Catholic High School, Petaling Jaya, is the fruit of public generosity. Established by Joche Philippe Wu of the Marist Brothers in 1956, CHS started as a private Chinese school with two classes for boys. It had no premises of its own. With the kindness of the De La Salle Brothers, it began by operating in the afternoon session, sharing the premises of La Salle Primary School in Brickfields, Kuala Lumpur. The school, with an enrolment of 88 students in two classes and a staff of 5 teachers, was headed by its first principal, Rev. Bro. Philippe Wu.
In 1957, due to an increase in its population from two to eight classes in the span of two years, and the lack of facilities of its host school, Catholic High School had to look for other premises to accommodate its students. The authorities of Maxwell Secondary School, Kuala Lumpur, graciously allowed Catholic High School to share its premises, thus proving to be a “friend in need”. Once again, teaching was carried out in the afternoon. Meanwhile, the School-Building Planning Committee was formed to initiate a building of its own for the school. Although the government had approved the project and allocated a piece of land in Cheras for the construction of the school, it would have been an extremely expensive and time-consuming task to clear the land of squatters. Hence, the Committee decided to look for an alternative piece of land.
In August 1958, the school finally moved into its current premises – a 10-acre piece of land at Jalan 10/3, Petaling Jaya. This was purchased by the Committee, with money raised from a fund-raising project. Though the school compound was muddy and weedy, the CHS students were proud of their Alma Mater; a new two-storey building with 20 classrooms (the existing A Block) and a large field. It was also in that year that its principal, Rev. Bro. Philippe Wu received his promotion to become Brother Provincial. In view of that, the leadership of the school was handed over to Rev. Bro. Dominic Liu. The following year, Catholic High School saw her first batch of students sitting for the LCE Examination. Rev. Bro. Dominic Liu also expanded the school by building a block of science laboratories and a library.
In the year 1961, the first group of Form 5 students sat for S.C./F.M.C. Examinations and thus the graduation of Catholic High School’s premier students. In 1962, Rev. Bro. Dominic Liu was transferred to serve in East Malaysia and the third principal, Rev. Bro. Lawrence Tung was appointed to head the school. During his tenure as the principal, two buses were purchased for co-curricular use and improvements were made to the school field. Also, in that year, Catholic High School became a conforming school in accordance with the Education Act of 1961. The name of the school was changed to SMJK Katholik; though in English it still remains as CHS to this day.
In 1963, a table-tennis shed and a storeroom were put up and in 1964, the grounds were levelled. The following year, the present magnificent appearance of the school gradually came into view, as the lawns everywhere were turfed, the roads metalled and the main gate and fences built. On 4th June 1964, the staff and students gathered in the newly completed field and playground to hail the first Annual Sports Meet.
In 1965, Rev. Bro. Paul Sung was appointed the fourth principal of the school. Under his instruction, a three-storey block of classrooms parallel to Block A, was built in 1969 (the existing B Block). The building consists of a staffroom and 12 classrooms. The library was then moved into 2 of the new classrooms. Rev. Bro. Paul Sung was then transferred to Sibu and Rev. Bro. Andrew Fong took over as the next principal of Catholic High School in 1970.
The leadership of the school changed hands again in 1971 when Rev. Bro. Joachim Heng replaced Rev. Bro. Andrew Fong. Thereafter in 1972, Rev. Bro. Paul Clet was appointed to the post of principal. However, he resigned in 1974 due to his demanding duties as Brother Provincial and Rev. Bro. Thomas Ng succeeded him. Once again, the school grew physically with a School Hall built to take care of the needs of the students for school assembly, official functions, cultural and sports activities.
Work on the construction of the School Hall was started in August 1975 after much hard work had been put in by various authorities such as the Board of Governors, Parent-Teacher Association, Old Boys Association, the Funding Committee and the teachers themselves to collect funds. By August 1976, the beautiful structure of the new School Hall was completed, a real grand view from the Federal Highway. In November 1976, the first batch of Form Five and Form Three students had their graduation ceremony in the then newly built school hall. Later, this hall was named as a mark of respect to the founder, Rev. Bro. Philippe Wu. When Rev. Bro. Thomas Ng left the school in 1979, Rev. Bro. John Heng took over as the new principal. He was later replaced by Rev. Bro. Joseph Ng who headed the school for a year in 1981.
In 1982, Rev. Bro. Paul Sung returned to lead Catholic High School as its 11th principal. Within two years, another new block of science laboratories and the largest school library in Petaling Jaya (C Block) was added to Catholic High School. Moreover, another building with six squash courts was also constructed. In 1984, the school started its Form Six Science classes. In 1985, for the first time, Catholic High School opened its doors to female students and became a co-educational school. However, in 1988, Rev. Bro. Paul Sung had to leave the school again and Rev. Bro. John Heng became the principal of the school for the second time.
