The 2013 Vice-Chancellor’s Awards for Excellence will be presented to selected staff at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Bathurst at a presentation ceremony on Wednesday 14 August. Professor Andrew Vann, the Vice-Chancellor and President of CSU, will also present the 2013 Faculty and Divisional awards to staff. The awards acknowledge the commitment, dedication and ongoing excellence demonstrated by academic and general staff across CSU. Among the many awards and recipients at the campus in Bathurst are: – an individual V-C Award for Research Supervision Excellence to Professor Sharynne McLeod from RIPPLE; – an individual V-C Award for Teaching Excellence to Dr Izumi Hiramatsu from the School of Psychology; – a team V-C Award for Excellence in Innovation to the TAFE to CSU interact Site Project Team; – a team V-C Award for Performance Excellence to the Regional and Remote Learning Support Team. Some of the Faculty and Division awards go to the Workplace Learning Team in the Faculty of Business, and the Occupational Health and Safety Team within the Division of Human Resources. The awards presentation will be at the James Hardie Room at the Centre for Professional Development (building S17) from 1pm to 3.30pm Wednesday 14 August. Another ceremony, for staff on southern campuses, will be held at CSU in Wagga Wagga on Wednesday 28 August. A full list of award recipients is available upon request.

Acting and theatre design students at Charles Sturt University (CSU) will go on the road to local schools with The Crucible by celebrated American playwright Arthur Miller. The University Theatre Ensemble (UTE) will present The Crucible to local HSC students. It follows two recent public performances at the Drama Studio at CSU in Wagga Wagga. The production involves final year students in Acting for Screen and Stage and final year students in Design for Theatre and Television. The play is directed by lecturer in acting, Mr Thomas Papathanassiou from the School of Communication and Creative Industries at CSU in Wagga Wagga. UTE will perform at Tumut High School on Friday 9 August, Junee High on Wednesday 14 August, Wagga High on Thursday 15 August and Kildare Catholic College on Friday 16 August. The HSC students will be able to draw on the talents of the CSU students during question and answer sessions after the play. Miller’s play dramatises the Salem witch trials of the late 1600s. UTE’s production of The Crucible explores the ‘destruction of innocence and challenges our every notion of good and evil’.

School students will put their research skills to the test at the Graham Centre Science Investigation Awards at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Wagga Wagga on Wednesday 14 August. More than 50 Year 6 and Year 10 students from Ladysmith, Griffith and Wagga Wagga have designed and completed a science investigation or experiment and will present their project to a panel of judges. They will explain their hypothesis, the experiment used to test it and the findings of the research. The budding scientists will also participate in practical laboratory classes and meet with CSU and NSW Department of Primary Industries (DPI) researchers. Graham Centre Director, Professor Deirdre Lemerle, said the event aims to promote science education and encourage students to consider research careers. “Robust research is needed for Australian industries like agriculture to continue to be profitable and sustainable into the future,” she said. “Events like this will ensure that a new generation of scientists will be ready to meet this challenge.”

Charles Sturt University (CSU) is looking to expand its relations with the isolated Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan, particularly in research into environmental management. Director of the Council for Renewable Natural Resources Research in Bhutan, Dr Tashi Samdup, is visiting Albury and the University’s Institute for Land, Water and Society to discuss future collaboration with CSU staff. Dr Samdup will also discuss the progress of two Bhutanese PhD student researchers at CSU in Albury-Wodonga, Mr Kuenga Namgay and Mr Karma Tenzing. Senior ILWS researcher Dr Joanne Millar said Dr Samdup’s visit was important as it allowed discussions to further extend CSU’s research and teaching efforts in the mountain kingdom. “Although Bhutan is considered an environmental success story, the country still faces poverty and land degradation issues so our collaborative research will investigate the impact of environmental policies on local livelihoods,” Dr Millar said.

