Issue 4 - Wednesday 5 March
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 02 9739 2514.
- International Women’s Day and ACU National
- Commencing the new year
- A passionate defence of Federalism
- ACU National Professor acknowledged as “superb thinker”
- New Clemente Australia partnerships
- Globalisation for the common good
- Catholic Education Week concert
- Ballarat and Clemente partnership
- ACU National on Radio National
- ARC research applications open
- Tour to Bible Lands
- Invitation to secondary schools art
- World’s Greatest Shave
- Maths-in-a-box seminar
- Upcoming Events
International Women’s Day and ACU National
Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Academic Affairs) Professor Gabrielle McMullen has both praised and challenged the University on the eve of International Women’s Day 2008, to be celebrated worldwide on Saturday 8 March.“I would like to highlight the University’s contribution to providing opportunities for women,” Professor McMullen said, pointing out that the percentage of female students, staff and members of the senior executive is significantly higher than the sector average. “We are very proud of providing quality education and employment opportunities to advance Australian women and also pride ourselves on the high numbers of female international students attending the University.
“The University has been a leader in advancing career opportunities for women. For example, in 2001 the University was the first employer in Australia to offer a full year’s paid maternity leave to its staff. This was a groundbreaking strategy signalling to our women staff that the University values their ongoing contribution to higher education and this University in particular.”
At the same time, however, she issued the following challenge: “ACU National seeks to make a difference to the communities it serves. On International Women's Day 2008 as we celebrate our own achievements, let us see how, through capacity-building community engagement with our partners, we can also allow women in developing countries to enhance their potential to contribute to their communities.”
Visit: www.internationalwomensday.com for further information.
Commencing the new year
The Brisbane Campus (McAuley at Banyo) celebrated the beginning of the academic year with the annual Commencement Ceremony in the Holy Spirit Chapel on Wednesday 27 February. The mass was led by Auxiliary Bishop of Brisbane Joseph Oudeman, who spoke of the need for students to "qualify for life" through spiritual growth in partnership with their academic pursuits.
Students, community partners and academic and general staff were addressed by Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Quality and Engagement) Professor John O'Gorman and Vice-Chancellor Professor Greg Craven, who extended a warm welcome to commencing students and their families, and stressed the importance of a friendly and caring learning environment.
"The fundamental part of being a Catholic University is that we are a Catholic community,” Professor Craven said. “We also need to recognise that there is no contradiction between faith and intellect.”
Other Commencement Ceremonies are being held on Wednesday 5 March at 12 noon for the Strathfield Campus (Mount St Mary) and at the North Sydney Campus (MacKillop).
A passionate defence of Federalism
Vice Chancellor Professor Greg Craven opened The 2008 Socratic Forum with a passionate discussion of Federalism at the Melbourne Campus (St Patrick’s) on 21 February.
The Socratic Forum is a national debate series sponsored by the Griffith University Centre for Ethics, Governance and Law, in partnership with ACU National and the University of Sydney. In the spirit of Socrates, the forum encourages open and non-partisan debate on issues of relevance to Australian society. This year’s topic concerned Commonwealth-State relations, under the title That Canberra is taking too much power from the states.
Arguing for the affirmative, Professor Craven advocated a system of leadership federalism, one that promotes diversity, democracy, community and innovation. “Do we want a single government that can do anything?” he asked. “The answer is no.”
Opposing Professor Craven was former Deputy Prime Minister Professor Brian Howe, who advocated for a strong evidence-based approach to public policy which upheld the national interest – “a cooperative federalism with improved processes”.
Other speakers included Leader of the Australian Democrats Senator Lyn Allison, the University of Melbourne’s School of Public Policy Professor Brian Galligan and Griffith University’s Institute for Ethics, Governance and Law Professor Charles Sampford who all contributed as commentators.
Click here to read Professor Craven’s opinion piece, Why the States Matter in The Age newspaper.
From the left: Professor Ashley Goldsworthy AO, Professor Sampford, Senator Alison, Professor McMullen, Professor Howe , Professor Craven and Professor Galligan.
ACU National professor a ‘superb thinker’
The current issue of the American National Catholic Weekly gives a full review of Vatican II - Did Anything Happen, describing it as a “brilliant and much-needed book” and the four authors as “superb thinkers”.
One of the authors is well-known Professor of Theology Neil Ormerod, based at the Strathfield Campus (Mount St Mary), who argues that the church must change to fulfil its mission in a changing world.
The other authors are John O’Malley, Joseph Komonchak and Stephen Schloesser. The book is published by Continuum and edited by David Schultenover.
