Around 20 Riverina high school students will take time out from their holidays to experience the joy of science at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Wagga Wagga. The Science Experience, a three-day event from Wednesday 13 to Friday 15 January, is run annually by the Science Schools Foundation, hosted by CSU and sponsored by Rotary. Students entering Year 10 in 2010 will participate in science activities including practical workshops. Topics include Oral Health, the Science Behind Putting Food on the Table, Chemistry Everyday, Psychology of Everyday Life, Speaking with Animals, and Careers In Science. The Dean of the Faculty of Science at CSU, Professor Nick Klomp, will welcome the students from 9.15am in the Wal Fife Theatre at CSU in Wagga Wagga on Wednesday 13 January.

One is a veteran of the triathlon and another is a novice but both men will spend the next few weeks in final training for the Wagga Wagga 'Come and Try Triathlon’ to be held at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Wagga Wagga on Sunday 31 January. Dr Bruno Holzapfel, a researcher with the National Wine and Grape Industry Centre (NWGIC) at CSU, runs 10 kilometres and swims one kilometre each week “just to keep fit”. He is looking forward to his first ever triathlon at the end of the month and believes the event is a “great idea to encourage all types of people to take up sport”. Research technician at the NWGIC and member of the Wagga Cycle Club, Mr Mark Wilson, believes the CSU course is suited to all comers, including those undertaking their first triathlon. “Charles Sturt University will be a great venue for the short course - fast and technical,” said Mr Wilson, who trains four times a week and is a regular in the Tour de Riverina and Tour of Two Rivers bicycle road races.

Students at Charles Sturt University (CSU) have voted a lecturer at the School of Biomedical Sciences in Bathurst as CSU 2009 Lecturer of the Year. Ms Veronica Madigan won the accolade in a nation-wide poll open to all academics and students at the 38 universities in Australia. Dr John Harper, the Sub-Dean, Learning and Teaching, in the CSU Faculty of Science, said, “It is wonderful that students have gone out of their way to vote Veronica as their top lecturer at CSU for 2009. She continues to make a lasting, positive impression on her students and is an inspiration to us all.” Ms Madigan said, “As a person who is passionate about my teaching, there are only two things that really matter to me: the success of my students, and their appreciation of what I try to do for them. For them to say ‘thank you’ in this way is just the greatest thrill for me.”

At the invitation of the Vice-Chancellor and President of Charles Sturt University (CSU), Professor Ian Goulter, the Federal Member for Macquarie, The Hon. Mr Bob Debus, MP, will inspect progress in the construction of the new Dental and Oral Health Clinic at the CSU campus in Bathurst at 10am on Friday 22 January. Mr Debus and Professor Goulter will be accompanied by the Head of Campus, Mr Col Sharp, Dr Sabrina Manickam, senior lecturer and the External Relations Coordinator at the School of Dentistry and Oral Health, and representatives of Joss Constructions, the contractor undertaking the project. “I’m excited by progress with the CSU Dental and Oral Health Clinic in Bathurst because, when it is opened to the public later in 2010, we’ll contribute to improving patients’ access to dental services in the region, as we will for other communities in regional Australia,” Professor Goulter said.

Starting school can be exciting and, perhaps, a little scary – and that’s just for parents. Two senior education researchers at Charles Sturt University (CSU) have developed guidelines to help parents, teachers and children as they start school. “Starting school is an important milestone in the lives of children and families. If children have a successful start to school, they are likely to stay connected to school and regard it as a positive place to be,” says Professor Bob Perry from CSU. Drawing on over 15 years of research, Professor Perry and Professor Sue Dockett, who research and teach at the University’s Murray School of Education, have led the way for parents and teachers on how to help all involved feel competent and confident when children start school.

Academics from Charles Sturt University (CSU) will take part in the Orange Relay For Life taking place on Saturday 13 March. Team captain and CSU lecturer in the School of Biomedical Science, Dr James Wickham, says he was impressed by the speed in which staff members put their hand up to take part. “Charles Sturt University has been involved in Relay For Life in the past and everyone who walks always enjoys themselves,” he said. “It’s a fantastic cause and a great way to celebrate with those who have battled cancer and survived.” With 14 staff members in the team, CSU will be recognisable on the track with caps and ties. “We thought we’d have an ‘academic’ theme,” Dr Wickham said. Relay For Life is an overnight, community event where teams participate in a relay-style walk or run to raise funds for the Cancer Council. The event brings the whole community together for a night of fun, entertainment, celebration and remembrance. “The University team hopes to raise more than $2 000 for the cause,” Dr Wickham said.

Energy and water saving initiatives at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Wagga Wagga have attracted further NSW Government support under its Climate Change Fund. The $75 000 grant through the Fund’s Public Facilities Program will enable CSU to continue to install devices such as timers, energy efficient lighting upgrades, flow control technology for showers, sinks and basins in at least 10 University buildings including student residences, offices and Joyes Hall. Some funds will be used by the University to produce a video showing how the savings are being made. “Charles Sturt University has already invested $300 000 in 2008 to install energy and water saving devices into a number of buildings on Wagga Wagga Campus by the company, Ecosave,” said Energy Manager at CSU Mr Ed Maher. “The latest funding will allow us to further this work and reduce carbon pollution by an estimated 250 tonnes and save over 7.8 million litres of water each year.” The work by Ecosave to install the new devices is due to be completed by March.

Award-wining artist and Charles Sturt University (CSU) PhD student Mr Rohan Nicol will reveal his latest works during an exhibition at CSU in Wagga Wagga. The display, titled Crafting Designs on Wealth, will be officially opened by the General Manager of Craft Australia, Ms Catrina Vignando at 5.30pm this Thursday 4 February in the HR Gallop Gallery, CSU in Wagga Wagga. Mr Nicol, who is studying through the School of Communication and Creative Industries, is due to visit Milan, Italy in April to attend the Salone del Mobile furniture fair. The trip follows his win last year in the Bombay Sapphire Design Discovery Award, Australia’s richest design prize. The exhibition at CSU in Wagga Wagga showcases Mr Nicol’s drawing, models, prototypes and commercial products prepared as part of his PhD studies at the University, in which he is investigating a financially sustainable method of craft and design in the studio.

While managers put much energy into improving business performance by investing in innovation, increasing product and service quality or through expansion, little effort is given to improving the culture which is the backbone of every organisation’s operation. A Swiss graduate from Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) Doctor of Business Administration program says carefully managing organisational culture can positively influence the company’s bottom line. Dr Patric Maerki is the first graduate to complete his studies through a partnership with CSU and the University of Applied Science in Bern, Switzerland. He devised a way to help manage the aspects of corporate culture influencing business performance. “My research into companies in five different industries showed that corporate culture values such as freedom, risk taking, open and shared communication, and respecting employees can be used to enhance operational performance in innovation, organisational alignment and customer orientation, and to increase profits,” said Dr Maerki. CSU’s distance education program attracted Dr Maerki as he could balance his business commitments with the demands of completing a doctorate while receiving support from a Swiss supervisor.