National Tree Day will be marked at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Wagga Wagga with the planting of Indigenous species near student accommodation on Sunday 18 August. Organised by CSU Green, the plantings will take place from 11am near numerous Residential Cottages off Valder Way. Volunteers are urged to wear sturdy shoes and to enjoy a free BBQ hosted by Residence Life. CSU Tree Planting 2013 aims to increase the biodiversity of the area. CSU Green Partnerships Coordinator Ms Nicola Smith said, “We aim during tree planting day to increase homes and food for wildlife, reduce topsoil loss and erosion, increase soil infiltration, influence microclimate, as well as increase amenity and aesthetics”. RSVP for catering by email here.

Charles Sturt University (CSU) will present a free seminar on human resource management, in Orange on 22 August, as part of a series of Small Business Management Foundation Seminars. CSU Graduate Certificate in Small Business Management course director Dr Lan Snell will chair the seminar and said the small business sector makes up over 90 per cent of workplaces in Australia. “Small businesses face a number of challenges regarding human resource practices,” she said. “These include understanding legislation on work and pay conditions, and how to recruit and retain staff. This session covers these issues as well as providing an understanding of how to access low cost dispute resolution services, how to handle unfair practices, and solutions to the onerous administration requirements related to running a small business.” Ms Yasmin King, NSW Commissioner for Small Business will be a guest speaker at the seminar which is presented in conjunction with the Orange Business Chamber, NSW Business Chamber, Orange City Council and Orange Ex Services Club. “The Seminars will be short, sharp, engaging sessions that address the challenges in small business management,” Dr Snell said. The topics include marketing, finance, and human resources.

Six Charles Sturt University (CSU) Bachelor of Computer Science students today, Tuesday 15 August received scholarships from the New South Wales Department of Lands (DOL) at a presentation in Bathurst. Associate Professor Sue Moffatt, Head of the School of Information Technology, says the students must do at least three subjects in spatial information, receive good grades and undertake one week’s work experience each year at the DOL. In return, the students receive $4 000 per semester for their three year course and a one year position at the Department upon the successful completion of their degree. Warrick Beacroft, Executive Manager DOL Bathurst, says the scholarships are a natural extension of a long relationship. ”When we first came to Bathurst we were the Central Mapping Authority and across the road was (the former) Mitchell College of Advanced Education. We have had a geographic and academic partnership for 30 years with many of our staff having obtained their qualifications from CSU.”

Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Orange is embracing NSW Bike Week this week, encouraging its staff and students to jump on their bikes for the health and environmental benefits. CSU staff will celebrate the week with a Ride to Campus event, starting at Bill’s Beans on McLachlan Street, Orange, on Wednesday 18 September. Staff will gather at the coffee shop from 8am for an 8.30am departure and a gentle, five kilometre ride to campus finishing at Banjo’s Bistro for a free breakfast. Other CSU campuses are also rolling into Bike Week, with events set for CSU in Wagga Wagga, Bathurst, Dubbo and Albury-Wodonga. Bikes and helmets are essential and there is a chance for CSU participants to win a bike and helmet valued at $600. To register for any of the NSW Bike Week events at CSU, email CSU Green here.

Charles Sturt University (CSU) allied health and nursing students have undertaken an exercise to work together in a team on a complex health scenario through a new collaboration between CSU and Hume Medicare Local in Albury-Wodonga. Yesterday evening (Monday 12 August), final year occupational therapy, physiotherapy, podiatry, speech pathology and nursing students on CSU campuses in Albury-Wodonga and Orange, worked to gain a better understanding of local health issues. Acting Course Director Dr Caroline Robinson with CSU’s School of Community Health said primary healthcare aims to prevent health problems such as obesity, rather than cure problems after they occur. “Students worked in multidisciplinary teams to collaborate with and learn from health professionals already working around Albury-Wodonga,” Dr Robinson said. “The exercise aimed to increase the employability of CSU graduates, by exposing them to ‘real life’ multidisciplinary practice that is becoming more common in regional Australia. It also introduces our students to the services provided by Hume Medicare Local and enables them to meet local health professionals who can tell students about possible career options in primary health care.”