A Charles Sturt University (CSU) academic who provided expert evidence at a murder trial of 25 defendants in South Africa in 1989, will attend a local screening on Thursday 13 September of A Common Purpose, the award-winning feature-length documentary about the trial. Associate Professor Graham Tyson, lecturer and researcher at the CSU School of Psychology in Bathurst, was one of the defence team’s expert witnesses in the trial in which 25 people were found guilty of the murder of one person. “In South Africa at that time, if a person was found guilty of murder, they automatically faced the death penalty, unless extenuation could be proved,” Professor Tyson said. “These 25 people faced the death sentence. I had given evidence in a number of such trials on the psychological factors that could influence people in crowds and which could reduce their ability to foresee the consequences of their behaviour. That evidence had been accepted as grounds for extenuation in an earlier trial, and therefore I was asked to testify in this case. Organising the defence case was a huge undertaking, and the film shows what a remarkable job defence lawyer Ms Andrea Durbach did. It is a very moving film and, when I saw it, it raised a lot of old emotions in me.”

It’s Spring and the annual SPRUNG Festival of creative performances will be staged by third-year theatre/media students at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Bathurst. A special preview was held at the University’s Truskett Learning Commons on Monday 17 September. The full season commences on Friday 21 September and runs until Sunday 30 at various venues at CSU in Bathurst. The Festival’s Mr Cameron Moor, said, “The SPRUNG Festival program is a showcase for final-year students completing the Bachelor of Communication (Theatre/Media) at the CSU School of Communication and Creative Industries in Bathurst. It presents 30 performances in 12 shows over nine nights at three venues. These creative works are for adults and young people, and cover a range of genres include film, performance, theatre and music. The festival aims to engage and entertain the University and Bathurst communities by demonstrating a range of innovative performances. There’s something for everyone, so come along.” More information on ticketing and venues can be found here.

The annual presentation of awards for sports and social groups at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Bathurst will be held at the Blues Ball at the CSU Rafters Bar on Tuesday 2 October. Student support officer Ms Jean Ryan, said, “It has been a very successful year for our sporting teams as well as many individual athletes. This year our social, cultural and faculty-based clubs will also be recognised. The guest speaker will be former Olympic swimmer Mr Michael Klim, and the Blues Ball will be attended by the Vice-Chancellor and President of CSU Professor Andrew Vann, the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Administration), Professor Ken Dillon, and the Head of Campus in Bathurst, Mr Col Sharp.”

The Faculty of Business at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Bathurst is hosting a five-week visit by six scholars from its partner institutions in Kunming, Tianjin, and Changchun in China. Faculty of Business spokesperson, Professor John Hicks, said the scholars are in Australia as part of an Australian Leadership Awards Fellowship Program funded by AusAID for a research project titled ‘Achieving balanced growth in domestic and external markets in China’. “The project aims to promote joint research between Charles Sturt University and its partner institutions in China on issues related to regional business and economics,” Professor Hicks said. “The scholars arrived in early September and are spending the first four weeks in Bathurst where they are involved in joint research using input-output modelling and other related techniques to derive policy outcomes. Several joint research papers are being prepared which will add to the series of publications generated by previous AusAID Fellowships in 2010 and 2011.” The current research findings were presented at a Faculty of Business in-house seminar on Thursday 20 September in Bathurst. The Chinese scholars will visit CSU in Wagga Wagga and Albury-Wodonga in the first week of October to make similar presentations.

Charles Sturt University (CSU) has today opened an electronic condolence book for anyone who wishes to express their thoughts to Mrs Jenny Macintosh and family, on the passing of Mr Ian Macintosh, AM, a former Mayor of Bathurst and Pro Chancellor of CSU, who died on Monday 24 September, aged 79. The University Secretary, Mr Mark Burdack, said, “The condolence book is open until Friday 19 October. Anyone from the general community or the University who wants to extend a condolence can email their comments to condolences@csu.edu.au. Charles Sturt University will then collate the condolences into a bound booklet for presentation to Mr Macintosh’s widow and her family.” A memorial service will be held by the Macintosh family from 11am on Saturday 29 September in the Student Dining Hall (Mason Building, C5) at CSU in Bathurst. Read more about Mr Macintosh on CSU News here.

