The inaugural Catholic Education Diocese of Wollongong (CEDoW) Vocation Education and Training (VET) Awards ceremony, celebrating excellence in VET across both systemic and congregational schools within the diocese and Registered Training Organisations (RTOs), was held on Thursday 15 September. 

Jackson Losciuto, St Joseph's Catholic High School, Albion Park was awarded VET Student of the Year, while Zara Williams, also from St Joseph's, was awarded School based Trainee (SBAT) of the Year, and Allison Pace, St Mary Star of the Sea College, Wollongong named VET Trainer of the Year. 

Christina Desmond, CEDoW VET RTO Manager, said the annual awards provided an opportunity to celebrate the wonderful achievements and hard work of both students and trainers. 

"Our VET trainers are all hard working teachers, who go above and beyond to deliver high quality training in nationally recognised qualifications, and therefore it is my great pleasure to take this opportunity to recognise them through these annual RTO VET awards," she said.  

The event held at the Marian Centre, Wollongong was attended by Peter Hill, Director of Schools; members of the CEDoW leadership team; nominated students and their families; secondary school principals; VET coordinators and nominated trainers, along with the event sponsors. In a highlight during the event, former students shared stories of their VET journey with guests, reflecting on how the VET program had influenced their post school pathways.  

Currently, over 1100 students access a VET course as part of their Catholic education in the Diocese of Wollongong, which helps support their transition to post-school work and tertiary education by providing authentic, skills-based learning for a  fast-changing world that can contribute positively to both a students' HSC and ATAR, and open up valuable post-school pathways.

Peter Hill, Director of Schools said, “The awards are the perfect platform to showcase Catholic education’s commitment to VET as an industry partner, and to acknowledge the best practice and quality of our registered training organisation.”

“These awards reflect the ongoing commitment of VET teachers to meet the needs of students through the delivery of high-quality VET training,” he said.

“And to our students, these awards provide a unique opportunity to celebrate your achievements as you continue to develop the skills and knowledge for the jobs of today and those that don’t yet exist.”

Ten VET trainers and eleven student finalists received excellence in VET awards for their nominated framework. 

Please see below the full list of award winners.

VET Student framework winners of 2022

VET trainer framework winners of the 2022 VET awards 

Major awards 

We congratulate both students and staff on their outstanding achievements and wish them the very best with their future endeavours.