Science at Charles Sturt University (CSU) and its innovations in teaching and research will be on show to the Border community on Thursday 22 March in a presentation by and the Dean of CSU’s Faculty of Science, Professor Nick Klomp, who is also a renowned science broadcaster. “The Faculty of Science is one of the largest and most diverse science faculties in Australasia, with around 9 000 students and hundreds of staff in seven schools across six campuses. We teach and conduct research in a variety of science and health disciplines from veterinary science to dentistry, nursing to environmental studies, forensic biotechnology to wine science, agriculture to allied health. I will also speak about CSU’s bid for a medical school,” Professor Klomp said. Teachers, students, industry representatives, and the general public will receive information about courses leading to science careers, current and future research collaborations, and professional training in the University’s multi-million dollar research and training facilities and clinics, some of which are located in Albury-Wodonga.

The academic successes of current environmental and health students from Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) Faculty of Science will be celebrated on Thursday 22 March at CSU in Albury-Wodonga. The Dean of Science, Professor Nick Klomp, will present awards and prizes for academic excellence, including the prestigious DA Johnstone Perpetual Award for the top environmental sciences student. “Stopping to recognise and celebrate academic excellence is an important part of the University’s commitment in the pursuit of excellence,” said Professor Klomp. Current and graduating undergraduate and postgraduate students will receive prizes from local and international companies and organisations as well as Dean’s awards from 2pm in the Gum’s Café at Thurgoona.

Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Orange will celebrate its cultural diversity on Wednesday 21 March which is national Harmony Day. “The past 10 years has seen an encouraging change in dynamics and cultures on the campus,” said Head of Campus, Dr Heather Robinson. “I think this comes with the increased diversity in courses offered on the campus. The undergraduate student body is a wonderful mixture of young people of all cultural backgrounds and we continue to host postgraduate students from Asia, Africa and Europe. It makes for a rich and diverse campus experience.” With the theme for Harmony Day 2012 Sport - play, engage, inspire, CSU will host a game of frisbee and a barbecue from midday at the CSU sports oval, with all staff, students and visitors welcome to attend.

Charles Sturt University (CSU) has been named as the first Australian host of an international lecture at the National Library in Canberra to promote the importance of information in the high technology age. Professor of Information Studies at CSU, Lisa Given, said, “This is the first time that the American Society for Information Science and Technology (ASIS&T) has awarded this lecture series to an institution outside North America.” Canadian academic, Emeritus Professor Gloria Leckie, from the University of Western Ontario, will deliver the ASIS&T lecture from 5pm on Wednesday 21 March. Her free public lecture at the National Library of Australia, From Facebook to Twitter and Into the Cloud: Where is Library and Information Science in our Googleized World?, will explore the meaning of libraries and information centres in today’s technological world. Read more on CSU News here.

“Young people need no magic shields, swords and arrows to cope with the world of work,” according to Associate Professor Erica Smith, a specialist in vocation education and training from Charles Sturt University (CSU). Professor Smith says it is dangerous and futile to constantly make changes to the school curriculum in attempts to prepare young people better for the workplace. Her paper, The Land of Narnia or just the back of the wardrobe? What research tells us about the real world of work for young people will challenge many assumptions made about the nature of entry into work life for young people. Drawing from her national research, Professor Smith says the majority of young people have a realistic view of the labour market, hold sufficient skills to succeed and are able to move to full-time work seamlessly over a period of several years with no major difficulties. “The world of work, rather than being a strange land, difficult to enter, where battles are fought and special guides are needed, is a familiar and navigable place to young people,” she said. 

The centre of Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Albury-Wodonga will be abuzz on Wednesday 21 March when the CSU community celebrates national Harmony Day. Commencing at 12 noon, international students and staff will have stalls, displays and demonstrations highlighting the cultures, unique skills and food that they bring to Australia. Food stalls will ring the main circle near the Gums Café, while a martial arts display by students from South Korea will be staged in the same area. The event is part of Harmony Day celebrations across Australia on 21 March. Members of the Albury-Wodonga and CSU coummunities are welcome to attend the event.

Charles Sturt University (CSU) bestowed an honorary doctorate on a professor of policing from China when he visited CSU in Manly on Tuesday 20 March. Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic) at CSU, Professor Ross Chambers, said Professor Shiquan Wang, the President of China Criminal Police University (CCPU) in Liaoning Province, was a highly notable and worthy recipient of the CSU honorary Doctor of Letters (honoris causa) because of his contribution to international police education. “Charles Sturt University recognises and wishes to acknowledge that Professor Wang is a leading forensic science teacher and researcher in his field,” Professor Chambers said. “He has made an outstanding contribution to international collaboration in policing and police education, and in particular, to collaboration with this University. Through Professor Wang’s leadership, our two universities have developed a close collaboration that currently sees five CCPU staff based at Charles Sturt University undertaking full-time PhDs. CCPU undergraduate students are able to spend 12 months in Australia so that they complete a CSU Bachelor of Policing as well as their CCPU degree. So far, there have been three intakes of students, and our two universities have collaborated in seminars and conferences, most recently in Indonesia. These developments reflect Professor Wang’s strong personal commitment to international linkages and collaboration, and his vision of the importance of internationalisation in education, and for policing.”

“The main purpose of his visit was to establish a research culture amongst the paramedic staff and he has done that brilliantly,” Associate Professor Peter O’Meara from Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) School of Public Health said of Visiting Professor Malcolm Woollard. “He managed to get a project up and funded and complete the research in seven weeks. One miracle he achieved was approval of the project in just two working days.” Professor Woollard returned the compliment. “I have been very impressed by the professionalism and can-do attitude of the team here. (Head of School) Lyn Angel in particular made it possible for us to speed through the approvals process but still make sure that the project was of an appropriate standard.” The visit was part-funded by the Australian College of Ambulance Professionals (ACAP). Chair of ACAP, Ian Johns, said “we feel like we have hit a home run. Malcolm cuts through the fog of that high level stuff. Now we can see a nice clear snapshot of how it can be.”

An agreement between Charles Sturt University (CSU) and the Canberra Institute of Technology (CIT) to provide study options for business studies students will be marked in a ceremony in Wagga Wagga this week. A new Memorandum of Understanding will be signed by CSU’s Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic), Professor Ross Chambers, and CIT Chief Executive Officer, Mr Adrian Marron, on Wednesday 21 March to continue the cooperation between the two education providers. CIT is a TAFE partner of CSU for the Pathway Program into business studies. CIT students complete an Advanced Diploma, and then complete CSU subjects (delivered on CIT’s Reid campus in Canberra) in their final year of study. After three years of study, students graduate with an Advanced Diploma from CIT and a degree in business studies from CSU. Professor Chambers said, “This new agreement will strengthen pathways for students between the Canberra Institute of Technology and Charles Sturt University, as well as the development of further academic cooperation.” Read more here.