Develyn’s Domestic Violence Voice
12/04/2019
Develyn Wong recently had success in the Lions Youth of the Year competition when she spoke about Domestic Violence with passion and commitment. Being a survivor herself, The Year 12 St Monica’s student is not ashamed of what happened to her. She said, “It is such a relevant topic in Australian society as the statistics are disgustingly high.” She recently spoke about the topic and a range of others at a debating competition in Mossman, progressing through ...
Read moreIt’s Virtually Year 11 Business
12/04/2019
Our young people are moving with the times where the presence of technology is ever so strong and continues to change. Classroom teachers are finding new and innovative ways to use technology to engage their students in a progressive way. Mr Breck Nielsen is the Trade Training Centre Director at St Mary’s Catholic College in Woree, and he has introduced the use of virtual reality to the school’s year 11 students studying the Diploma of Business. ...
Read moreSaints boys seeing smiles
09/04/2019
The junior and senior students at St Augustine’s gain perspective and a sense of joy by regularly giving food and friendship to people sleeping rough in Cairns. Every other week, Saints supports a team at Rosies – Friends on the Street (Cairns), alternating Saturday and Sunday nights. The Year 7 boarders make sandwiches and the Year 12 boys take the food out to Rosies, help the team pack the van, and go out to the streets to offer ...
Read moreLife insights gained from Iconic Dance Theatre
04/04/2019
Bangarra Dance Theatre recently treated twenty Mount St Bernard (MSB) College students to an exclusive performing arts workshop on the main stage at the new Cairns Performing Arts Centre. The professional dance troupe made time for the students while they were in Cairns performing their last show of the Bennelong Regional Tour in March. Students not only learnt some fantastic dance moves, but also some essential life lessons. A teacher with connections MSB’s School Officer for the ...
Read moreChange for Charity
18/03/2019
Catholic Education Services Cairns is giving change to charity with the help of the Queensland Government’s Containers for Change scheme. Catholic Education’s Karla Adam-Jones and Priscilla O’Brien, who helped launch the fundraising initiative. When the opportunity to support both the environment and a local youth charity came about, Administration Officer – Identity & Outreach, Priscilla O’Brien was eager to be involved. “As a state, Queensland has the lowest rate of recycling and as a Catholic organisation ...
Read more2019 Safeguarding Children Conference
28/02/2019
Catholic Education’s annual Safeguarding Children Conference will be held on Saturday, 27 April, from 8am to 3pm, at Pullman Cairns International. The event is organised by the Professional Standards Office as part of the Cairns Diocese’s ongoing commitment to protecting all children. The 2019 conference theme is “Stronger Communities, Safer Children” and all leadership, staff and parents of Catholic Education, other school systems, and agencies of the Catholic Diocese of Cairns, including Centacare and Catholic Early Learning and ...
Read moreNew Senior Religious Education Program for Cairns Diocese
12/02/2019The start of the 2019 academic year has brought with it a new and exciting religious education program, ‘Catholic Faith in Action’ (CFiA), in the senior secondary years of education across all schools in the Cairns Diocese. Hear from staff and students about the new Catholic Faith in Action program Dcn Michael Lindsay – CES Education Officer Identity and Outreach Jack Jenkins – Year 11 student, St Augustine’s College Cairns Molly Stager – Year 11 student, Good Counsel College ...
Read moreSafer Internet Day
04/02/2019
With our kids connected with the outside world via their devices every day, it’s important to understand how you can educate and protect them from any potential threats online. The internet is undoubtedly an incredible resource for education, connection and innovation and in our modern world children are accessing the web from a young age. Along with all the advantages this technology brings come risks such as cyberbullying, online predators, scams, inappropriate content and security breaches. Safer ...
Read moreCES Reach Out to Rough Sleepers in Cairns
13/12/2018CES staff making sandwiches for Rosies. L-R Gloria West, Jessica Skinner, Andrew McKenzie and Donna Moore. A production line of dedicated Catholic Education Cairns (CES) staff regularly team up to make sandwiches and pack personal items for homeless people sleeping rough at night in the local area. CES’ Manager of Governance and Engagement, Andrew McKenzie mobilised the organisation’s contribution to the charity ‘Rosies’ almost five years ago. “There are more than 70 people living and sleeping on the streets in the Cairns area, ...
Read moreIt Takes a Village
10/12/2018
Families are often time poor with mid-week mornings punctuated with prepping porridge while loading up lunch boxes, stuffing school bags and rushing out the door to school drop offs, errands, work or various extra-curricular commitments. Cairns Catholic Education share their tips for creating calm amongst the chaos, plus how their schools can support you and your family throughout your child’s education. The old proverb ‘it takes a village to raise a child’ really resonates when your ...
