Home > The University > News & Events > ACU National Update >  Issue 13 - Thursday 10 July

Issue 13 - Thursday 10 July

ACU National Update is produced fortnightly for staff, students and friends of Australian Catholic University (ACU National). To submit a news article or event, please email editor@acu.edu.au or call 07 3623 7491

Partnerships and survey featured in latest acunique magazine

A host of ACU National's local and international partnerships in health, education, human services and more, across all campuses, are celebrated in the University's latest stakeholder magazine, acunique 9, the Power of Partnerships.

In addition, readers are invited to give feedback about acunique and other publications. To encourage people to respond, University Relations is donating $2 to Street Swags for every survey completed by 31 July 2008. Street Swags were invented by Brisbane graduate Jean Madden to assist people who are homeless.

Visit http://inet.acu.edu.au/acunique/ to view online versions of the magazine. The questionnaire can also be accessed via the same site.

Staff and students to contribute during World Youth Day

Staff and students from all ACU National campuses have been involved for several months in preparations for World Youth Day, recruiting volunteers, registering pilgrims, planning for youth festival events, and offering accommodation and support for visitors.

Both the North Sydney (MacKillop) and Strathfield (Mount Saint Mary) campuses will assist pilgrims with accommodation and meals. In addition, the University will take part in the Sydney Vocations Expo at the Darling Harbour Convention Centre from 15 to 16 July.

The Strathfield Campus will host a lively Spirit Alive Youth Festival on Wednesday 16 July, involving art exhibitions, musical and dramatic performances and discussion groups, and the beautifully refurbished campus chapel will also be used as a centre for daily catechesis workshops for pilgrims.

Volunteers from the North Sydney Campus are helping guide the 25,000 daily visitors expected to explore neighbouring Mary MacKillop Place. As partners with the Knights of Malta, North Sydney students will also volunteer to assist young people with disabilities to attend the Pope’s Mass on Sunday 20 July.

Also in Sydney, Mary Evripidou has been hard at work preparing for the influx of ACU National Pilgrims. Several hundred ACU National registered pilgrims include 73 students who are attending with their Parish with support from the University. Nearly 130 of the ACU National pilgrims will be billeted at the Strathfield Campus (Mount Saint Mary) next week.

The Canberra Campus (Signadou) has given financial sponsorship for pilgrims from East Timor and Papua New Guinea to attend World Youth Day, while the Brisbane Campus (McAuley at Banyo) is offering family accommodation for international travellers and the Ballarat Campus (Aquinas) is sending a number of student pilgrims.

News on WYD events in Melbourne follows, along with information on related activities.

WYD Strathfield Organisers for World Youth Day at the Strathfield Campus (Mount Saint Mary) Andrew Profilio and Vanessa Forcella
WYD packing Cath Leary, Mary Evripidou, Carmel Shephered and Anissa Phillips hard at work preparing backpacks for ACU National Pilgrims

WYD activites in Melbourne

As the venue for the Pilgrim Welcome Centre and many of the Days In the Diocese events, the Melbourne Campus (St Patrick’s) will also host much of the World Youth Day action.

Pilgrims will visit the welcome centre in Central Hall until 14 July to collect their official packs, including their Pilgrim Passports and tickets to the Commissioning Mass at the Telstra Dome in Melbourne. A pilgrim lounge will be open from 10am to 8pm each day where pilgrims can relax, use the internet and make friends.

ACU National’s Central Hall will also be the venue for the Days In The Dioceses Festival, a four-day event that includes a traditional Aussie Bush Dance, the Wanna be a Rock Star bands competition and Mary MacKillop, The Musical.

Workshops on enriching Catholic faith and life are also being held on campus on a range of topics, including The Myth of Faith Versus Science, Making the Gospel Heard in a Secular Culture and Guardians of Creation, to be held in French.

Please visit www.acu.edu.au/wyd for more information on the Melbourne Campus events.

WYD Queensland gathering

Brisbane Campus (McAuley at Banyo) Mission Engagement officer Andrew Beiers has been invited to direct the Queensland Pilgrim Gathering in Sydney’s Hordern Pavilion at noon on Tuesday 15 July. 

