Among the millions of Australians who have attended Catholic schools, a great many have been prominent in public life. In recent years these have included prime ministers Paul Keating Kevin Rudd and Tony Abbott, former governor general Sir William Deane, former deputy prime minister Tim Fischer, the first woman elected to lead an Australian state or territory, Rosemary Follett and serving Lord Mayor of Sydney, Clover Moore. Current parliamentarians include Bill Shorten, Barnaby Joyce and Joe Hockey.
Prominent indigenous Australians include former senator Aden Ridgeway, Patrick Dodson, Mick Dodson and Kurtley Beale.
In the arts a large number of Catholic educated people have been prominent, from the father of Australian rock and roll, Johnny O'Keefe, to contemporary musicians such as Paul Kelly and Ignatius Jones. In film and television, Catholic educated Australians have included Mel Gibson, David Wenham, Julian Morrow, Antonia Kidman, Anh Do, Santo Cilauro and Tom Gleisner. Contemporary Australian writers who have attended Catholic schools include Robert Hughes, Morris West, Nick Enright, Justin Fleming and Gerard Windsor. Princess Michael of Kent, businesswomen Ita Buttrose, Gai Waterhouse and Lucy Turnbull all attended the Society of the Sacred Heart's Kincoppal School.
A former Chief Justice of the High Court of Australia, Murray Gleeson, attended St Joseph's College, Hunters Hill and his successor, Robert French, attended St. Louis School, Claremont, Western Australia. As of August 2011, a nine members of the 49 member New South Wales Supreme Court were former students of the Jesuit's St Ignatius' College Riverview.
Administration and funding
In Australia, the state and territory governments have the primary responsibility for funding state government schools and also provide supplementary assistance to non-government schools, while the Australian federal government is the primary source of public funding for non-government schools (while also providing supplementary assistance to government schools). These public funds subsidise the fees paid by parents for the education of their children at Catholic schools, with the overall effect of reducing the numbers and therefore burden on public funding for government schools. Most non-government schools have some religious affiliation, with approximately two-thirds of their students enrolled in Catholic schools. In the final year of secondary schooling, students at both government and non-government schools sit for a government-endorsed certificate that is recognised by all Australian universities and vocational education and training institutions. Thus, Catholic schools may freely teach and encourage religious studies, values and community engagement but must adhere to the broader requirements of Australia's secular education system.
The National Catholic Education Commission (NCEC), established by the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference through the Bishops Commission for Catholic Education, is tasked with maintaining liaison with the federal government and other key national education bodies and complements and supports the work of the state and territory Catholic education commissions. While some Catholic schools operate independently, the Catholic Education Office (CEO) is responsible for the leadership, efficient operation and management of the Catholic systemic schools which educate in parish primary and regional secondary schools in Australia and is charged with the implementation and management of the policies determined by the SACS Board and the allocation and administration of the funds provided by government and private sources to Catholic schools as well as the financial responsibilities for administration of salaries for staff members.
Ethos
While Catholic schools must adhere to the broad requirements of Australia's secular education system, they are free to provide a "Catholic" education ethos. The Catholic Education Office of Melbourne outlines this "ethos" as follows:
" Religious education is at the centre of both the formal and informal Catholic school curriculum. Our schools are characterised by a high proportion of Catholic teachers and students, with a visible Catholic symbolic culture and active sacramental and liturgical practices. The values, ideals and challenges of the Gospel, embodied in the person of Jesus Christ, find explicit expression in the curriculum and ethos of Catholic schools, as do the teachings and traditions of the Catholic Church.