DATE: Tuesday, August 26, 1997              TAG: 9708260367

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B1   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY LEWIS KRAUSKOPF, STAFF WRITER 

                                            LENGTH:   72 lines

FOR SOME, SCHOOL BELLS ALREADY TOLL CATHOLIC ENROLLMENTS HAVE GROWN AGAIN.

Most area children have another week to frolic in the sand or play in the park before putting on their backpacks and heading to class.

But for students at most of the area's Catholic schools and some private schools, the bell rang Monday.

At Catholic schools in Virginia Beach in particular, that means more students than in recent years, as evidenced by expanded facilities and long waiting lists.

All told, about 3,300 students enrolled in Catholic schools this year in South Hampton Roads, where the student population has increased every year since 1990, according to the Catholic Elementary Education Foundation.

The growth, educators say, is due to parents' wanting stronger curriculums rooted in faith.

``A lot of the parents want to get back to the basics,'' said Barbara White, principal of St. Matthew's School. ``They resent that they can't talk about religion without stepping on someone's toes.''

St. Matthew's, located off Indian River Road in Virginia Beach, has grown from about 220 students six years ago to 600 today, White said. A new middle school wing, mobile unit classrooms, a gymnasium and an addition to the cafeteria accommodated that growth for the pre-kindergarten-to-eighth-grade school. But White isn't sure St. Matthew's will add enough space to bring in the 100 children on its waiting list.

Students at St. Gregory the Great had a convocation in the school yard Monday morning. School officials are hoping that they will have more room for such meetings soon. The Virginia Beach City Council is scheduled to consider growth plans today for a 300-student meeting room, as well as two computer labs and a new library.

At 750 students - up from 738 last year - St. Gregory is the largest school in the Catholic Diocese of Richmond, which includes 31 schools in Virginia south of Fredericksburg. The Richmond Diocese has seen a steady increase in its school population in the past decade, said Maureen McCabe, assistant superintendent of schools.

``Basically we have two main goals: a strong faith community, and challenge all our students for excellence,'' McCabe said. ``And they work hand in hand.''

McCabe said the diocese is planning a needs assessment for South Hampton Roads, where there are nine Catholic schools - four in Virginia Beach, four in Norfolk and one in Portsmouth.

One of those schools - Star of the Sea Catholic School - began its 40th year Monday, after extensive renovations to classrooms and school buildings over the summer. Two more kindergarten classrooms will be added by December to the Virginia Beach school - which grew 8 percent this year to 303 students.

Parents ``want their children in a value-centered school, and also they want a strenuous academic program,'' said Star of the Sea Principal Susan Fentress. ``That's what I hear again and again.''

At Catholic High School in Virginia Beach, enrollment inched upward from 450 to 462, but the school is already over its capacity, said Lisa Hamlet, director of development. Hamlet hopes relief will come by next school year, when eight classrooms open, allowing Catholic High to accommodate 600 to 650 students. ``Our walls are busting,'' Hamlet said.

In Norfolk, enrollment at St. Mary's Academy held steady at about 210, while at St. Pius X school, a total of about 500 students made up an 8 percent increase from last year, school officials said. ILLUSTRATION: [Color Photos]

PHILIP HOLMAN Photos

Students at Star of the Sea Catholic School in Virginia Beach head

home after classes Monday. Enrollment grew 8 percent to 303

students.

As her mother, Valerie, records the moment, Samantha Paschang, 5,

and William Sizemore wrap up their first day at Star of the Sea

School.

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