More than 3,000 pilgrims from Queensland will attend the event with Brisbane Archbishop John Bathersby and other Queensland bishops.

The Gathering will include testimonies from young men and women including rugby league Origin star Matt Bowen and will showcase former Australian Idol contestant Guy “Mutto” Mutton.

“The show will be a dynamic display of music, light, drama and visual creativity where each diocese of Queensland will come together and celebrate a blend of their uniqueness, diversity and unity,” Mr Beiers said.

Life and Death exhibition at Strathfield

The Strathfield Campus (Mount Saint Mary) will host a photography exhibition entitled Life and Death as an official part of World Youth Day’s Youth Festival.

The exhibition, on show until 26 July, features select works of photographers Paul Mallam of Sydney and Thomas Upshur of New York.

Paul Mallam’s photographs, taken in the streets of Rome, depict crowds paying respects during the funeral of the late Pope John Paul II. Thomas Upshur’s dynamic series features a 12-wheeler truck which travels the streets of New York painted and decorated as a shrine to Saint Padre Pio.

The free exhibition is open daily from 11am to 4pm, including during the Strathfield Campus Spirit Alive Fest on Wednesday 16 July.

Life and Death
One of Thomas Upshur’s images on show at the Strathfield Campus (Mount Saint Mary) until 26 July

WYD Jesuswalks exhibition

Students from the North Sydney Campus (MacKillop) will look after one of the 33 painted sculptures that will be on display in public spaces all around Sydney from Tuesday 15 July as part of the Jesuswalks Exhibition.

In addition to the Miller Street location, there will be sculptures at Bondi Beach, Darling Harbour, Martin Place and other popular parts of Sydney.

The exhibition is the vision of Sydneysider Helena McCarthy, who invited young Australian artists, including Indigenous creators, to decorate identical white fibreglass statues of Christ, to explore their ideas of faith in a contemporary cultural context.

At the close of the exhibition, the statues are to be auctioned, with proceeds going to Father Chris Riley’s Youth off the Streets program.

Jesus walks A Jesuswalks sculpture by RMIT PhD sculpture student Adam Lee, who says “faith leads us to question the realities of what is seen and unseen”.

Discussion on religion and morality

Philosophy lecturer Professor Raimond Gaita played a leading role in a public debate as part of an international conference on moral philosophy at the Seymour Centre in Sydney on 27 June. 

Broadcast across the country on ABC Radio National’s Late Night Live, hosted by Phillip Adams, Professor Gaita was joined by Stanton Lecturer in Divinity at the University of Cambridge John Haldane in the debate as answers were sought to the question Is God necessary for morality?

Planning services for young people in Ballarat

Three students from the Ballarat Campus (Aquinas) recently attended a local government initiative on the Ballarat City Council Youth Strategy.

Fourth-year education students Rebecca Keating, Sean Alston and Marcus Page attended the forum to provide input into Ballarat City Council youth services programs and facilities.

The forum addressed youth aged 12 to 25 on ways the local government can encourage young people to participate in community activities and volunteering.

The students were joined by local youth agencies, community organisations and charities in contributing to the forum, discussing how the community could implement programs to motivate young people to focus their energy away from drugs and alcohol. 

Education student Sean Alston said they proposed that the City of Ballarat could work closely with ACU National education students to devise new and interesting programs for youth.

“We would be happy to volunteer our time and coordinate free activities and promote the role of volunteering with our peers” said Sean.

Education student Rebecca Keating said that volunteering means “the opportunity to learn new skills and the chance to put something back into the community while making you feel good about yourself”.

This forum was the first of a series that Ballarat City council will undertake before implementing the new youth services strategy over the next three years. It is envisaged that Sean, Marcus and Rebecca will become an integral part of the project. 

Ballarat youth ACU National students Marcus Page, Rebecca Keating, Sean Alsten attend the Ballarat City Council’s Local Youth Strategy initiative

New eLearning resources now available

New eLearning resources are now accessible via the ACU National website to help staff develop their knowledge and skills in teaching online and to assist students to study more effectively online.
The resources, previously available through ACUonline, can now be accessed by visiting www.acu.edu.au/elearning. They include technical help and tutorials about online teaching and learning.

