will examine explanations which have their roots in anti-colonial theory and scholarship focused on understanding the reality and the life-worlds of the colonized. I will argue that while such explanations offer a degree of systemic understanding, they do not explain sufficiently why the ‘wretched of the earth’ - the poor, downtrodden and oppressed - kill their own.”

It was smiles all-around when five Charles Sturt University (CSU) students and five local TAFE students received scholarships from the V8 Supercars organisation to assist with their studies. The scholarships, with a total value of $23 000, were presented at a ceremony at the Australian Fossil and Mineral Museum in Bathurst on Thursday 8 October in the lead-up to the annual ‘Great Race’ at Mount Panorama. Four students from the CSU School of Communication - Ms Kate Prince, Ms Melissa Gompes, Mr Thomas Lowrey, and Mr Joshua Manning - and one from the CSU School of Nursing, Ms Clare Pithers, received scholarships. They were congratulated by the Mayor of Bathurst, Councillor Paul Toole, Chief Operations Officer with V8 Supercars, Mr Shane Howard, CSU Head of Campus at Bathurst, Mr Col Sharp, and by Associate Professor Rod McCulloch, Head of the CSU School of Communication at Bathurst. Journalism student Ms Melissa Gompes received The Peter Brock Memorial Scholarship in association with V8 Supercars and Bathurst Regional Council. Ms Gompes gave the vote of thanks on behalf of all students, stressing how much the financial assistance was appreciated. During proceedings it was noted that several of the TAFE students who received scholarships intend to study at CSU in 2010.

Researchers at Charles Sturt University (CSU) are seeking participants aged 50 years or more for a study of the long-term side-effects of hormonal therapy on musculoskeletal structure and function in prostate cancer patients. Dr Jack Cannon, lecturer and researcher at the CSU School of Human Movement Studies at Bathurst, says, “Men who have received hormonal therapy for the treatment of prostate cancer are at significant long-term risk of osteoporosis, frailty, falling, and reduced functional ability. The results of this study of muscle strength, body composition, and bone mineral density will help to determine the long-term side-effects of hormonal therapy on musculoskeletal structure and function in such patients. This will assist in the development of interventions aimed to minimise long-term musculoskeletal risks and reduce secondary health conditions in these individuals. Testing will require only a single visit to our laboratory for about an hour, and anyone from the wider Central West region who has been treated for prostate cancer is invited to participate,” Dr Cannon said.

The Dean of the Faculty of Science at Charles Sturt University (CSU), Professor Nick Klomp, a notable science media personality, will present entertaining public talks about science at the University’s various campuses during August. Members of the community, government and industry representatives, and future students are invited to attend to learn about initiatives currently planned or being implemented in various science disciplines at CSU, such as: the opening of dental clinics on five CSU campuses; a recently completed, environmentally sustainable building that has already won building awards and been awarded six green stars as a world class example of building sustainability; new courses and international opportunities for CSU students; the new $44 million state-of-the-art ‘science precinct’; and current science research at CSU that will ultimately contribute to results which significantly improve industries, communities and the environment. Presentations, which will be open to the public, will be held between 4pm and 5pm, followed by refreshments.