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Birmingham News (AL) SCHOOLS GAIN 450 PUPILS OVER 2002 September 10, 2003 Section: Neighborhoods Page: 1-H Illustration: Newscharts titled 'Hoover schools enrollment', 'They come by the hundreds', and 'A decade of growth' accompanied this article. JON ANDERSON News staff writer Hoover city schools have gained nearly 450 more students than at this time last year, pushing enrollment to almost 11,150. The official count on the day after Labor Day - Hoover's primary benchmark from year to year - was 11,141 students, a 4 percent increase from 10,699 students a year ago. That's just above school officials' projection for this year, which was 11,119 students. "We were real pleased with the projections this year, about as good as you can hope," Assistant Superintendent Connie Williams said. The day after Labor Day is used as a benchmark because some students don't show up until then. Hoover schools have gained 260 students since the first day of school on Aug. 13, records show. Over the past 10 years, the school system has added more than 4,000 students, nearly a 60 percent increase since 1993. Growth is not expected to stop, but school officials predict it will slow down. They project Hoover schools will gain 878 students over the next four years, pushing enrollment to just more than 12,000 by 2007. That's only about 220 students per year, compared to an average of 435 more students a year over the past four years. The biggest gains this year are at Spain Park High School, which added its first senior class. Spain Park's enrollment grew 33 percent from 971 students to 1,293. Hoover below 2,000 Conversely, Hoover High School had the biggest drop in students, from 2,144 to 1,972. That was welcome news to those who thought Hoover would never drop below 2,000 students. "I was betting it was not going to get there," said Williams, a former principal at Hoover High. "I'm glad to be wrong on that one." Current Hoover High Principal Gene Godwin said they're enjoying the drop in students while they can. "This is supposed to be our smallest year, and then we gradually start climbing back up," Godwin said. Many homes are being built in subdivisions such as Trace Crossings and the Preserve. "That's a lot of families that are going to be in there and they're all going to be zoned for Hoover," Godwin said. The school with the second largest increase in students was Berry Middle School, which gained 67 students from 1,011 to 1,078. Williams said the ideal size for a middle school probably would be 700 to 750 students. The opening of a fourth middle school at Spain Park, set for 2005, should improve the situation at Berry, she said. Bumpus Middle School gained only 12 students this year, pushing enrollment to 770, while Simmons Middle added 11 students for a total of 824. Green Valley growth The elementary school with the biggest increase this year is Green Valley, where enrollment grew by 59 students from 479 to 538. That's 38 more students than were expected, the largest increase over projections for any Hoover school. "It's hard for us to predict schools with a relatively high percentage of apartments," Williams said. To accommodate the extra students, Green Valley created a sixth kindergarten class eight days after school started to lower student-teacher ratios, Principal Linda Campanotta said. There now is one teacher for every 16 kindergartners, records show. "The biggest thing is just running out of space," she said. Campanotta had to turn a science lab into a regular classroom and have teachers check out science materials without getting the benefit of the lab, she said. "Other than that, it's gone real well," she said. Trace over 1,000 Williams said Trace Crossings Elementary has a challenge with space. Trace Crossings added 50 students this year, boosting its enrollment to 1,005, and also had to add a kindergarten teacher after school started, Williams said. That problem, however, should be solved next year with the opening of Riverchase Elementary, which should take about half of Trace Crossings' students, Williams said. That should make Greystone Hoover's largest elementary school. Greystone gained 43 students this year for a total of 699, but has some room to grow because of a 15,590-square-foot addition last year. Deer Valley Elementary added 33 students this year, increasing enrollment to 529, while Rocky Ridge Elementary gained 30 for a total of 523. Shades Mountain Elementary added four students, keeping it Hoover's smallest elementary school with 321 students. Three elementary schools lost students. Gwin's enrollment dropped by 18 to 477, while South Shades Crest's enrollment fell by 13 to 499 and Bluff Park lost nine students, for a total of 529. The Crossroads alternative school, which draws students from middle and high schools, had 84 students the day after Labor Day, compared to 61 a year ago. RIGHT: Green Valley Elementary School kindergarten teacher Rena Roper and other teachers keep students in line while they wait in the gym to be picked up after school. Green Valley gained 59 students this year, 38 more than projected and more than any other elementary school in Hoover.
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