Visit www.americamagazine.org/content/article.cfm?article_id=10642 to read the review.
New Clemente partnerships in Ballarat
ACU National’s Clemente Program has launched its first regional location in Ballarat City, and has become the focus for building a unique partnership with the local council, community agencies and tertiary institutions.
The partnership centres on providing an alternative educational pathway that enhances the wellbeing and resilience of people who are marginalised.
Organisations involved include ACU National, Ballarat Cares, Centacare, Central Highlands Regional Library, City of Ballarat Council, Victorian Department of Human Services, The Smith Family and The University of Ballarat.
The Ballarat Clemente program and similar programs in Sydney, Campbelltown, Brisbane, Canberra and shortly Melbourne, show the sincere willingness of agencies and institutions to engage with one another in providing relevant learning opportunities for marginalised people.
For information about the Clemente Program please contact Helen.McLucas@acu.edu.au at the University’s Institute for Advancing Community Engagement, or Ann.Gervasoni@acu.edu.au at the Ballarat Campus (Aquinas).
Paul Hammond of Centacare (left), Michelle Anderson and Bronwen Clark Anton Leschen from The Smith Family, Dr Ann Gervasoni of ACU National, Bill Mundy from Ballarat Cares, Rosemary Green from UB, Wayne Robinson from the University of Ballarat, Ballarat Campus Rector Dr Anne Hunt and Associate Professor Peter Howard from ACU National.
Globalisation for the common good
ACU National's Institute for Advancing Community Engagement (IACE) and partners will be hosting a visit by world-renowned altruism and interfaith specialist Dr Kamran Mofid at the Strathfield Campus (Mount St Mary) on March 13 and 14, 2008.Dr. Mofid is a world leader in the economics of the common good, religions, globalisation, altruism and service, Islam and Christianity in dialogue, business ethics and corporate social responsibility, spiritual economics, non-violent conflict resolution and an interfaith perspective on globalisation.
He is the founder of Globalisation for the Common Good Initiative and co-founder of the Journal of Globalisation for the Common Good.
Dr Mofid will speak on Be Global Citizens: Promote the Common Good Regionally and Globally at 8am on Friday 14 March at the Strathfield Campus. RSVP to iace@acu.edu.au.
For more information contact helen.mclucas@acu.edu.au or (02) 9701 4176.
Dr. Mofid will also be keynote speaker on an expert panel discussion on Globalisation: War, Religion and Dialogue, at 7 pm on Friday 14 March at the University of Western Sydney Bankstown Campus, Lecture Theatre and Building 23, Bullecourt Ave Milperra. To register, email registrations@affinity.org.au or call (02) 9702 0789 .
Catholic Education Week Concert
The inaugural University Concert for Catholic Education Week is taking place at ACU National’s Melbourne Campus (St Patrick’s) on Wednesday 12 March at 8pm.The concert is being presented by the Glenhaven Festival Orchestra in the historic and recently-renovated Central Hall. Also known as the Rod Lacey Memorial Concert, the performance will honour the life and work of Associate Professor Rod Lacey, a noted historian, long-term University staff member and human rights activist.
As part of the Central Hall Concert Series for 2008, a series of three evening concerts to mark the restoration and refurbishment of Central Hall, The Glenhaven Festival Orchestra will perform Tchaikovsky's Symphony No 5, conducted by Mark Shiell. The orchestra will also be joined by pianist Lachlan Redd in a performance of Rachmaninov's Piano Concerto No 2.
Tickets are available for $35 full/$25 concession at the door, online at www.3mbsboxoffice.com or by phone on 1300 884 654.
Clemente visits
Students involved in the Clemente Australia program for people who are homeless and marginalised will be warmly welcomed at the Strathfield Campus (Mount Saint Mary) later this month.Some 20 students from the Surry Hills program, presented collaboratively by ACU National and Mission Australia, are expected to visit on 11 March. Students from Campbelltown will visit n 18 March. Both groups will attend lectures by ACU National academics at the Nagle Centre, which is run by the St Vincent de Paul Society and the Presentation Sisters.
“We are really looking forward to their visiting and meeting other ACU National students, academics and staff,” said Institute for Advancing Community Engagement Project Manager Helen McLucas. “We really want them to feel part of the whole University after being off campus for so long.”
Students receive credit for their academic achievements, and a number have gone on to enroll in Bachelor programs at the University.
Visit www.acu.edu.au/community_engagement/iace/clemente_australia for details.
