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Celebrating Catholic Education Week At Nazareth College

18 March 2016

To celebrate Catholic Education Week, Minister for Education James Merlino visited Nazareth College today, where the Andrews Labor Government is contributing $1 million to upgrade facilities.

Mr Merlino said the Labor Government's funding will match dollar for dollar the school’s own contribution to refurbish its auditorium. This will fund the second stage of building works including the refurbishment of their applied learning centre and toilets.

Established in 1985, the school has a rich multicultural community and nurtures a commitment to social justice - central to this year’s Catholic Education Week theme of ‘Opening Doors in the Year of Mercy’.

Non-government schools form an integral part of Victoria’s education system, with more than one-third of Victorian students attending Catholic or independent schools.

The 2015-16 Victorian Budget invests almost $4 billion in Victoria’s education and skills system – representing the single biggest boost to education funding in Victoria’s history.

This includes $120 million over four years to upgrade non-government school infrastructure, matching dollar-for-dollar the non-government sector’s contribution.

The Education and Training Reform Act now also guarantees that per-student funding to non-government schools is at least 25 per cent of per-student funding to government schools.

The Labor Government is working closely with the Catholic Education Commission of Victoria and Independent Schools Victoria to ensure funding targets the areas of greatest need.

There are 331 primary and secondary Catholic schools in the Archdiocese of Melbourne, educating 150,000 students.

Quotes attributable to Minister for Education James Merlino

“We’re ensuring that communities across Victoria have access to great schools, so that every student has the chance to succeed.”

“We’re investing almost $4 billion to make Victoria the Education State, so every community has access to great local schools and every child gets the chance to succeed.”

“We’re investing $120 million in Catholic and independent schools and matching the sector’s contribution dollar-for-dollar.”

Reviewed 19 August 2020

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