By Ed Langlois

Of the Sentinel

The new kindergarten at Holy Cross School is a welcome addition for all kinds of reasons.

The energetic class, about 20 strong, brings even more cuteness to the North Portland School. More than that, it highlights a growing cultural diversity in the neighborhood.

Father Dave Gutmann, pastor of the North Portland Catholic Community, made reference to the diversity of the class in a recent homily, calling it a 'blessing.'

'We have diversity in all our classes, but it is really more visible there,' says St. Mary Sister Ruth Frank, principal. 'We are really trying to be conscious of that, especially trying to include the Hispanic population more in our school.'

On a recent day in the kindergarten, teacher Teri Kay Hallberg led the students in songs about Jesus, the earth and even mathematics. While some youngsters glued pasta onto paper to form their names, others got special help reading with flashcards.

One girl, unbidden, cleaned up scraps of paper that had fallen to the floor during art session.

At recess, the kindergartners played with their grade 7 buddies. Young students and older students are paired up at Holy Cross and remain pals for two years. From all appearances, both age groups like the arrangement, an impression Sister Ruth confirms.

Each spring, when the eighth-graders graduate, there are some sad first-graders, she says.

The kindergarten also promises to give even more stability to the school's primary grades. Lacking it, past years have been touch and go when it came to first grade especially. No one knew who would come or who might stay at the school where they went to kindergarten.

'It helps us recruit students and have places available for our Catholic community here,' Sister Ruth says.

Parents who have long been eyeing Holy Cross for their toddlers are rejoicing now that they can go there from the start, instead of finding a stop-gap.

Parents also are excited about De La Salle North Catholic, a new high school due to open in the area next fall. Holy Cross and Holy Redeemer schools are expected to be major sources of students for De La Salle.

The Holy Cross kindergarten occupies a bright new room that workers finished just before the start of the fall term. The new room next door is used for music classes and holds dozens of instruments, some of the collection that Portland-area schools banded together to buy several years ago.

'These classes and this space have just been such an asset to our school,' Sister Ruth says.

Under way soon is the annual Holy Cross appeal, which raises money for tuition support and other needs.

- Ed Langlois