By DIANE GASPER-O'BRIEN

dobrien@dailynews.net

Catholic Schools Week always is a busy one for Hays Catholic Schools.

This year could top them all, especially at Thomas More Prep-Marian High School.

In addition to the traditional activities surrounding the week set aside for CSW -- now in its 39th year -- TMP also will be holding enrollment for its newly formed junior high.

The national theme for CSW 2012 is "Catholic Schools: Faith. Academics. Service."

That message has never been more clear in Hays, where faith led a group of parents and religious and lay leaders in their service to Catholic education in adding academics for all students kindergarten through 12th grade.

There hadn't been a Catholic school for seventh- and eighth-graders in Hays for several decades, dating back to the early days of TMP's predecessors, which began holding classes in 1908.

The TMP-Marian Junior High was formed when Hays USD 489 announced last summer that it would be closing Kennedy Middle School, one of two public middle schools in Hays, at the end of this school year. Holy Family Elementary School services preschool through sixth grade, and most TMP-bound students had attended Kennedy for their seventh- and eighth-grade years.

It was announced just before Christmas that TMP had been given the go-ahead to expand curriculum and activities at the four-year Catholic high school to include seventh and eighth grades.

Enrollment for the junior high is set for 3:30 to 7 p.m. Tuesday and Friday in the school cafeteria.

Bill DeWitt, principal of TMP, said that even though this particular week already is jam-packed, he and other administrators and teachers decided it was a good time to hold enrollment with all the excitement on campus.

"It works two-fold," he said. "We wanted it to be before our high school enrollment, and we wanted it early enough so we have some kind of idea what kind of numbers we have. Plus, it will give new students and their parents a chance to see some of the things that are going on here."

The highlight of the week for Ellis County schools each year is on Wednesday when all three Catholic schools in the county meet for a day of prayer and activities.

Staff and students from Holy Family Elementary School Hays and St. Mary Elementary School in Ellis will join those from TMP for a 9 a.m. Mass at Immaculate Heart of Mary Church in Hays, then disperse to TMP for various activities during lunch and in the afternoon.

In addition, TMP is hosting a Class 3A regional scholars bowl tournament Thursday, and Friday night's home basketball games with rival Scott City are have been dubbed Holy Family Night, where Holy Family students will get in free.

Other Catholic schools in the area also celebrating CWS this week will be elementary schools with the name Sacred Heart in three different towns -- Colby, Ness City and Plainville -- as well as St. Joseph Elementary in Oakley. All are in the Salina Diocese, with the exception of Ness City, which is serviced through the Dodge City Diocese.