The 2019 federal election will be held this coming Saturday, 18 May 2019.

Throughout the election campaign, Catholic Education has highlighted the needs of Catholic schools, and the parties have responded with various election promises. Here are the facts to keep you informed about the policies that affect our Catholic school students and their families.

Catholic Schools NSW's latest 'Teacher Feature' stars Mr Michael Reardon, principal of St Paul’s Catholic Parish Primary School, Camden. The school’s origins go back to 1883, when two Josephite nuns arrived to teach in what is now the school library.

We spent #OneMinuteWith Michael to ask him a bit about his background and aspirations in Catholic education.

I’m writing to express my gratitude for the prayers and support provided for the Townsville Catholic Education Office community, following the recent devastating floods.

The financial support for the ‘Show the Love for Townsville’ initiative, inspired by Brisbane Catholic Education, has been greatly appreciated. Over $4,000 has been raised in our coordinated efforts, with $2,000 of this donated at the Diocesan Education Mass.

On Friday 17 May, children from across Australia will put their feet first, and journey towards a healthier future by participating in the 20th anniversary of National Walk Safely to School Day.

The annual event raises awareness of the health, road safety, transport and environmental benefits that regular walking (especially to and from school) can provide for the long term wellbeing of our children. Apart from the physical benefits, regular walking also has a favourable impact on their cognitive and academic performance.

Students with a passion for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) at St Therese, West Wollongong are now able to engage in STEM learning in a dedicated ‘makerspace’ area, fostering creativity and inquiry-based learning.

St Therese’s once tired looking basement has been transformed into a vibrant and engaging space that incorporates the school’s Spheros, mBots and VEX robots, as well as a range of construction tools and materials for the students to use to engage in STEM-related activities both as part of in-class learning and during lunchtime workshops. 

John Therry Rosemeadow Year 12 students have put their hospitality skills to the test, cooking up a storm for over 70 senior students and teachers. The group is studying the VET subject of Hospitality as part of their Higher School Certificate; they were offered this unique learning experience from local non-profit, MWLP, as part of their mandatory work placement requirements.

Contemporary resources, teacher professional learning and knowing every student personally. These are some of the elements which are helping Catholic Education Diocese of Wollongong (CEDoW) schools to excel – and their progress is earning them top outcomes.

This week, the nation’s NAPLAN test results were released with three Catholic Education Diocese of Wollongong schools recognised as some of the state’s most improved performers - St Brigid’s, Gwynneville; St Clare’s, Narellan Vale and St Michael’s, Mittagong. These schools were identified to have shown 'substantially above average gain' in reading and/or numeracy achievement.

Keep clear! Archaeological dig in progress! Cue the Indiana Jones music and grab the trowels and dusting brushes – Year 7 students at St Francis Catholic College, Edmondson Park have used their expertise to excavate and explore a unique dig site on school grounds, uncovering a number of hidden artefacts to analyse.

Read more about this practical, hands-on History task designed by the staff at St Francis – an exciting and memorable way for students to consolidate their learning and apply the theoretical skills explored in class over the past term.

Passion and culinary skills are currently on display, with students from St Clare’s, Narellan Vale now featuring in ‘Foodie School’ – a YouTube cooking series hosted by renowned chef and dad, Peter Sheppard, in partnership with the Campbelltown Catholic Club.

Launched last week, the fun and educational initiative aims to help children and families enjoy the steps involved in food preparation and encourages good eating habits by learning the source and importance of cooking with fresh, quality ingredients.

Remembering. Healing. Reconciliation.

The Appin Massacre Memorial event is held in recognition of the Aboriginal people who were killed by government troops in April 1816. Held annually for over 20 years, this memorial is an important cultural gathering for Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people to come together in a spirit of reconciliation and healing.

Read more for details on the 2019 Memorial and to download the event flyer.

There’s a lot more to the gardening club at Holy Cross Helensburgh than the beautiful gardens they’ve planted and nurtured – it’s a welcoming environment where friendships blossom and students are supported to grow; where the seeds of stewardship are sewn through many aspects of school life, and learning from nature and getting your hands dirty is valued like study from books.

Read more about the school's impressive horticultural setup: a vegetable garden known as ‘The Patch’, an orchard, their Yalunga Garden (a peaceful native garden space), and their latest venture – bush tucker plants now also growing in The Patch.

Pope Francis has urged young people to embrace their role as the present and the future of the Catholic Church by building relationships with their community and with God. 

The Holy Father has issued the apostolic exhortation following last year’s Synod of Bishops on Young People, the Faith and Vocational Discernment. The exhortation, Christus Vivit (Christ is Alive), takes the form of a letter to young people and, through them, to the entire People of God. 

Read more about Christus Vivit and download a copy at the link below.

A gentle sea breeze and the feeling of the sand between your toes; water lapping onto the rocks nearby. It could be mistaken as a break far away from the classroom, but this is the future for students’ Science, Maths, English and Geography lessons at Stella Maris, Shellharbour.

Stella Maris is set to incorporate outdoor learning into a typical school day for their classes – an innovative approach to teaching an integrated curriculum and, quite literally, a breath of fresh air that will benefit students academically, physically, mentally, socially and emotionally.

With staff keep cups, no plastic cutlery in the canteen, reusable or biodegradable containers for lunches and refillable water bottles, the 'green' spirit is alive and well amongst the staff and students at Holy Spirit College, Bellambi.

Congratulations to St Paul’s Catholic Primary School, Moss Vale, whose lovingly-grown tomatoes from the school’s fruit and vegetable gardens have won two 2nd place prizes at the Moss Vale Show this month!

The award-winning produce – including the tastiest varieties of grape, cherry and gourmet tomatoes – caught the keen eye of the show’s judges to win runner up in both the ‘best of all tomatoes’ and the broader ‘best of all vegetables’ categories.

Leadership, collaboration and authentic teaching: these were some of the topics covered in a Diocesan first, where experts in education gathered to collaborate and share their passion.

The professional development event was six months in the making – part of a broader strategic approach to improvement – and brought together teachers and support staff from all Catholic secondary schools in the Diocese, with the experience offered as nine different events separated according to staff's positions.

Thousands of students from across the Diocese have gloved up over the past two weeks for Schools Clean Up Australia Day. From clean ups of school grounds and local parks to themed classroom learning and activities raising awareness amongst students and staff, our schools have embraced this year’s theme, ‘Change Starts With You’ by taking action to protect and care for their local environment.

An invitation is extended to the faithful of the Catholic Diocese of Wollongong to come together at the 2019 Diocesan Gathering on Saturday 30 March.

The Gathering is an opportunity for people from across the Diocese to reflect on the issues raised in the Plenary Process in our Diocese, hear the experiences of a selection of Local Animators and next steps in the process of listening and discernment.

Following media reports of the conviction of Cardinal George Pell in the County Court of Victoria, a statement has been released by the President of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference, Archbishop Mark Coleridge, to the community. A copy is linked here for your information.

Please also find here, a pastoral letter from Bishop Brian Mascord on the sentencing of Cardinal Pell.