What's one of the most important things to know when applying to Catholic School? Don't be tardy, say local Catholic educators.

"People just can't come in here in late spring and enroll their child in kindergarten," said Kevin Baxter, principal at American Martyrs School in Manhattan Beach, which hosts an information night for parents in January to advise them of the application process and requirements. Since American Martyrs is a "double grade school" with two kindergartens and a pre-kindergarten, parents are advised their kindergarten applicant will be screened during a testing session in February to assess the child's developmental level.

Whether applying for kindergarten or higher grades, all incoming students are evaluated through a testing process. "Now Catholic schools have new kinds of assessments and resources to accommodate more children with learning challenges. There's a big move toward teaching strategies that are inclusive," said Pat Livingston, archdiocesan superintendent of elementary schools.

After kindergarten applicants at American Martyrs are tested and grouped by developmental ability and maturity into either the half-day pre-K class or the full-day kinder classes, Baxter and Msgr. John Barry, pastor, review the applications. As in most parish schools, priority is given to children of parishioners. But, when the parishioner applicant pool exceeds openings, children whose parents have a history of volunteerism in the church community receive preference over "Sunday obligation only" church members.

While many of the 226 archdiocesan elementary schools admit non-Catholics, particularly schools in the inner city serving the economically disadvantaged, others only enroll Catholic families. At Holy Trinity School in San Pedro, another double grade school, applicants must be baptized Catholics.

"Everything goes back to our mission and philosophy. We want families that practice the faith at home," said Linda Wiley, currently in her 16th year as principal. "We give so much more than education. It's a family here. We grow together, we live together, we pray together."

At Our Lady of Lourdes School in East Los Angeles, administration officials emphasize their commitment to a Catholic education to prospective parents. "The first thing I ask parents is 'Why are you putting your child in Catholic school?'" said Annette Olivas, an OLL alumna who has been principal since 1994. "It's expected that parents will be partners with us in their child's spiritual journey."

With the stresses of contemporary life, including long work commutes and increasing numbers of single parent families, parents often cite their priority as "safety," rather than their child's spiritual education, as the main reason for applying to Catholic school. "Today, parents are seeking schools where they work or near grandparents," said Livingston. Regardless if students are "commuters" or parishioners, most schools require the performance of approximately 40 service hours to the school or parish. In addition, each family is usually responsible for a certain amount of fundraising.

Depending on the admittance policies of individual schools, kindergarten applicants must have reached the age of 5 by either Sept. 1, Oct. 1 or Dec. 1. Applicants must provide a birth certificate for age verification as well as a baptismal certificate, social security number and immunization history.

High school applications

At the high school level, many of the 50 Catholic secondary schools, including archdiocesan, parish and private schools hold open houses in December and January for prospective students. Students must take an entrance exam, offered this year at many campuses on January 28, as part of the application process. Admittance is mostly based on junior high grades and entrance exam results, especially in schools with many more applicants than openings.

The good news, according to archdiocesan high school superintendent Nancy Coonis, is that there are many more openings for freshmen in local Catholic high schools than the total number of seats available in archdiocesan eighth grade classrooms. "If a student meets academic qualifications, there's a seat for them," said Coonis.

Students with a low grade point average and below-average test scores, however, may not be accepted to their first-choice school if it is one of the more competitive private institutions, such as Loyola in Los Angeles or St. Francis in La Caņada.

A few Catholic high schools offer test-taking seminars before the high school entrance exam. A partial listing of high school exam workshop locations and dates includes Bellarmine-Jefferson in Burbank (Jan. 26), Bishop Alemany in Mission Hills (Jan. 7), and Bishop Amat in La Puente (Jan. 7).

Judy Egan-Umeck, director of admissions at Providence High School in Burbank, offered words of wisdom to parents worrying about their child's performance on the entrance exam.

"As an admissions director, I would advise parents to encourage their children to continue reading through the holiday, review the work their eighth grade teachers have already presented and to ask questions of their teachers about concepts they don't understand," said Egan-Umeck. "Parents need to be positive, encouraging and calm about the whole test-taking process."