Charles Sturt University (CSU) is rolling with NSW Bike Week from Monday 16 September, encouraging its staff and students to jump on their bikes for the health and environmental benefits. At CSU in Wagga Wagga, Mr Kris Whybro from local cycle store, Kidsons Cycles will present a Bike Workshop from 1 pm to 2 pm on Tuesday 17 September. The workshop near the University cafeteria, Eat@20, will cover how to select a bike, cycling safety and basic bike maintenance. On Wednesday 18 September from 8am, staff, students and community members are urged to join in a social ride from Premium Coffee Roasters in Trail Street, through North Wagga Wagga to CSU for a free breakfast from 8.30 am at Eat@20. Other NSW Bike Week events include a game of Bike Polo from noon to 1.30 pm at Eat@20 courtyard on Wednesday 18 September and a scavenger hunt from 3.45 pm to 5 pm on Friday 20 September. To register for any of the NSW Bike Week events at CSU, send an email to CSU Green. Bike and helmets are essential and CSU participants can win a bike and helmet valued at $600.

“One of the greatest challenges of modern neuroscience is understanding what happens to the brain as we age and why it becomes vulnerable to diseases such as Alzheimer’s,” said Charles Sturt University (CSU) researcher Dr Adam Hamlin. Dr Hamlin, from CSU’s School of Biomedical Sciences,  will talk about our Amazing Brain in a free public lecture in Griffith on Wednesday 15 August. Almost 280 000 Australians suffer from dementia and that figure is expected to rise as the population ages. Dr Hamlin will outline current breakthroughs in our understanding of the processes that occur in neurodegenerative diseases and what scientists are doing to find potential treatments for these conditions. A national Health and Medical Research Council Fellow, Dr Hamlin is carrying out research to discover more about brain cell death in people with Alzheimer’s disease.

The phrase ‘You deserve a medal’ will ring true for some long-serving staff members at Charles Sturt University (CSU) this week. CSU Vice-Chancellor and President, Professor Andrew Vann will present medals to six staff for 30 and 20 years of service to the University and its predecessor institutions. Among those receiving a medal is former Head of the University’s School of Education in Wagga Wagga and researcher with the Centre for Indigenous Studies and Research Institute for Professional Practice, Learning and Education, Associate Professor Ros Brennan-Kemmis, AM, for her 20 years of service. “In these 20 years Charles Sturt University has grown and matured as a regional and international university. It has been a wonderful place to work full of opportunities and wonderful colleagues and friends,” she said. “Every morning as I walked to my office from the car park I thought of the amazing privileges that the University provided and the opportunities for teaching and research that have enriched my life in so many ways.” Professor Vann will present the medals to the staff over lunch in the Chancellor's Room in the Convention Centre at CSU in Wagga Wagga from noon on Wednesday 11 September.

A program to advance Charles Sturt University (CSU) as a leader in higher education teaching and learning will be launched in Bathurst on Tuesday 17 September. CSU Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic), Professor Garry Marchant, said, “Given the ongoing growth of student numbers and evolution of the higher education sector due to theoretical and technological developments, the launch of ‘Smart Learning’ will enable a stronger professionalised teaching focus to improve student engagement and maintain high-quality teaching standards at the University. With the implementation of Smart Learning, Charles Sturt University will lead the way in higher education learning and teaching innovation.” Information about Smart Learning and the next steps in establishing this program will be presented at the launch at The Grange, CSU in Bathurst at 3pm on Tuesday 17 September.

