'If my life were a movie…', ‘If I could invite three people to dinner, they would be …’ and ‘Today is a gift, that’s why it’s called the present’ were the topics of conversation addressed by Years 5 and 6 students at the recent annual Diocesan Public Speaking Competition Grand Final, held at St Thomas Aquinas Catholic Parish Primary School, Bowral.

275 students from Catholic Education Diocese of Wollongong schools were acknowledged as Distinguished Achievers this year, with four students acknowledged as All-Round Achievers and six receiving Top Achiever recognition.

A record number of Catholic Education, Diocese of Wollongong (CEDoW) secondary students have been nominated for the HSC Shape and InTech showcase in 2022. The showcases celebrate exemplary work and outstanding projects in the field of Design and Technology and Industrial Technology from a state-wide field of candidates.

Students and families from St Therese West Wollongong gathered together to celebrate more than $6m worth of student-centred refurbishments when the Bishop of Wollongong, Most Rev Brian Mascord DD, visited the school on Friday 18 November 2022 to officially bless and open the facilities.c

After two years as a virtual event, students, parents and staff from Catholic primary schools across the diocese gathered together once more for the anticipated exhibition launch of the 2022 Catholic Education Diocese of Wollongong (CEDoW) Christmas Story Art Competition, at the Wollongong Art Gallery on Wednesday 12 October. Painted wooden cutting boards, pointillism style painting and threaded gold wire were amongst the creative and innovative techniques used in the winning artworks to bring the spirit of Christmas alive. 

The inaugural Catholic Education Diocese of Wollongong (CEDoW) Vocation Education and Training (VET) Awards ceremony, celebrating excellence in VET across both systemic and congregational schools within the diocese and Registered Training Organisations (RTOs), was held on Thursday 15 September. 

‘Build brighter futures for families in Ethiopia’ is the theme of the 2022 Catholic Mission World Mission Month Appeal, celebrated at a Diocese of Wollongong school launch at St Thomas More Catholic Church, Ruse. Students and staff from every school across the diocese gathered together to pledge their commitment to the annual school appeal and kick goals against poverty. 

Young innovator, Thomas Walker, a Year 12 student at Holy Spirit College, Bellambi is aspiring to reduce deaths on and around our roads with his design innovation, 'Illuma Ride', which alerts drivers to the position of other road users through a wearable set of solar-powered indicators.

In reflective and uplifting celebrations, over 1,600 Catholic Education Diocese of Wollongong students were represented at the annual Year 6 Masses which featured inspiring homilies by the Bishop of Wollongong, Most Rev. Brian Mascord DD aimed at connecting students to their faith and to one another. 

Four students from Catholic Education Diocese of Wollongong (CEDoW) systemic schools received first place honours in their year groups at the recent 30th Annual South Coast Public Speaking competition, hosted by Holy Spirit College, Bellambi. 

Students at three Catholic schools in the Macarthur officially celebrated more than $21m worth of new facilities when the Bishop of Wollongong, Most Rev Brian Mascord, visited Magdalene Catholic College in Narellan, followed by St Benedict’s Catholic College and St Justin’s Catholic Primary School in Oran Park last Thursday 1 September to bless and open the facilities.

Nine outstanding leaders from secondary schools across the Diocese of Wollongong were celebrated this week at the Bishop's Student Excellence Awards. Students and their families, principals, and Catholic Education Office staff gathered with the Bishop of Wollongong, Most Rev. Brian Mascord, and the Director of Schools, Peter Hill, to recognise the excellent achievements and contributions of these young women and men.

In response to an urgent call out for teacher support from schools, during Term 2, 2022, more than 40 Catholic Education Diocese of Wollongong (CEDoW) Education and Professional Officers volunteered their time in both teaching and leadership support roles across the diocese. 

More than a century of rich Marist tradition and commitment is set to continue in the Diocese of Wollongong thanks to a Statement of Shared Understanding between the Bishop of Wollongong and the Provincial of the Marist Brothers, formally launched at John Therry Catholic College, Rosemeadow on Tuesday 19 July 2022.

Students of one of the fastest growing Catholic schools in one of South West Sydney’s fastest growing regions will benefit from more than $30 million worth of new facilities, after the Bishop of Wollongong, Most Rev Brian Mascord, officially celebrated the blessing and opening of the facilities at St Francis Catholic College, Edmondson Park, on Friday 1 July 2022.

Recognised for her love of history, Molly Simpson of Corpus Christi Catholic High School, Oak Flats has secured a prestigious 2022 Premier’s Anzac Memorial Scholarship (PAMS). 