Two eLearning tutorials in Blackboard, one for staff and one for students, have also been developed. All staff and students have been given automatic access to the relevant tutorial. 
Users should log in to Blackboard using their ACU login and password. The resources will be promoted throughout July, with an official launch to take place on 23 July.
Feedback is welcome. Contact FlexibleTeaching & Learning Director Ann Applebee at ann.applebee@acu.edu.au for more information and to comment. 

Choir at the Brisbane Campus seeks new members

Students at the Brisbane Campus (McAuley at Banyo) interested in singing are encouraged to join the McAuley Choir.

Enrolment in the Choir, which is made up of ACU National students and local community members, for a one-year period provides students with 10 credit points towards their degree.

The Choir rehearses on Wednesday evenings from 6pm to 9pm. All interested students are welcome to join.

Please contact School of Arts and Sciences (QLD) Senior Lecturer in Music Ms Judy Fromyhr on judy.fromyhr@acu.edu.au or 3623 7186 for further information or to join.

Reflection at the Canberra Campus

Staff and students from the Canberra Campus (Signadou) recently took time out to reflect on the Church’s Liturgical Season of Ordinary Time. 

The afternoon was facilitated by Eileen Glass AM, who cofounded L’Arche Australia in 1977, and was its national leader from 1981 to 1985.

She received a Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission award in 1990, was made a Member of the Order of Australia in 1996, and continues to lead retreats and provide formation and spiritual direction.

The afternoon was an opportunity to reflect and share thoughts on how images of Ordinary Time can enhance people’s lives. The afternoon finished with wine and cheese.  

A vote of thanks was offered to Mission Engagement Officer Carolyn Heath who organised the afternoon.

New Theology eJournal now available

The latest edition of the School of Theology’s eJournal is now available to view online.

Issue 12, at http://www.acu.edu.au/acu_national/Schools/theology/ejournal includes an editorial by Associate Professor Gerard Hall SM on Interreligious Dialogue and Religious Harmony: A Christian Perspective.

As World Youth Day approaches, other highlights of the eJournal include Richard Rymarz’s analysis of Pilgrims at World Youth Day and Spectral View of Contemporary Australian Youth by Paul Tyson.

Health and ageing research to continue

Director General of NSW Health Professor Debora Picone has extended the term of appointment of Health and Ageing Research Information Project Manager Monika Bhatia, based at the Strathfield Campus (Mount Saint Mary), to the NSW Health Priorities Task Force until February 2010.

Taskforce members comprise clinicians, academics and community representatives who engage with community and provide advice on policy directions and service improvements. 

Mrs Bhatia also participates in a number of additional sub-committees of the Taskforce for Managed Care, including Chronic, Aged and Community Health Care, the Healthy Older People Advisory Committee, At-Risk Older People Living Alone, Dementia Care Patient Journey in the Community.

Philippines Independence Day celebrated

Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Research) Professor Peter Wilson and Head of the School of Nursing (NSW and ACT) Associate Professor Violeta Lopez recently attended a Philippines Independence Day Celebration by the Philippine Consul General Maria Theresa Lazaro, held at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music.

The highlight of the evening was a piano concert by renowned Filipino musician and Dean of the Philippines Conservatory of Music at the University of Santo Tomas Professor Raul M Sunico.

Philippines day Head of the School of Nursing (NSW and ACT) Associate Professor Violeta Lopez (left) and Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Research) Professor Peter Wilson

Strathfield in partnership with the Maronites

The Institute for Advancing Community Engagement (IACE) is hosting the New Horizons for New Times Forum in partnership with the Maronite Eparchy from 9 to 12 July at the Strathfield Campus (Mount Saint Mary).

Hundreds of international delegates are expected to take part, including the Patriarch Maronite Cardinal Nasrallah Boutros Sfeir, the spiritual leader of Maronite Catholics worldwide, bishops, clergy and young people.