ACU National on Radio National
The Children's Spirituality conference at the Ballarat Campus (Aquinas) was broadcast on Sunday 2 March on ABC Radio National’s Encounter program, and will be repeated today, Wednesday 5 March, at 7pm on Radio National in Adelaide, Brisbane, Darwin, Hobart, Melbourne, Newcastle, Perth and Sydney.Program producer Gary Bryson billed the story as follows:
This Week, Encounter is off to Ballarat in country Victoria, where delegates have gathered from around the world for a conference on children's spirituality. We'll meet teachers, educationalists, health workers, and psychologists - some with religious affiliations, some secular. The one thing they have in common is an interest in children's education and wellbeing, and in what the spiritual can offer children in their sometimes difficult journeys into adulthood.
ACU National Senior Lecturer in the School of Education Marian de Souza and Catholic Education Administrative Services Director and ACU Honorary Research Fellow Paul McQuillan were interviewed along with educationists from the universities of Winchester, La Trobe, Toronto and Sydney.
Visit http://www.abc.net.au/rn/encounter/default.htm to download the audio file and podcast from the ABC website.
ARC research applications due
The Research Services Office is calling for Expressions of Interest from staff wishing to lodge an application for Australian Research Council (ARC) Linkage Funds Round 1 for projects commencing in 2009.Visit www.arc.gov.au to access funding rules and a sample application form.
Completed Expression of Interest forms, available from Robina Bamforth and must be lodged with the Robina at robina.bamforth@acu.edu.au by Monday 17 March 2008.
Final applications are due at the Research Services Office by Monday 14 April 2008, with the final deadline for applications to the ARC in Canberra on Friday 9 May 2008.
Tour to bible lands
A tour of the Holy Land, Israel and Jordan is open to all in the ACU National community. The tour will run for 14 days from 21 November 2008, and students may apply to participate in this tour as part of their studies, in consultation with their course coordinators.The tour will be led by Institute for the Advancement of Research Senior Fellow Dr Abe Ata, who has lived and taught in Australian, American, Jordanian, West Bank and Danish universities and has written and taught extensively on the three monotheistic religions.
The tour has been described as an opportunity “to see the land of the Bible, to walk where Jesus walked, as well as to experience the rich mixture of modern life in the Middle East … while the bible comes alive as we see shepherds, rocks, living water, green pastures, wilderness and the land flowing with milk and honey.”
To show interest or make enquiries please contact robina.bamforth@.acu.edu.au or fax (03) 9953 3315.
Invitation to secondary schools art
A warm invitation is extended to all to the ninth annual religious art exhibition for Sydney secondary schools – The Clancy Prize – to be held at the ACU National Gallery Strathfield Campus (Mount St Mary’s) at 6 pm on Friday 7 March.
World’s Greatest Shave
The North Sydney Campus (MacKillop) Student Association is again hosting the World’s Greatest Shave, which raises much-needed funds for the Leukemia Foundation. Students will shave or colour their hair on Wednesday 12 March, meeting at 12 noon in the Courtyard.
Staff are encouraged to join students in making this event a memorable one, remembering that students will be more likely to donate money to see staff being brave and shaving.
Visit www.worldsgreatestshave.com/profile.php?id=405282 and contact MAKSA President Joshua Ang at maksapresident08@gmail.com for details.
Maths-in-a-box seminar
The Strathfield Campus (Mount Saint Mary) recently began its annual NSW Educational Seminar Series with a free K-8 creative numeracy seminar entitled Maths-in-a-box.Presented by ACU National Lecturers Jim Grant and Ed Lewis, the maths-in-a-box seminar showcases a series of student support materials and discusses their practical uses in the classroom.
The seminar is ideal for education practitioners, kindergarten to Year 8 teachers and education students who are keen to stimulate students’ interests and develop knowledge, skills and understanding in numeracy through the grounding of mathematics in everyday contexts.
The NSW Educational Seminar Series brings educators together for a discussion of ideas which are relevant to contemporary education. Future events in the series will also be free of charge.
The next seminar will be held on Thursday 6 March from 4.45 pm to 6.30 pm in Room TS2/Auditorium, 25A Barker Road, Strathfield. Refreshments are available prior to the seminar, and a certificate of attendance is available upon request.
Upcoming Events
- Thursday 6 March - Maths-in-a-box seminar (Strathfield)
- Friday 7 March - Religious art exhibition (Strathfield)
- Saturday 8 March - International Women's Day
- Wednesday 12 March - Catholic Education Week Concert (Melbourne)
- Friday 14 March - Guest speaker Dr Mofid (Strathfield)
Details on these 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.