As demands on energy supplies grow in Australia, budding scientists, engineers and mathematicians at Corpus Christi Catholic High School, Oak Flats joined some of Australia’s most innovative designers and educators to build a ‘SolarBuddy’—a small solar light designed specifically for children—to help students in Papua New Guinea study after dark. 

A cry for help was answered by Macarthur school communities who joined together with St John the Evangelist Parish, Campbelltown and the local Tongan community to support the people of the small Pacific island, devastated by the recent volcanic eruption, through the generous donation of school furniture, food and household items to be assembled as “Care Packages”.

On one of the coldest nights experienced by NSW this winter, students and teachers from Ss Peter and Paul Kiama, swapped the comfort of their warm homes for cardboard boxes, raising more than $1700 for the St Vincent de Paul Vinnies Winter Appeal.

Sport is both a passion and vocation for CEDoW Professional Officer – Diocesan Sport, John Sparks, who has recently been honoured with Life Membership by New South Wales Combined Catholic Colleges (NSWCCC) in recognition of his exemplary contribution to Catholic school sport.

Budding young author, Anya Ellerington, a Year 8 student at St John the Evangelist Catholic High School, Nowra, was recently awarded the Shoalhaven Australia Day Award 2022 in the ‘Outstanding Emerging Artist’ category for her work titled The Beauty of the Eternal Soul, which was accompanied by a beautiful piece of symbolic artwork. 

Inspired by their own teachers and knowing what a difference a good teacher can make to the lives of their students, five top performing students from CEDoW Catholic secondary schools in the Illawarra and Macarthur have been awared a $20,000 scholarship towards the cost of their tertiary studies in primary or secondary education.

Welcome to the CEDoW COVID-19 Information Centre

Last updated 24 January 2022

This page contains a regularly updated overview of the systemic response by Catholic Education Diocese of Wollongong (CEDoW) to the ongoing COVID-19 situation.

Information and updates specific to each school community will continue to be provided directly to parents and carers by school principals.

More than a thousand students from our eight systemic Catholic secondary schools completed the HSC this year. 291 students were acknowledged as Distinguished Achievers, with a further four All-round Achievers, six Top Achievers, two of whom took out First in Course.

Five innovative future entrepreneurs from St Benedict's Catholic College Oran Park were recently awarded third place in Western Sydney University’s (WSU) Blueprint Business Idea Competition for their One Touch bracelet proposal.  

The WSU competition is designed to encourage Year 10 students to pursue new business ideas, provide enrichment opportunities and first-hand experiences in entrepreneurship.

A study into the wing structure of blowflies—and a passion for science—has resulted in John Therry Catholic College, Rosemeadow, Year 12 student Ali Alwaeli being named as the bronze winner of the Science Teachers’ Association of New South Wales (STANSW) Young Scientist Award competition as part of his studies in Science Extension. 

A love of science, design and technology, and a desire to make a positive difference in the world has resulted in three CEDoW student teams from St Columbkille's Catholic Primary School, Corrimal and Magdalene Catholic College, Narellan, winning major awards at the recent Catholic Network Australia Limited (CNA) Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) Mad (Making A Difference) national competition.

Students, parents and staff from Catholic primary schools across the Diocese of Wollongong joined together on Wednesday 24 November for the virtual exhibition launch of the 2021 Catholic Education Diocese of Wollongong (CEDoW) Christmas Story Art Competition. 

St John the Evangelist Catholic High School, Nowra Year 10 student, Keira Buckpitt has taken out a top honour in the 2021 YETI Australian Junior Online Surf Championships, an invitation-only event that hosted 180 of Australia's top junior surfers in a head to head competition.  

Eilish Norwood has definitely finished her secondary schooling on a high. The talented, hardworking Year 12 student from St John the Evangelist Catholic High School, Nowra, was recently awarded a $150,000 Ramsay Scholarship from the Australian Catholic University (ACU), to study a Bachelor of Arts (Western Civilisation)/Bachelor of Laws.

At the young age of 19, former Mt Carmel Catholic College, Varroville student Emma Jones can officially call herself a published author. The 2020 HSC graduate was one of eighteen brilliant young writers selected, from more than 1,385 students, to have their HSC English Extension 2 work published in the highly-acclaimed NSW Education Authority (NESA) Young Writers anthology.  The Young Writers anthology celebrates the writing talents of some of the most outstanding HSC English students from across the state. 

In honour of his lifetime commitment to Catholic education, Peter Turner, the former Director of Schools for Catholic Education Diocese of Wollongong (CEDoW) received the 2021 Br Kelvin Canavan FMS Catholic School Leadership Award, which was presented to him virtually at the recent Catholic Schools NSW Education Law Symposium. 