Read moreHeatwave on the way
22/11/2018
There is a very high likelihood of a heatwave for the Cairns and greater Northern Queensland region next week. With high humidity, and the temperature set to exceed 38°C, there is an extreme risk of heat stress for both students and staff and it is important that schools are prepared. The followings strategies may assist in reducing the risk of heat exposure. Parents are encouraged to: Talk to your children about how best to manage the hot ...
Read moreBe Prepped for Prep: Tips for transitioning
12/11/2018
Your little one’s introduction to prep can seem equal parts anxiety-inducing and exciting – and it’s important to be prepared for a range of emotions from both yourself as parents and carers as well as from your child. Finding the right school for your family and being prepared to support your little one’s emotional needs can make the process much easier than you may think. Starting prep is not just about the first day of ...
Read moreEducation Law at the fore in Cairns
04/10/2018
A broad range of timely topics about education law have been undergoing detailed discussion at the Australia New Zealand Education Law Association Ltd (ANZELA) international conference in Cairns this week. The conference theme explores new developments in education and law, with an emphasis on innovative ways of meeting traditional challenges and the needs of regional communities. The issues “The nature of the school environment is rapidly changing with increasing legal and community expectations,” said ANZELA National Vice ...
Read more2018 Safeguarding Children Conference
03/04/2018
The Safeguarding Children’s Conference on April 28 is an annual event organised by the Professional Standards Office as part of the Cairns Diocese’s ongoing commitment to protecting all children. The Professional Standards Office has staff who are trained to deal with and respond to student protection matters, allegations of staff misconduct and parent complaints. The conference is open to all staff, parishes, volunteers and parents. Its aim has and always will be to ensure children in our ...
Read moreTJHC addresses Canberra Catholics
28/03/2018
In his final public appearance as CEO of the Truth Justice and Healing Council Francis Sullivan called on the Catholic community to support the Church leadership in its efforts to address the recommendations of the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. Speaking at a public forum in Canberra on Thursday evening, Mr Sullivan said many of the Royal Commission’s recommendations relate to the future policies and administration of all institutions and it called ...
Read moreProtecting children must be at the centre of Catholic Church’s mission: head of new Catholic Church professional standards body says
21/03/2018
Ms Sheree Limbrick, head of the Catholic Church’s new safeguarding body, has told more than 85 members of the Toowoomba diocese’s clergy, religious and lay leadership that protecting children from danger in Church environments must be at the very centre of the Church’s mission. “If the safety of children and other vulnerable people is not at the very centre of the Catholic Church’s mission both here and in all other places around the world then something ...
Read moreCatholic Education Student Video Competition
15/02/2018
Cairns Catholic Education are currently running a student video competition! We are giving students the opportunity to win themselves and their schools a share in over $2000 worth of prizes. The competition is open to all ages, and to students from all of our schools. Applications have been extended, and will now close on the first day of term two – Tuesday 17th of April. Email sgriffiths1@cns.catholic.edu.au for more information and entry forms.
Read moreYear of Youth 2018
29/01/2018
The Australian Bishops have identified the liturgical year of 2018, beginning on the first Sunday of Advent (3rd December 2017), as a national Year of Youth. The Year of Youth invites the Church into prayerful discernment about the importance and life-giving presence of young people in the local Church and society. It calls for dialogue and active engagement focused on the reconnection and renewal of a new generation of young people in the life of the ...
Read moreQueensland election – political parties responses to priority issues in Catholic education
23/11/2017
The Queensland Catholic Education Commission asked five political parties contesting the Queensland election for their responses to priority issues in Catholic education. These issues are important for Catholic schools to be able to continue to deliver high quality, affordable education in effective contemporary learning environments. The table below summarises the parties’ responses to these key issues. (This table is available on the QCEC website) Issue ALP LNP One Nation KAP Greens Recurrent funding Continued support for the existing basket nexus funding mechanism according ...
Read moreSpirit of Catholic Education Awards 2017
18/07/2017
The Spirit of Catholic Education Awards have been announced for 2017! Congratulations to our Cairns Diocese recipient Ben Smith for his work at Mt St Bernard College in Herberton! Benjamin Smith Mount St Bernard College, Herberton (now at St Andrew’s Catholic College) It takes a brave, courageous teacher to stand up for the vulnerable and set about a plan to make a difference for indigenous students in the field of Mathematics. Yet such a plan has driven the ...
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