The appointment of Mr Cheok Cheo Foh in 1989 as the 13th principal of Catholic High School with much regret, marked the end of the Marist Brothers as heads of the school. In October 1990, Mr Lee Kim Tian became the next principal of the school. He continued with the task of expanding the school – adding a new canteen and two new blocks of classrooms, art rooms, laboratories, workshops, a lecture theatre and an air-conditioned library (1992 – D Block and 1998 – E Block). In 2001, a reading corner was built beside the canteen prior to his retirement. It was also during Mr Lee’s tenure as the principal, in 2000, that a Form Six Arts class was started in the school.
History was made on 16th September 2001 when Madam Tan Lin became the first lady to take the helm as principal of the school. Under her leadership, a RM3-million sports centre comprising squash courts, basketball courts, volleyball courts, a table-tennis hall, activity rooms and conference rooms was opened on 18 June 2005. The school hall was now fitted with an air-conditioning system to create an environment conducive for everyone on all occasions. Meanwhile, the school frontage was constructed to give CHS a contemporary look adding dignity to CHS. Madam Tan Lin’s concern for the citizens of CHS was clearly portrayed by the installation of the CCTV system and the construction of the guard house with an automatic pole gate. Catholic High School owes the success of its expansion programme to its visionary leaders, the Board of Governors, Parent-Teacher Association, CHS Alumni Association, generous beneficiaries and teachers. Today, Catholic High School proudly stands as an education complex with an academic staff of not less than 150 and its student population of over 3000. The school still continues to be overwhelmed with applications for admission each year. The Principal and the staff members of Catholic High School are confident that the school can and will continue to be a centre of excellence and able to face challenges of the future.
Marist Brother, Rev. Bro. Philippe Wu founded the school. It began with two Form classes for boys only, sharing premises with SR La Salle Brickfields, Kuala Lumpur.
CHS moved to SM Maxwell, Kuala Lumpur.
Construction of Block A in Section 10, Petaling Jaya.
Construction of the Science Laboratory.
SMJK Katholik became a Conforming School.
Construction of Block B.
Construction of the Bro. Philippe Wu Hall.
Construction of Block C (Science Laboratories and Library).
Opening of Form 6 Science Stream classes.
Female students were first admitted into the Transition Class.
Construction of the Squash Court building.
Construction of Block D (Lecture Hall and Living Skills Workshop).
Construction of Block E (New Library, Science Laboratories, and Art Room).
Opening of Form 6 Arts Stream classes.
Construction of the Sports Centre (Basketball and Volleyball Courts, Squash Court, Table Tennis Hall, Activity Room, and Administration Room).
Official opening of the School Sports Centre.
Construction of the school gateway.
Launch of the School Archive.
