Buninyong MP Geoff Howard visited Damascus College to announce a $1 million grant to redevelop and extend its performing arts centre and science rooms.

College principal Matthew Byrne said the grant was part of a $2.5 million fund to refurbish 20-year-old buildings at the school.

“Under the master plan, they are projects that would been pushed significantly back, so these funds allow us to address the needs of current students,” he said.

“The grant will support our moves in the STEM area, where we have a Year 8-based program to put facilities in place to support technology rich learning in science, engineering and maths.

“We have tried to provide contemporary learning spaces.”

The college has planned to add breakout spaces to and overhaul its science rooms to allow student to work more collaboratively with each other.

Seats will also be added to the college’s auditorium, along with a technology upgrade, for performing arts students.

Ballarat Steiner School has also received $634,163 to build a multipurpose hall and revamp an existing building to create an administration area and classroom.

The schools were two of 38 to receive a portion of $50 million under the capital funding program for non-government schools.

Mr Howard said the grants would help more Ballarat district students access first-rate schools.

The government launched the $120 million non-government schools program in 2015 to expand and upgrade Catholic and independent schools.

It was part of a $2.5 billion state government investment over three years.

There has been more than 1000 school upgrades since the program started, with 56 new school projects across the state supporting about 5000 construction jobs.

One in three students in Victoria attend Catholic and independent schools.

Education Minister James Merlin said the government was delivering “vital” funding to help upgrade schools across the state.