The region is centred on the coastal cities of Rockhampton and Gladstone, and the inland towns of Emerald, Longreach and Barcaldine.
It includes the following local government areas: Prior to 2015, the Queensland education system consisted of primary schools, which accommodated students from Kindergarten to Year 7 (ages 5–13), and high schools, which accommodate students from Years 8 to 12 (ages 12–18).
In Queensland, Catholic primary schools are usually (but not always) linked to a parish.
Prior to the 1970s, most schools were founded by religious institutes, but with the decrease in membership of these institutes, together with major reforms inside the church, lay teachers and administrators began to take over the schools, a process which completed by approximately 1990.
Within the region, schools are administered by Catholic Education Office, Diocese of Rockhampton, which was established in 1966 and was the first Catholic Education Office (CEO) in Queensland.