METHUEN — When students return to St. Monica School on Tuesday, they will be met by the same friendly, warm and caring woman, except she will be doing a different job.

Sister Alice St. Joseph Kenney, fifth-grade teacher at the school for 26 years, is now the principal.

"I'm looking forward to it," Kenney said. "I can't wait for the doors to open and school to start."

Kenney is one of only two women religious who head elementary schools in Greater Lawrence and Haverhill.

The other nun is Sister Lucy Veilleux, principal at St. Patrick School on Parker Street in Lawrence.

"It's good for them to see that we're visible and that our life is a life of prayer and service," Kenney said. "But it can be lonely at the top."

Kenney wanted to become a nun and a teacher in the second grade, inspired by the Sisters of Notre Dame, who educated her at St. James School in Salem.

"I wanted to be like them because of their service to other people," she said. Kenney's mother was sick and the sisters were like mothers to her.

She continued studying with the Sisters of Notre Dame at Emmanuel College in Boston, where she received a degree in education.

Kenney also has a master's degree in administration from Boston College.

"Being a sister and a teacher is my way of saying yes for what they did for me," she said.

At St. Monica at 212 Lawrence St., Kenney will oversee 215 students in kindergarten through eighth grade, a staff of eight teachers, as well as a music, computer, physical education, Spanish teacher and a librarian.

In addition to Methuen, she has taught in Dorchester, Hudson and Peabody as well as the Diocese of Worcester.

"Education is so important because we're molding the children who will be tomorrow's future," Kenney said.

Despite the tough economy, Kenney said parents are still sending their children to Catholic schools.

"They see the quality of what our schools teach, and that we're not teaching for a test, but building on what they have learned at home," she said.

Area Catholic schools were run by sisters in every grade up to 20 or 30 years ago.

Today, many Catholic schools are void of women in black habits and rosary beads around their waists due to a decrease in women choosing the vocation.

But sisters are not totally out of the picture. In addition to Kenney, St. Monica has Sister Mary Shea, who has been teaching third grade for 26 years.

Locally, there are several Catholic secondary schools such as Notre Dame High, Central Catholic High and Presentation of Mary. Both Kenney and Veilleux said lay teachers have done a tremendous job at Catholic schools.

"I can't say enough about them. The dedication they show these children is phenomenal," she said.

At St. Patrick, Veilleux is joined by fellow Sisters of Charity, Sister Ellen William, who teaches kindergarten, Sister Nancy Conlon, who teaches fourth grade, and Sister Anne Hegarty, who teaches seventh grade.

Presentation of Mary Sister Janice Perault teaches religion and Spanish to eighth-graders at St. Patrick.

"This is not a job, it's a mission to bring Jesus Christ to the children," said Veilleux, who made her vows in 1993. "This is what I devoted my life for."

In Andover at St. Augustine's School, Sister Kathleen Leary has been a first-grade teacher for more than 30 years. She is joined by Sister Paul Murphy, a sixth-grade instructor.

Other schools like Bellesini Academy, St. Mary of the Assumption and Our Lady of Good Counsel, all in Lawrence, St. Michael in North Andover, Sacred Hearts and St. Joseph, both in Haverhill, do not have any sisters on their staffs.

"We try to keep the sisters in the classrooms if we can," said Kenney.