The benefits of a ‘brain-healthy lifestyle’ will be discussed at a Dementia Awareness Day at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Wagga Wagga on Friday 20 September.  The public event is being held by CSU’s International Student Club to raise awareness of the disease and promote early detection. Club President and PhD student, Ms Saba Nabi said more than 320 000 Australians are living with dementia.  “We want to talk about the disease, where to get help and how looking after your brain, body and heart can help reduce the risk of developing dementia,” she said. “We have a responsibility to care for the elderly members of our community and it’s important to understand the issues affecting them.” The event is being held as part of National Dementia Awareness Week and will feature a panel discussion with researcher, Dr Adam Hamlin from CSU’s School of Biomedical Sciences, aged care advocate, Dr Maree Bernoth from the University’s School of Nursing, Midwifery and Indigenous Health and Ms Hannah Klapdor from Aged Care Services with the Murrumbidgee Local Health District. For more information contact Ms Nabi by email.

Charles Sturt University (CSU) reinforced its place as the leading agricultural university in Australia when 10 students from CSU won the University Teams Award in the second Australian University Crops competition recently held in Temora, NSW. Guided by Dr Sergio Moroni and PhD student Mr Jeff McCormick from the School of Agricultural and Wine Sciences in Wagga Wagga, competitors were tested on crop seed identification, business strategy, weed identification and soil analysis. Five CSU students were placed in the top 10 of 41 competitors from six universities. The top placed CSU student was Mr Andrew Gillet, who was second, while Mr Dwayne Schubert was fifth, Mr James Kanaley (sixth), Mr Victor Clifton (seventh), and Mr James Whitley (ninth).

A marital and family therapist from Canada, Dr Ann Evans will explore the tension between secularism and Christianity within families in a free public seminar at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Wagga Wagga. Hosted by Saint Martin’s College as part of its Occasional Seminar Series, Dr Evans will address the topic, No Creche for Christmas, Mom on Sunday 22 September from 4pm to 6pm in the Fairfax Centre, building 382, Park Place, near car park 19 off Valder Way, CSU in Wagga Wagga. College Head, The Rev. Jenny Willsher said, “This Seminar will interest anybody who has experienced the cultural divide between Christianity and secularism up close and personal; right in their own family.” A therapist in Vancouver, Dr Evans is also doing intensive work with couples in other parts of the world. She has taught pastoral counselling and dream interpretation at The Toronto School of Theology at the Victoria University. Toronto. Dr Evans began her professional life as a member of the clergy in The United Church of Canada.

The significant and historic role that the Wagga Wagga Teachers’ College played in the development of Charles Sturt University (CSU) will be honoured with a special naming ceremony in the city on Wednesday 22 September. A new student residential block at CSU will be named in honour of the College and the ongoing role played by the Wagga Wagga Teachers’ Alumni Association through the Charles Sturt Foundation. The student residence will be named ‘The WATAL’,  an acronym for Wagga Alumni Teachers’ Association Lodge, by the University’s Chancellor, Mr Lawrie Willett, AO, at a ceremony from 2.30pm at building 381, near car park 19,  CSU in Wagga Wagga. Ten representatives of the Wagga Wagga Teachers’ Alumni Association will be joined by members of the University’s governing body, the CSU Council. The Wagga Wagga Teachers’ College educated men and women from 1947 to 1972 when it was replaced by the Riverina College of Advanced Education.

Two teams of Charles Sturt University (CSU) Bachelor of Pharmacy students have demonstrated their business acumen to claim a place in the quarter finals of a prestigious national competition. Ms Thanh Le and Ms Marina Mikhail along with Mr Neil D’Souza, Ms Seray Goktekin and Ms Pooja Balgi are taking part in the National Student Business Plan Competition organised by the Pharmacy Guild of Australia to promote creative entrepreneurship amongst pharmacy students. This is the first time CSU has entered a team in the competition and Senior Lecturer in Pharmacy Practice with CSU’s School of Biomedical Sciences, Mr George John, said it was an opportunity for students to practice the pharmacy management and business skills taught in the classroom. “Students had to develop a sound business plan for buying a pharmacy and the model had to be innovative while addressing community needs,” he said. “I believe the competition will give them valuable experience for starting their own pharmacy business in the future.” CSU is one of 12 teams left in the competition and the quarter final round concludes on Friday 12 July.