The Maronite Church is a branch of the Catholic Church in Lebanon and nearby Middle Eastern countries. 

A highlight of the forum will take place on 10 July, when speakers will include Vice-Chancellor Professor Greg Craven, IACE Director Professor Jude Butcher and former secretary-general of Caritas Internationalis Duncan McLaren. Strathfield Campus Yalbalinga Indigenous Unit manager Ken Ralph will acknowledge the traditional Indigenous peoples of the land.

The event will allow the Maronite Church to engage with Maronite youth and experience a shared sense of the Church's identity across the world.

MaronitesIACE

School leavers in Canberra and Ballarat taste university life

ACU National’s Ballarat (Aquinas), Brisbane (McAuley at Banyo) and Canberra (Signadou) campuses attracted more than 200 potential future students recently during the University Experience program.

Year 12 students from private and public schools across regional Victoria, ACT, Queensland and NSW were given the opportunity to participate in lectures and activities.

They took part in practical sessions focusing on teaching, nursing, paramedicine, social work and student life. Some gave injections to a SIM man robot, familiarised themselves with the interior of an ambulance, participated in interactive white board sessions, and learnt relaxation techniques to help them through assessment time.

Overall, the events were a success, with many students commenting on the helpfulness of the informative and interactive sessions. “It has really cemented my choice on what course and university to choose,” said attendee Laura Newcombe.

The University Experience program will continue at the Melbourne Campus (St Patrick’s) on 7 and 8 July, the Strathfield Campus (Mount Saint Mary) on 30 September and 1 October, and North Sydney (MacKillop) on 2 October.

University Experience Canberra Year 12 students during the Canberra Campus (Signadou) University Experience program
University Experience Brisbane Mt Maria College Year 12 students Jessica Fenech and Victoria Lake at the Brisbane Campus (McAuley at Banyo) for the University Experience day.

Community engagement discussion

The Australian Universities Community Engagement Alliance (AUCEA) will hold its 2008 National Conference from 9 to 11 July.

ACU National will be represented by School of Business and Informatics (Queensland) lecturer Dr Nasir Butrous at the conference, to be held at the Sunshine Coast University in Sippy Downs, Queensland.

The AUCEA Conference will bring together community engagement practitioners and academics, as well as private enterprise, government and community representatives interested in university-community partnerships.
The keynote speaker will be Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Enterprise and Regional Affairs Professor James Powell OBE from the University of Salford in the UK.

Web-based text messaging explained

Strathfield Campus (Mount Saint Mary) Senior Analyst Programmer and Lecturer Brent Knigge and fourth-year Bachelor of Teaching/Bachelor of Arts (Computing) students Damien McGuire and Adam Dukes have co-authored an article which has been featured in Australian Personal Computer (APC) Magazine.

The article, on enabling text messages to be sent from websites, formed part of Damien and Adam’s assignment for their Software Design and Development unit, and was showcased in the Reader Know-How section of both the June and July editions of APC.

APC mag Senior Analyst Programmer Brent Knigge with students Damien McGuire and Adam Dukes

2009 Fulbright Symposium applications to close shortly

Applications for the 2009 Fulbright Symposium close on 31 July 2008. The grant, awarded by the Australian-American Fulbright Commission is an annual scholarship to the value of $A30,000.

The Symposium focuses on a topic of current bi-national interest between Australia and the United States and engages leading speakers from both countries.
 
Please visit www.fulbright.com.au or phone 02 6260 4460 for applications forms and further information.

Upcoming Events

  • University Experience: Monday 30 June – Thursday 2 October
  • Queensland Catholic Education Week: Sunday 27 July – Saturday 2 August

Details on this and other upcoming events can be found at www.acu.edu.au/events

Promote your event by listing it on the myACU events section and by emailing details to editor@acu.edu.au

downloading icon illustration of a printer
Page updated 25-Jul-08
Accessibility Disclaimer Privacy Policy Feedback
Copyright © Australian Catholic University 1998-2008.

ABN 15 050 192 660 CRICOS Reg: 00004G, 00112C, 00873F, 00885B