Beginning this weekend and continuing to the end of the month, 603 seniors will don caps and gowns as the seven Catholic high schools in the Diocese of Peoria hold their annual commencement ceremonies.

Thirty-seven students will receive diplomas at Schlarman High School’s commencement ceremonies on Sunday, May 17, at 3:30 p.m. in Holy Family Church, Danville. The high school hosted its honors assembly at 6:30 p.m. Thursday.

The High School of Saint Thomas More in Champaign will give diplomas to the 87 members of the Class of 2009 during a Baccalaureate Mass and commencement exercises on Sunday, May 17, starting at 2 p.m. in the school gymnasium. The homilist will be the school’s chaplain, Father Joseph Dondanville.

In Bloomington, Central Catholic High School will host a senior honors dinner on Sunday, May 17, at 5 p.m. An honors assembly will be held at the school the following day at 10:30 a.m. Ninety-six seniors will receive diplomas at the Graduation Mass to be celebrated Wednesday, May 20, at 6:30 p.m. at Holy Trinity Church.

Sixty-seven seniors will graduate in the 117th commencement exercises of St. Bede Academy in Peru, to be held Sunday, May 17, at 2 p.m. in St. Bede Abbey Church. On the preceding evening, a Graduation Mass will be celebrated at 7:30 p.m. in the Abbey Church, followed by a reception in the Student Refectory.

Also, Peoria Notre Dame High School’s Baccalaureate Mass will be celebrated Monday, May 18, at 7 p.m. at St. Mary’s Cathedral. The following day at 8:10 a.m. a senior honors assembly will take place in the school gymnasium. On Wednesday, May 20, starting at 6:30 p.m., the 160 members of Peoria Notre Dame’s Class of 2009 will receive diplomas in the Peoria Civic Center’s Grand Ballroom. A graduation lock-in will begin at 10 p.m.

A Baccalaureate Mass for the seniors of Marquette High School in Ottawa will be celebrated on Wednesday, May 20, at 5:30 p.m. in St. Patrick’s Church, followed by a reception and dinner at Celebrations in Utica. Commencement exercises for the 52 members of Marquette’s Class of 2009 will be Sunday, May 24, at 3 p.m. in the school gym.

The final high school graduation for this school year will be for the 104 graduating seniors of Alleman High School in Rock Island. They will be honored at a Baccalaureate Mass and senior award ceremony on Thursday, May 28, at 7 p.m. in St. Pius X Church, Rock Island. Commencement will be the following day at 8 p.m. in Augustana College’s Centennial Hall.