The increased use of technology in classrooms and cloud-based programs such as Compass, Google Classroom and Zoom has changed the way education is now delivered. To stabilise the added pressure on school networks and support their capacity to deliver classroom learning,  the CEDoWInformation, Communication and Learning Technology (ICLT) team implemented an innovative solution to ensure that student learning is never interrupted due to internet outages.

In the three terms since joining the staff at St Thomas More Catholic Primary School, Ruse, it’s safe to say Liz Jensen’s compassion and love of teaching has had a profound impact on the students in her Year 6 class, especially young Grace Kedde. Mrs Jensen, a former student at the school, was recently named the 2Day FM 'Teacher of the Week' after Grace nominated her for the competition. 

Australian Catholics magazine has commemorated the Bicentenary of Catholic education in Australia with a youth edition, offering selected students an exciting and unique introduction to a career in the media. The publication was created by a team of guest editors, including Holy Spirit College, Bellambi Year 11 student, Zara Hatton. 

On Sunday 8 August we celebrate the Feast of St Mary MacKillop, in honour of the first and only Australian saint, and take time to reflect on Mary’s life and the immeasurable impact her devotion and calling has had on Catholic education throughout this country. Over the last two centuries, thousands of dedicated women and men, often with very limited resources, rose to the challenge of building the vibrant and diverse Catholic education system that exists in Australia today, but none more so than St Mary of the Cross MacKillop.

The uncertainty of the current times we live in, mixed with physical distancing and isolation from families and loved ones due to the recent COVID lockdown has left many feeling anxious, stressed, and worried. To help support people through these difficult circumstances, CatholicCare Wollongong has released six Keeping Calm and Connected: Mindfulness webinars with practical steps to reflect and calm the mind. 

In recognition of her hard work and dedication, Sister Kerry Macdermott was recently awarded the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Catholic Council (NATSICC) – 2021 Non-Indigenous Service to Community Award. Over the year Sr Kerry has devoted her life to the service of others, particularly the many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students and families in the Minto/Macarthur area. 

A scripture passage from the book of Jeremiah and the question “What is the Spirit saying to you as a young person in our world today?” were the focus of the recent diocesan Year 12 gatherings with Bishop Brian Mascord. Over three days, Bishop Brian visited six Catholic secondary schools throughout the diocese, spending time in conversation with more than 1,000 Year 12 students. The days provided opportunities for students to share their hopes, challenges and ask questions. 

The agenda of the Fifth Plenary Council of Australia calls those attending the Council assemblies to “develop concrete proposals to create a more missionary, Christ-centred Church in Australia”.

The Council agenda, which has emerged from three years and several layers of prayer, listening, dialogue and discernment, will shape the program of the Council’s assemblies – the first of which opens on October 3 this year.

Eight curious and dedicated Year 5 students from St Therese Catholic Primary School, West Wollongong have been awarded the title of Illawarra NSW Regional winners of the annual Da Vinci Decathlon competition.

The recent construction of a contemporary hospitality trade training kitchen and cafe at Corpus Christi Catholic High School in Oak Flats has the whole school community excited—especially the students.

More than one hundred students across Years 7 to 12 at John Therry Catholic College, Rosemeadow, had the opportunity to put their questions to federal politicians Hon Tanya Plibersek, Shadow Minister for Education and Women; Dr Mike Freelander, Federal Member for Macarthur; and Mr Chris Hayes, Federal Member for Fowler, at a Student Leadership forum recently hosted by the school.

This week Australians join together in celebration of Reconciliation Week. The theme for 2021, ‘More than a Word-Reconciliation Takes Action’ urges us to take up the challenge to make a difference. At St John the Evangelist Catholic High School, Nowra, six Aboriginal and 18 non-Aboriginal students across Years 11 and 12, have embodied the 2021 theme by enrolling in Stage 6 Aboriginal Studies subjects. 

Roxanne Lillis is feeling pretty proud of her efforts, and well she should. The gifted visual arts teacher from Mount Carmel Catholic College Varroville has just been announced as the inaugural winner of the Zart National Teacher-Artist Prize – the first art prize for art teachers in the world. 

A celebration to mark the bicentenary of Catholic education in Australia was held on Dharawal land this week, with students from 45 Catholic schools across the Diocese of Wollongong—from the Macarthur, Illawarra, Shoalhaven and Southern Highlands—gathering as one community of faith.

‘Never give up’ and ‘have the courage to follow your dreams’ were some of the inspirational messages students at St John’s Catholic Primary School, Dapto, heard during an impromptu visit from international award-winning author, Kirli Saunders. 

Celebrating difference, acceptance, and inclusivity of people are at the heart of Good Samaritan Catholic Primary School’s identity. These qualities were on display when the school celebrated World Autism Awareness Month with a special day themed ‘We All Fit Together’ on Friday 30 April.