In line with a vision for Healthy Inland Communities, the Centre for Inland Health (CIH) at Charles Sturt University (CSU) will work with Narrandera Shire Council in the Riverina to combat overweight and obesity in the local community. Narrandera is one 12 local government areas in Australia to pilot the delivery of the Healthy Communities Initiative which aims to reduce the prevalence of overweight and obese Australians. It is part of the four-year Council of Australian Governments (COAG) National Partnership Agreement on Preventive Health. “Through the Healthy Communities Initiative, the Centre for Inland Health will evaluate the number of people who engage in accredited physical activity and dietary education programs offered by Narrandera Shire Council,” Associate Professor Ann Bonner from CIH said. “The initiative will be rolled out and assessed over the next 15 months with particular attend paid to local residents not in the paid workforce or at a high risk of developing chronic disease such as heart disease and diabetes.”  

Increasing international experience and reinvigorating teaching and research has seen three new staff join the Faculty of Business at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Albury-Wodonga in recent weeks. Drs Catherine Prentice, Calvin Wang and Sajjad Khan have taken up their teaching appointments. Dr Prentice, who recently completed her doctorate in Melbourne and also has qualifications from China and the United Kingdom, said she was looking forward to offering more personal contact with students than what she was used to in the city. “After spending most of my professional life in cities, Albury offers a beautiful setting to continue my teaching and research. I heard good things about Charles Sturt University, the Faculty is very professional and welcoming, and there is ambitious and charismatic leadership,” Dr Prentice said. Dr Wang has studied regional businesses in Western Australia. “I am interested in how entrepreneurship and small business ownership contribute to economic well-being and sustainability in regional areas. At Charles Sturt University, I teach the next generation of regional entrepreneurs and hope to study dynamic entrepreneurs running their own successful regional businesses.” Classes for CSU’s second session start on Monday 12 July.

The next group of international students will commence their studies at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Albury-Wodonga next week to sample Australian study and life. Twelve students from South Korea, Bangladesh and the USA are acquainting themselves with the University’s Thurgoona site as well as services available to them at CSU and around the local area. They will study business, education and environmental sciences subjects on campus, many through exchange agreements between CSU and overseas institutions. Head of CSU in Albury-Wodonga, Professor Allan Curtis, said the new students reflected the University’s commitment to providing an international experience for all students. “Overseas students enhance the on-campus experience of other students and provide links to overseas professional networks. Some of the new international students are part of ongoing exchange programs with overseas universities, others have opted for Charles Sturt University as a high quality provider of professional training in a safe environment,” Professor Curtis said.

After 29 years as an academic, administrator and acting dean and campus director, Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) current Head of School of Accounting, Associate Professor Ross Wilson, will enjoy his last day at CSU in Orange on Friday 6 August. “Ross has contributed so much, not only to Charles Sturt University in Orange but to the entire organisation,” said Associate Professor Grant O’Neill, Head of the School of Business at CSU. “In so many roles over a distinguished career, Ross has shown enormous commitment and care for students, staff and the community. He has contributed so much and he will be greatly missed by all at Charles Sturt University.” Mrs Zelma Bone, lecturer in the School of Business said, “Ross will always be remembered for his integrity and compassion. In Orange, we owe him a debt of gratitude for the work he did to build this campus into what it is today.”  Professor Wilson will be farewelled by colleagues at a dinner on Friday 16 July.

The NSW Farmers’ Association will discuss regional issues at a conference at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Dubbo on Friday 16 July. More than 60 people are likely to attend the conference titled Rebuilding the Regions. In the lead up to the NSW election next year, the forum will address issues important to regional NSW including the economy, social policy, transport and infrastructure, environment, water and planning. Association President Mr Charles Armstrong, NSW Opposition Leader Mr Barry O’Farrell and NSW National Party Leader Mr Andrew Stoner will be among the speakers at the meeting. For more information on the event, contact NSW Farmers’ Ms Alicia Harrison on mobile 0427 437 103.

A community partnership that marries social services and the environment will come to fruition next Wednesday 7 July between Charles Sturt University (CSU) and the Albury-based Kalparrin community organisation that provides post school programs and respite services to people with a  disability. The agreement to be signed on Wednesday will see Kalparrin move to the University’s Thurgoona site to build a sustainable ‘farm park’ to include a hydrotherapy pool, interactive bird aviary and amphitheatre, which will also be available to the wider community. Head of CSU in Albury-Wodonga Professor Allan Curtis said CSU students, particularly those studying occupational therapy and physiotherapy, will work with and gain valuable insight into the needs and lives of individuals living with a disability. “Kalparrin was attracted to the sustainability focus of Charles Sturt University’s Thurgoona site, and we are keen to encourage involvement by community groups on the campus,” Professor Curtis said. Kalparrin provides opportunities for people with a disability to participate in recreation, leisure, skill development and respite activities.

Hundreds of Higher School Certificate (HSC) students will gather at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Wagga Wagga this Friday 18 June to share their thoughts and take on board new ideas about English literature. Organised by the local branch of the English Teachers’ Association and staff in the School of Humanities and Social Sciences at CSU in Wagga Wagga, the HSC English Study Day will be held from 9.30am until 2.30pm. “Catering to the needs of both Standard and Advanced English students, we hope about 800 students from as far away as Batlow, Cootamundra, Culcairn, Temora, Junee, Tumut and Young will attend,” Mr David Gilbey, Senior Lecturer with the School of Humanities and Social Sciences said. More than 200 students are due to attend a lecture by Mount Austin High School’s Ms Lydia Davic on Educating Rita while Mr Gilbey will give a lecturer on the poetry of Peter Skrzynecki. CSU graduate and Kooringal High School teacher Ms Shelley Little will present sessions on Banjo Paterson, Rainbow’s End, and The Castle. The annual HSC English Study Day will be held in the Wal Fife, Lecture Unit 1 and Swan theatres (buildings 14, 11 and 12) near car park 3, Keajura Walk, CSU in Wagga Wagga.  

The fundraising efforts of Charles Sturt University (CSU) students have paid off for the NSW Volunteer Rescue Association (VRA). Each year during Orientation at CSU, the students select a charity or community organisation for which they raise money during the week’s activities. During Orientation 2010 the new students and Orientation student leaders raised a total of $4 613.50 for the VRA. “The collection of over $4 500 by the students during the busy Orientation period is a wonderful effort and demonstrates the contributions they make to their local communities,” said Mr Chris Roche, Student Support Officer in the Division of Student Services at CSU in Wagga Wagga. The top fundraisers were the students in Wagga Wagga who collected $2 169.75 for the local VRA, followed by Bathurst with $1 526.40, Albury-Wodonga with $579.05, Dubbo with $195.70 and Orange raised $142.60.

The value of a National Curriculum will be explored in a public arena in the first Edversations Professional Forum to be hosted by Charles Sturt University (CSU) and Wagga Wagga City Council in 2010. In March, the Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA) released for public comment a draft National Curriculum for students from Kindergarten to Year 10 in English, maths, science and history. “This public forum is a great opportunity for members of the local community to draw on a diverse range of expertise on the National Curriculum and how it could shape the future of education in Australia,” said Head of the School of Education at CSU in Wagga Wagga, Associate Professor Roslin Brennan Kemmis. Read earlier National Curriculum comments from Professor Brennan Kemmis here.