Launch of the School Management System (SMS) – marking the school’s move into the era of smart management systems.
Renovation of school toilets.
Launch of the “Green Energy” Project (Wind Turbine and Solar Panels) in the Science Park.
八打灵公教中学是公众慷慨支持的成果。学校由 Marist Brothers 的 Joche Philippe Wu 于 1956 年创立，最初作为一所私立华文中学，仅设有两个男生班级，没有自己的校舍。在 De La Salle Brothers 的慷慨帮助下，学校得以在吉隆坡 Brickfields 的 La Salle Primary School 校舍内以下午班形式开课。当时学校只有两个班共 88 名学生，教师 5 人，由首任校长 Rev. Bro. Philippe Wu 领导。
1957 年，由于学生人数在两年内从两班增至八班，加上寄宿学校的设施不足，公教中学必须另觅校舍容纳学生。吉隆坡 Maxwell Secondary School 校方慷慨地允许公教中学共用其校舍，成为“雪中送炭”的朋友。当时的课程依旧在下午进行。与此同时，学校成立了校舍建设筹备委员会，以推动建设自有校舍。虽然政府批准了该计划，并在 Cheras 划拨了一块土地兴建校舍，但由于该地有非法住户，清理将耗费大量金钱与时间，因此委员会决定寻找替代地段。
1958 年 8 月，学校终于迁入现址——八打灵再也 Jalan 10/3 一块 10 英亩的土地。此地由筹委会通过筹款购得。虽然校园泥泞且杂草丛生，但公教生依旧为他们的新母校感到自豪——一座全新的两层教学楼，设有 20 间课室（即现有 A 座），以及一片大操场。同年，校长 Rev. Bro. Philippe Wu 晋升为 Brother Provincial，校务由 Rev. Bro. Dominic Liu 接任。次年，公教中学首批学生参加 LCE 考试。Rev. Bro. Dominic Liu 也扩建了科学实验室与图书馆。
1961 年，首批高三学生参加 S.C./F.M.C. 考试，成为公教中学的第一届毕业生。1962 年，Rev. Bro. Dominic Liu 调任东马，第三任校长 Rev. Bro. Lawrence Tung 接掌校务。在他的任期内，学校购置了两辆校车以供课外活动之用，并改善了操场设施。同年，公教中学依据 1961 年教育法令改为国民型中学，正式更名为 SMJK Katholik，但英文名称至今仍沿用 CHS。
1963 年，学校建了乒乓球棚与储物室；1964 年，平整校园地面。翌年，校园的宏伟面貌逐渐成形，草坪铺设、道路铺砌、校门与围篱建成。1964 年 6 月 4 日，全校师生齐聚新落成的操场与球场，举行首届运动会。
1965 年，Rev. Bro. Paul Sung 被任命为第四任校长。在他的领导下，1969 年兴建了一栋与 A 座平行的三层教学楼（即现有 B 座），设有 12 间课室与一间教师办公室。图书馆也迁入其中两间课室。随后 Rev. Bro. Paul Sung 调任泗务，1970 年由 Rev. Bro. Andrew Fong 接任校长。
1971 年，Rev. Bro. Joachim Heng 接替 Rev. Bro. Andrew Fong，翌年 Rev. Bro. Paul Clet 被任命为校长。然而，他在 1974 年因 Brother Provincial 的繁重事务而辞职，由 Rev. Bro. Thomas Ng 接任。期间学校再度扩建，兴建了一座学校礼堂，以满足集会、官方活动、文化与体育活动的需求。
礼堂的建设于 1975 年 8 月动工，筹款工作由校董会、家教协会、校友会、筹委会及教师共同努力完成。1976 年 8 月，新礼堂落成，从联邦大道远望，景色壮观。同年 11 月，首批高三与初三毕业典礼在新礼堂举行。其后，礼堂以创办人 Rev. Bro. Philippe Wu 的名字命名。1979 年，Rev. Bro. Thomas Ng 离任，由 Rev. Bro. John Heng 接任；1981 年，他由 Rev. Bro. Joseph Ng 接替一年。
1982 年，Rev. Bro. Paul Sung 重返公教中学，成为第十一任校长。两年内，学校增建了一座科学实验室与当时八打灵最大的新图书馆（C 座），以及六个壁球场。1984 年，学校开办高中六理科班；1985 年，首次招收女学生，成为男女同校。1988 年，Rev. Bro. Paul Sung 再次离任，Rev. Bro. John Heng 第二次出任校长。
1989 年，Mr Cheok Cheo Foh 出任第十三任校长，标志着 Marist Brothers 担任校长的时代结束。1990 年 10 月，Mr Lee Kim Tian 接任校长，并继续扩建学校——增设新食堂及两栋教学楼、美术室、实验室、工艺室、讲堂与空调图书馆（1992 年为 D 座，1998 年为 E 座）。2001 年，他退休前在食堂旁设立了阅读角。在他的任期内，学校于 2000 年开办高中六文科班。
2001 年 9 月 16 日，Madam Tan Lin 成为学校首位女校长。在她的领导下，一座耗资三百万令吉的体育中心于 2005 年 6 月 18 日启用，内设壁球场、篮球场、排球场、乒乓球馆、活动室与会议室。学校礼堂加装空调，为各种活动提供舒适环境；学校门面亦重新建设，使公教中学外观更具现代感与庄严气质。她还推动安装闭路电视系统及兴建带自动拦杆的警卫亭，体现了对全校师生安全的关怀。
公教中学的扩建成功，离不开富有远见的领导层、校董会、家教协会、校友会、热心捐助者及教师的贡献。如今，在 Madam Lee Kim Lai 担任校长的领导下，学校已发展为一所拥有超过 150 名教职员及逾 3000 名学生的教育综合体。每年入学申请依旧络绎不绝。校长与全体教职员深信，公教中学必将继续作为卓越的教育中心，迎接未来的挑战。
修士会会士吴西俊修士（Rev. Bro. Philippe Wu）创办本校。最初仅有两个初一班级，只收男生，并借用吉隆坡 SR La Salle Brickfields 的校舍上课。
公教中学迁至吉隆坡 SM Maxwell 。
在八打灵再也第10区兴建A座教学楼。
建设科学实验室。
公教国民型中学（SMJK Katholik）成为政府改制学校。
兴建B座教学楼。
兴建吴西俊修士礼堂。
兴建C座教学楼（科学实验室及图书馆）。
开设高中六理科班。
首次招收女学生进入过渡班。
兴建壁球场大楼。
兴建D座大楼（讲堂及生活技能工作坊）。
兴建E座大楼（新图书馆、科学实验室及美术室）。
开设高中六文科班。
兴建体育中心（篮球场、排球场、壁球场、乒乓球馆、活动室及行政室）。
学校体育中心正式启用。
建设校门拱门。
启动学校档案馆。
推行学校管理系统（SMS），迈入智慧管理时代。
翻新学校厕所。
在科学园启动“绿色能源”计划（风力发电机与太阳能板）。