Brent S. Rushall, Ph.D.,R.Psy.

Department of Exercise and Nutritional Sciences

From November 7 to 21, 2000, Dr. Rushall visited Deakin University in Melbourne, and the University of South Australia, in Adelaide, Australia. The purposes of this visitation were threefold.

1. To solidify student exchange agreements between the cognate departments in the two the Australian institutions and the Department of Exercise and Nutritional Sciences at SDSU (ENS-SDSU).
2. To promote faculty exchanges between the cognate departments in the two Australian institutions and ENS-SDSU.

• All interested faculty members from one department would travel to the other department of an institution once every four years. That would mean the retreats would occur biannually, once at the home-institution and once at the sister-institution.
• The cost of travel for faculty would be borne by granting agencies, the faculty's university, and possibly the department. At host institutions, host faculty would billet visiting faculty. Visiting faculty would be responsible for all other costs.
• The duration of a retreat and travel would encompass two weekends and five working week days.
• The retreat activities would be free form for each discipline area and most likely would be of a symposium nature where research, teaching challenges, and curricular matters are discussed. A plan of such activities would have to be in place before travel support was granted.

Since ENS-SDSU faculty would be involved in interactions of this type with two Australian institutions it would mean the ENS-SDSU faculty would travel to Australia every other year, alternating visits with each institution. After one cycle of each reciprocating interaction, the scheme and its outcomes would be evaluated for continued funding. Depending upon the interest of the Australian institutions, the frequency of interactions might need to be slowed so that such activities do not become a common annual occurrence (the familiarity fostering indifference in ENS-SDSU faculty).

This visit was hosted by Mrs. Rosemary Livingstone, Coordinator of Deakin International, the university's international programs office. The activities for Friday, November 10 are listed below.

1. 9-10 AM  One student requested information and a discussion. This student is likely to attend SDSU in Spring semester, 2001.
2. 10-11 AM  Nine faculty from Deakin's Nutrition program attended a meeting. This group is larger than SDSU's faculty, follows a wider range of research interests, and was very positive about interacting with SDSU's faculty.

3. 11-12 PM  Meeting with Dr. Peter Le Rossignol, the assigned host for the visit.
4. 12-1 PM  Nine Human Movement Studies and six Nutrition faculty attended a presentation and discussion. Due to this being the examination period on campus, several faculty members were prevented from participating.

5. 1-2:30 PM  A lunch, sponsored by Professor Mark Hargraves, Head of School, provided opportunities for individual interactions and discussions. Again, enthusiasm for both student and faculty exchanges were the foci of topics. It was apparent that international program exchanges are well received and only need to have a catalyst to bring them to fruition.
6. 2:30-3 PM  A final discussion and summarization with Mrs. Rosemary Livingstone concluded that the intentions of Dr. Rushall's visit had been achieved and that the possibility of the proposed interactions was very high. A need to establish a formal faculty exchange agreement between the two institutions was determined.

Summary. Dr. Rushall was very encouraged by the response of the faculty to the idea of departmental faculty exchanges. Both individual and group exchanges were deemed feasible and likely. Nutrition faculty members were particularly enthusiastic. It is envisaged that potential retreats would be held separately by nutrition and human movement faculty (those departments are separate at Deakin, unlike SDSU). Student exchanges are still being enthusiastically promoted with a view to achieving the agreed-upon maximum of four student-semesters per year.

Mr. David Stuart, Senior Lecturer, and Course Coordinator, Human Movement Studies, at the University of South Australia hosted the visit. Meaningful interactions were both formal and informal. The activities for Monday, November 13 are listed below.

1. 9-11 AM  A general discussion with faculty interested in physical education, human movement studies, and sports studies was conducted. The topics of the current student exchange program, potential individual faculty exchanges, and the faculty "retreat" concept were entertained. Faculty members were particularly enthusiastic about the possibility of a retreat. During the discussion, the concept and its feasibility were explored at length, the significant insights being listed at the end of this report.

In the second hour, a PowerPoint presentation about ENS-SDSU was made. A consensus was that ENS-SDSU and the U of SA School of Physical Education, Exercise and Sports Studies were remarkably similar, many courses articulating between the institutions. This opinion further strengthened the resolve to initiate a faculty retreat with ENS-SDSU.

A tour of the School's facilities left Dr. Rushall with the impression that the level of undergraduate courses, expectations of students, and research capabilities were equal to or above those of ENS-SDSU.

It was generally agreed that the U of SA faculty would tentatively plan a retreat to SDSU for July 2002.

2. 12-2 PM  A luncheon was hosted by Professor Ian Davey, Pro Vice-Chancellor for Research and International Programs. Mr. David Stuart and Mrs. Kathy Crockett, Manager of International Exchanges and International Relations, also attended. During the occasion, Professor Davey was asked if the U of SA would support the human movement faculty going to San Diego. His decidedly positive response was followed by a brief discussion about the need to establish a faculty exchange agreement with SDSU.
3. 2-5 PM  Informal visits to and with sporting entities in the city of Adelaide and a tour of general areas frequented by students were made.

Summary. The response of the U of SA faculty to the concept of faculty exchanges was particularly encouraging. The School has many aspects that are similar to ENS-SDSU, making associations seem most appropriate. There was extensive discussion about the possible nature of departmental retreats/exchanges, and a firmer definition of the concept emerged. Most features that were developed are included in the final recommendations of this report. The faculty from the U of SA tentatively planned a visitation for July 2002. Student exchanges are still being enthusiastically promoted with a view to achieving the agreed-upon maximum of four student-semesters per year.

• All interested faculty members from one department would travel to the other department of an institution once every three or four years. That would mean the retreats would occur at least biannually, once at the home-institution and once at the sister-institution.
• Any initial faculty exchange agreement should cover one guaranteed reciprocal visitation cycle.
• The cost of travel for faculty would be borne by granting agencies, the faculty's university, and possibly the department. At host institutions, host faculty would billet visiting faculty. Visiting faculty would be responsible for all other costs.
• The duration of an official retreat and travel would encompass two weekends and five working week days.
• The retreat activities would be free form for each discipline area. Five weekday morning meetings would focus on curriculum, teaching methods and challenges, and research activities. A plan of such activities should be in place and the particular faculty involved should be established before travel support is granted.
• The principal outcome of faculty retreats would be improvements in instructional methods and course content.
• A secondary outcome of faculty retreats could be collaborative research.

Respectfully submitted,

Brent S. Rushall

Professor