PENINSULA ONLINE

Issue 13
Monday, 2 October 2006 

Prospective students and their parents Experience Monash Peninsula 

Two hundred prospective students and their parents visited the Peninsula campus last week to get a feel for the campus and enjoy a range of activities and information sessions run by the academic areas based at Peninsula.

Year 10, 11 and 12 students from as far a field as Echuca spent the day at the campus as part of the 'Experience Monash Peninsula' program run by the Prospective Students Office.

The program aimed to introduce participants to the study opportunities available at Peninsula through interactive workshops and guided tours. It enable students who may have missed Open Day to visit the campus and get one-on-one information about courses at Peninsula.

Feedback on the day was overwhelmingly positive with comments including: "The campus has a good atmosphere in general. I love that there are lots of social events to be involved in," and "This was a fantastic and informative day. Love the facilities and the surroundings." Many parents accompanying their school aged children commented on the welcoming, hospitable feel of the campus with some also inspired to explore further study options themselves.

Participants in the Experience Monash Program where able to see the teaching facilities at the campus, hear from current students about studying at Peninsula and enjoy lunch as part of the program.

Gala dinner honours great Australian

More than 400 people enjoyed an evening of entertainment, fine food and wine at a gala dinner to honour Australian World War II heroine Vivian Bullwinkel and to raise funds for the Vivian Bullwinkel Memorial Fund.

The memorial fund supports the work being undertaken by the Vivian Bullwinkel Chair in Palliative Care Nursing, which was established in 2003 by the School of Nursing and Midwifery at the Peninsula campus to lead research, teaching and support in the field of palliative care.

Vivian Bullwinkel survived three years of captivity under the Japanese Imperial Forces during World War II. Following the war she continued to dedicate her life to the comfort of the sick and dying through her profession of nursing.

The current Chair in Nursing, Palliative Care is held by Professor Margaret O’Connor who has made an impressive 20 year contribution to the field to date and leads an accomplished team of researchers.

The work conducted by Professor O'Connor and her team in Vivian's honour focuses on the needs of the dying and exploring ways their lives can be made more comfortable, with Professor O'Connor leading a range of research initiatives aimed at enhancing the provision of palliative care services both nationally and internationally

The Vivian Bullwinkel Memorial Fund Gala Dinner at the Melbourne Museum was a great success. Generously promoting the memory of Vivian Bullwinkel and supporting the fund through participation on the night were the Governor of Victoria, Professor David De Kretser AO, former Chief of Defence, General Peter Cosgrove AC MC, Lt Georgina Whelan, RAN, Commander Medical Unit, Banda Aceh, Tsunami Relief Effort, Vivian Bullwinkel's nephew Mr John Bullwinkel and Ms Ita Buttrose AM who was MC for the evening.

Former Chief of Defence, General Peter Cosgrove AC MC, Professor O'Connor, Governor of Victoria Professor David De Kretser AO, Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences' Deputy Dean, Professor Leon Piterman, Ms Ita Buttrose AM and Vivian's nephew Mr John Bullwinkel at the gala event.

Strengthen your art muscles

A community arts and mental health forum will be held on Tuesday, 10 October from 6 pm at Cube 37 to discuss 'How does access to the arts increase your social and psychological wellbeing?'.

"Activities that brought me pleasure suddenly ceased to." (Pleasure lost) An image from Matthew Johnstone's Book 'I Had a Black Dog'.

Facilitated by Brian Nankerivs (aka Raymond J. Bartholomeuz) and featuring performances by indigenous and local dancers, musicians and more, the evening will explore the connection between art and mental health.

Other guests include Matthew Johnstone, artist, mental health consumer and author of 'I Had a Black Dog', Susan Ball from VicHealth and Professor Carol Morse, Director, Health and Wellbeing Research at Monash Peninsula.

The event is an initiative of Frankston Arts Centre with support from Brotherhood of St Laurence, IMPACT, Mental Illness Fellowship and local service providers with the aim of creating awareness of arts initiatives and opportunities in the local area, along with discussing the positive effect of involvement in an arts event in improving mental health and wellbeing.

Please stay after the event for an opportunity for networking, questions and information sharing, while enjoying some food and drinks.

There is no need to RSVP but please note seating is limited so please get in early. For more information, contact Tim Dakin, Arts Access Officer, Frankston Arts Centre on 9784 1890

This is a free event funded by Frankston Arts Centre – Arts Access and VicHealth’s Audience Access Scheme.

Campus Watch logo competition

The Campus Watch program, launched recently, is running a competition to find a logo.

The program echoes the principles of Neighbourhood Watch with the aim of raising awareness of the types of crime occurring in and around campuses and developing initiatives to try and prevent them.

The competition closes on Monday, 30 October and the winner will receive and iPOD Nano 2Gb. Second, third and fourth prizes will also be awarded. Send your designs to campuswatch@adm.monash.edu.au on to the Security Advisory Office, building 56, Clayton campus.

Paper recycling pick up

There has been a change to the day for the collection of paper recycling bins that were usually emptied on Tuesday mornings.

Starting from 2 October, bins will be collected on Mondays. Please note that bins do not need to be put out on Friday night. As long as they are placed in the usual location no later than 11 am Monday morning they will be collected that day.

Staff club news

The Monash Peninsula Staff Social Club is again planning to run a number of activities for staff on campus. Membership for the staff club is currently up for renewal for the 2006-2007 financial year. Cost for membership is $15 for singles and $20 for families.

Dinner at Shakespeare's Tavern

The next planned event for the Social Club is dinner at Shakespeare's Tavern in Frankston on Thursday, 19 October at 6.30 pm. The Staff Club will subsidise member's meals up to the value of $15 (that's the equivalent of you membership back in one event). RSVP by Tuesday, 17 October to Sue Schuwalow, Pauline Nelson, Jenny McGrath, Michael Mirra, Judy Hopley, David Harris or Rod Rodway.

Relay for Life 2006

The Frankston Relay for Life event has been combined with the Mornington event to make the Mornington Peninsula Relay, which will be held over the weekend of 28 and 29 October.

The Relay will be hosted at Dallas Brooks Reserve in Mornington starting at 3 pm on 28 October and finishing at 11 am on 29 October. The organising committee is seeking enthusiastic individuals to volunteer as members, so if you are interested please contact Karol Anfuso on 9635 5288. It is a great way to develop new skills and meet new people while supporting a worthy cause.