Mrs. Jane Hayes/Miss Vivian Bolton - 1870's -1920's
Professor Guy E. Hoffman - 1920's -1960's
Mr. Ralph Haynes - 1960's -1980's
Mrs. Bonita Grumme - 1980's - 1990's
Mrs. Barbara Fletcher - 1990's - 2003
Mrs. Trudi Royston - 2005 - present
Mrs. Jane Hayes/Miss Vivian Bolton
Barret's Chapel School is one of the oldest educational institutions in Shelby County. It was in the 1870's that newly-freed slaves living in the vicinity petitioned Squire Henry Thomas, a director of the Shelby County Schools, to provide educational facilities for their children. Prior to this petition, children in this area attended school in Tipton county. The petition for a new school was granted. Land for the school was donated by Mrs. Jane Hayes and Hayes Grove School was born. It holds the distinction as being the first Black school in the county to have had a graduation exercise from the eighth grade.
This exercise attracted so much attention that the patrons began looking for a more desirable site for the school. A committee including Mr. William Gray and Professor Levi Bolton were in charge of acquiring the new location. With assistance from the Rosenwald fund and through the efforts of Squire J.H. Barret and others, the dream for a new school was realized. Land was acquired from Mr. Bob Huett and a new four-room building was erected at the present location. Miss Vivian Bolton was chosen as the first principal.
It was in 1922 that parents decided that children in the area should have more than an eighth grade education. Again under the leadership of Lewis Bolton and William Gray, additional land was obtained and an eight-room building with auditorium was built to accommodate twelve grades. Hayes Grove became a high school under the principalship of Professor Guy E. Hoffman. The name was changed to Barret's Chapel in honor of its sponsor, Squire J.H. Barret, who was instrumental in expanding the institution. The high school began operation in 1925. There were seven members in its first graduation class in 1929.
In 1947 the P.T.A. purchased the first school bus permitting students who lived far away to attend high school.
Additional land was purchased and the facilities were improved in 1959. From its small beginning as a one-room school, Barret's had grown into a multiple-building facility with a campus covering 21 acres.
In the spring of 1960 a fire destroyed all buildings on campus except the high school building, vocational shop, and the principal's house. At the time of the fire, 43 teachers were employed for an enrollment of 1,232 students.
The construction of a new cafeteria, gymnasium, and elementary building was completed in 1961. The new gymnasium, named for the principal, Mr. Guy E. Hoffman, was dedicated May 20, 1962. Mr. Hoffman retired as principal in 1968 after 40 years of service in the school and the community.
Mr. Ralph Haynes, former assistant principal, was appointed principal in 1968. During his principalship desegregation of schools in Shelby County brought about numerous changes. In May, 1971, the last senior class graduated. With the beginning of the 1971-72 school term, Barret's became an elementary school for grades K-8. During the first three years following desegregation, grades 6-8 were housed in the high school building and operated on a middle school schedule. By 1974 the enrollment had decreased to the extent that all 9 grade levels could be accommodated in one building.
In the early 1980's Barret's began its computer technology program with Apple IIe computers. Students in grades 7 and 8 were taught Computer Skills Next lessons designed for use in Tennessee schools. In May, 1983, Mr. Haynes left his principalship at Barret's after serving 15 years.
Mrs. Bonita Grumme, appointed principal in 1983, continued the 100 year plus heritage of excellence in academics, athletics, and community service. Mrs. Grumme also helped usher in the "Computer Age" at Barret's. Seeing Barret's linked to the Internet and the school networked were some of the technological advancements realized during her principalship. Mrs. Grumme served as principal until 1997.
Mrs. Barbara Fletcher was appointed principal in 1997. She recruited parent volunteers and businesses to help sponsor the programs that were initiated at Barret's. Newsletters and calendars were sent to parents to keep them informed about activities taking place. Honor roll parties are sponsored for the students who made the teacher's or principal's honor roll. The BUG Club honored students who brought up their grades. The PTA helps the school sponsor annual fundraising events such as a spaghetti supper, a carnival, and a lip sync contest.
Mrs. Fletcher actively sought donations for the school from many businesses in the area. She received donations from Peoples Bank, Millington Telephone company, Memphis Stone and Gravel, Standard Construction Company, Lakeland Lions Club, and Wright Medical, just to name a few. The Lakeland Lions club purchased a cotton trailer so the school could collect aluminum cans and the Lions Club has donated a $1000 each year to Barret's.
Improvements were made to the cafeteria. A snack bar was added so the children can purchase additional food items. Purple and gold curtains were made for the cafeteria windows and purple and gold awnings were added over the entrance and exit doors to the serving line inside the cafeteria. Paintings were also added to the cafeteria, as well as state symbols and the U.S. map. To beautify the campus, parents, teachers, students, and local nurseries donated shrubs, flowers and tulip bulbs to help improve the appearance of the campus.
Prior to 1997 there were two Title I labs, one for reading and one for math that allowed for 13 students to go to each lab. When Barret's became a school-wide Title I school in 1998, one lab was created for 26 students, instead of two separate labs. All K-5 students were able to attend the lab twice a week, once for reading reinforcement and once for math reinforcement.
In 1997 a Parent/Teacher Resource room was added to be utilized for parenting classes and staff development, an after school Y-Care program was started, the Accelerated Reader program began with the PTA purchasing prizes and rewards for the students who participated in the program. and an adult basic education class was held two nights a week to assist participants in obtaining their GED. In 1998, the band room, which had not been used - was renovated, painted, and air-conditioned and served as the music room.
Peoples Bank, owned by the Barret Family and for whom the school was named, sponsored the WeatherNet 3 program for the school beginning in August 1998. After the death of Mr. Paul Barret, Jr., the Peoples Banks were sold to Trustmark who has continued to sponsor the program.
In 1998 Barret's began participation in a Class Size Reduction program for grades 1-3. This program was started to help schools improve student learning by reducing class sizes so children in the early elementary grades could attend smaller classes. The students made significant gains in both reading and math. Barret's and Northhaven Elementary were initially the only two Shelby County schools participating in the Class Size Reduction program. E.A. Harrold was added in 2001. This program anticipated to provide $12.4 million over seven years to help schools hire new teachers and reduce class size in the early grades to a nationwide average of 18. During the 1999-2000 school year, the CSR program was expanded school-wide at Barret's to include the entire school.
A Saturday Activities Program for grades K-12 , held on the Barret's campus from 1998-2001, was made possible by a Federal Grant. There were as many as 80 students participating in this program.
During 2000-2001, Barret's was converted from a K-8 school to a K-5 school and students in grades 6-8 were reassigned to the new Arlington Middle School in Arlington, Tennessee. The enrollment at Barret's decreased from 412 students to 274. With the loss of grades 6-8, a long era of Barret's basketball history ended.
In 2000 a new air conditioning unit was installed and in 2001 a new fire alarm system was added to the school. Improvements were made on a continuous basis at Barret's to improve the school's appearance.
