John Barrett Middle School

My Children went to Barrett. I am very unhappy with this school. I had to remove my daughter and home school her. First, the office secretary is rude. Every time you speak with her she acts as though you are bothering her. When my daughter started Barrett she had A's and B's and went into HA. When her grades started falling I tried moving her into a regular class and was told no. The counselor never returned my calls or emails. She had multiple incidents where she was bullied and threatened and the vice principal was not active in ensuring that the bullying stopped. Finally after repeated days of calling and trying to get the to address the issues I pulled out my daughter. At which time, they now refuse to give me details on how they are dealing with the girls that bullied her because they say it is confidential. The staff at this school need to get the bullying under control or someones child is going to get hurt. I am glad I removed my daugther....please don't consider this school it is not a good place.
--Submitted by a parent

Barrett has some outstanding teachers. To name a few, Mr. Bisquara, Ms.Mcenroe, Mr.Stroble and Mrs.Danzinger and Ms. Smiley. i have had all these teachers since coming to Barrett and all of them have made me a better person. the two that have inspired me most are Mr Biquara and Ms.Smiley (my PE teachers)

I find it appalling that both a parent and teacher at Barrett is so illiterate and can t spell. It tells you all about the problem of getting the children to learn if the teachers are no better. One would only have to read the message of I am both a parent and teacher at Barrett Posted May 27, 2010 and it tells it all. I guess this parent and teacher also speaks well English. LOL However Barrett does have a problem and I guess they can t seem to get a grip on the bullying taking place there. NO child should be subjected to this.
--Submitted by a parent

Blaming the students? I find that appalling, and yet a very old story. The posts blamed students for Barrett being "past its prime:" "I believe this is due to the influx of students coming with behavior problems" and "but the students have a lot of behaviors that prevent you from teaching and others to learn"? All of our schools should be flexibly equipped to work with every kind of student, no matter the background, experiential differences, or behavioral and processing challenges. Rather than blame children for a school "going downhill," why not work and advocate for sufficient resources and teachers per classroom to effective meet and support each and every child who enters those halls? Every student, teacher, and community member will gain from such an approach.

I am so glad to read that other families & staff are finally seeing that Barrett is long past its prime, and is highly overrated. For years it had a very strong reputation, but in recent years has gone downhill. I believe this is due to the influx of students coming with behavior problems and from the lack of enforcement of school rules. There are some great teachers at Barrett, don't get me wrong. The principal seems to be pretty good, too. I agree that the language commonly heard on campus and the non-enforcement of dress code is pretty bad. But the drug use and daily fights that go on are very alarming, and most parents aren't aware of it. I am also upset about the frequent showings of movies in class that waste teaching time. My kids have all seen their first nudity/sex scenes in movies the teachers didn't edit!
--Submitted by a parent

I am both a parent and teacher at Barrett. There first of all is a great staff, but the students have a lot of behaviors that prevent you from teaching and others to learn. I find it to be alarming, Also, the dress code needs to be inforced. I think no bagging pants, sweats, or athletic short in addition to not having graphic tees that they get by with wearing. In being able to dress so casually at times enhances ones attitude. There are many middle schools to choose from that are much better than Barrett give them a try before sending your student here. There is only so much a teacher can do with the high level of problems coming to the school. Even with the wonderful principal to many things get to slide by. Also, the language you here when you are walking down the hall is very saddening.
--Submitted by a teacher

We just moved to Carmichael from El Dorado Hills and we came from great schools there in EDH. What I really like about John Barrett is the communication the school has with the parents. They don't let anything slip by without informing you about it. They really care about their students. We rarely got this in the EDH schools. My daughter has made wonderful friends and the homework load is not overwhelming so far. The teachers are also wonderful. We also like Barrett's small town feel. So far we are very happy with Barrett.
--Submitted by a parent

As a teacher at Barrett, I can tell you that the teachers really care about their students. I teach computers, and for electives we also offer performing arts, art, band, government, and media.
--Submitted by a teacher

I live in Las Vegas, but I have talked to some of my kids teacher and principal, they are always very helpful. My son loves the school
--Submitted by a parent

The teaching and office staff are great. They are always with a smile and a pleasant comment about your child. My child has not been the easiest at testing their patience but they always prevail. The IE program is awesome and they exhaust every avenue. The only problem I see is how they handle policy violations. Any problems are handled internally and many times without parent notification. When a district/school policy is violated all parents involved need to be notified. Outside of that for a school of it's size it does a good job.
--Submitted by a parent