Public relations students from Charles Sturt University (CSU) are collaborating with event organisers to deliver bigger and better car racing, wine and food festivals in Bathurst. Mr Donald Alexander, senior lecturer in public relations (PR) at the CSU School of Communication and Creative Industries in Bathurst, said both students and the festival organisers win from these collaborations. “The Bachelor of Communication (Public Relations) students gain practical experience by working on large projects such as last weekend’s V8 Supercars Race at Mount Panorama, this week’s Bathurst Region Eats & Drinks (BRE&D) Week from 8 to 14 October and the related National Cool Climate Wine Show,” Mr Alexander said. “At least six PR students worked in the corporate office and media centre for the V8 Supercars Race to provide assistance and enhance their understanding of managing a major event and media liaison. With the new BRE&D Week and the National Cool Climate Wine Show, the students get to plan and manage an event, and develop media stories and pitch them to a range of media. They also create innovative concepts, such as this year organising for local ABC Radio to attend the wine show judging to interview associated people and cross ‘live’ to the studio.”

Awards for excellence in research, teaching, leadership, innovation and sustainability are just some of the honours to be presented to Charles Sturt University (CSU) staff by Vice-Chancellor and President Professor Andrew Vann during the coming week. The 2012 Vice-Chancellor’s Awards will be handed out at two ceremonies in Wagga Wagga on Wednesday 15 August and in Bathurst on Monday 20 August. The Vice-Chancellor’s Award for Research Excellence will be presented to Dr Jade Forwood from the School of Biomedical Sciences in Wagga Wagga. Dr Stephen Bird from the School of Human Movement Studies in Bathurst will receive the Vice-Chancellor’s Award for Professor Excellence. The Vice-Chancellor’s Award for Teaching Excellence will be presented to Dr Geoff Burrows from the School of Agricultural and Wine Sciences in Wagga Wagga. The presentation ceremonies will be held from 1pm to 3.30pm on Wednesday 15 August, Convention Centre, CSU in Wagga Wagga and from 1pm to 3.30pm on Monday 20 August, James Hardie Room, Centre for Professional Development, CSU in Bathurst.

The Charles Sturt University (CSU) Faculty of Business will present a $1 000 prize to All Saints College, Bathurst, on Tuesday 16 October, as the central west region winners of the Game On business studies simulation competition for senior students. Associate Professor Mark Frost, Head of the Charles Sturt University (CSU) School of Management and Marketing will present the cheque to the school’s winning team, ‘BeeJay Elite Motors’, which consisted of three Year 11 students - Doug Morgan Thomas, Brad Brown, and Jack Ison. “The CSU business simulation is designed to assist HSC students undertake their business-related studies by providing a competitive and real life scenario that reflects what many of today's businesses encounter,” Professor Frost said. “Students had to make decisions on the range of issues that impacted their business performance and against other businesses in the simulation. The activities were designed to be ‘real life’ as much as possible as this enhances the student learning experience, which is a key part of the CSU business teaching strategy.”

An expert in the study of paranormal events from Charles Sturt University (CSU) believes the only scary thing about Halloween is the risk of tooth decay from all the sweets that children have an excuse to guzzle on the day. Dr Krissy Wilson, Head of CSU’s Science of Anomalistic Phenomena research unit, said the celebration of Halloween most likely started as a pagan tradition that coincided with the new harvest. “It later became a Christian celebration of All Hallows or All Saints Day. Modern times have seen it evolve into ‘Halloween’ – which came literally from ‘hallowed’ or ‘holy’ – that typically involves trick or treating, dressing up in silly outfits and watching horror movies!”