St. John the Evangelist Catholic High School, Nowra

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St. John the Evangelist Catholic High School, or the colloquial St. John's, is a coeducational Catholic systemic school in the Nowra, New South Wales area, providing inexpensive education to Catholic and non-Catholic families alike. The school's motto is Pax Christi (Latin, 'Peace of Christ'.) This motto is reflective of Australia's first Archbishop, John Bede, as well as the personal motto of the Bishop of Wollongong, William Murray, 'Per Justitiam Pax', (Latin , ‘Peace through Justice’.) The school aims to promote peace, both in the world and in the person.

St. John's has roughly 700 students annually, most of which come from Catholic families, which is in contrast to the local government schools, which are well in excess of 1 000 students. Many of the school's students do not live in the Nowra area, and travel by bus each day from around the Shoalhaven. The numbers of students does fluctuate annually, and even within the year itself it changes: at the beginning of the year, the school is in excess of 700 students, whilst at the end of the year, as year 12 have been dismissed after they complete the HSC, the school numbers slightly below 700 students. There is a student minority in the school which come from naval families, which serve at HMAS Albatross. These families come and go, depending on where the family is posted according to the Navy.

1 History
- 1.1 Education
2 Extra-curricular activities
3 Subjects and their Head Teachers
4 See also
5 External links

[edit] History

St John's was founded in 1990, as Catholic families in the region wanted a secondary school for their children. Up until 1967 there was a Catholic secondary school provided at St Michael's school, but it was closed due to financial hardship, and Catholic students then had to attend the local public schools, Shoalhaven High School and Nowra High School, with some families opting to send their children to the Catholic boarding school in the Southern Highlands, Chevalier College. For twenty years local Catholic families would be without a secondary Catholic school.

The Order of the Sisters of Good Samaritans, the local nuns, worked tirelessly to help provide a quality education for Catholic students, despite lacking a Catholic secondary school in the area. The nuns worked hard and long hours to accomplish this. They also worked as a link between family and school, often making house calls to mediate between the two. The nuns also enjoyed a partnership not only with the local Catholic primary school but also with the government high schools, with the aim of providing religious education to those that requested it. The establishment of St John’s recognised the dedicated labour and enthusiasm of the nuns.

[edit] Education

St John’s offers a wide range of subjects, apart from just the core subjects outlined by the NSW Board of Studies. Students can select from studying a language, to cooking, or studying wood work, amongst many other subjects. In years 11 and 12, students begin to work towards the HSC, which allows them to either enter university, TAFE, college, or the workforce. Whilst the HSC years are not compulsory in NSW, they are widely popular for students at St John’s, as many students leave St John’s post-HSC to study at the University of Wollongong.

As with all Catholic schools in the Wollongong Catholic diocese, religious education is compulsory in all years. There is a focus, obviously, on Catholicism, but students learn about all the major religions and non-religions of the world.

[edit] Extra-curricular activities

There are a great many number of extra-curricular activities at St. John’s, ranging from debating and mock trials, to sports, and year group camps. Whilst not all these events are not compulsory, they are certainly encouraged.

School camps are a big focus for year groups, and years 7, 9, and 12 participate in these. They are a compulsory part of the social sphere of St John’s life. For year 7, the camp provides students with the opportunity to begin socialising with students from other primary schools. Whilst the year 12 camp is to provide students with a short period of relaxation, to encourage them as they begin to study for the HSC. At all camps, students reflect on their spirituality and identity.