Remembering Fairview Elementary
Ring out the old,
Ring in the new,
We're like the old woman
Who lived in a shoe,
We have so many children
We don't know what to do.

T'was in the fall of 1962
A new brick school was opened called Fairview
Students came from miles around
To the newest school in town.
These students came from numerous schools
Some with one room, others with two.
Schools with names like Fernvale, Pleasant Ridge and Naomi,
Aden, Coldwater, Triangle and Starkey,
Forest Glen, Fairview and Cherokee,
Haskell, Liberty Hill, and Union Valley,
All of these schools over time were closed
And blended together to make the Fairview we know.

Excitement must have reigned as students in grades 1-8
Gathered into the new building to learn their fate
With Mr. Carl Owen as the first principal of Fairview School,
The children soon learned that reading and writing were the rule.

Sixteen teachers were there the very first year,
With last names like Spicer, Padgett, Larmore, and Bethshears,
For the school year 1963-64,
The community continued to grow because there were more
Teachers added to the faculty
For a total of 19---one being Eddie,
Hyche, that is who stayed around for quite a while
Remaining until 1997 when he went out in style.

Time moved on as the school continued to grow,
Carl Owen left in the spring of '67 so
In the fall Wilburn Kelley became principal then
Joining him were teachers with last names of Inman, Gipson, and Hudson.
There also appeared in the office a young secretary who
Was named Evelyn Jones--I'm sure she had much to do.

In the fall of 1968
Things at Fairview were going just great
Margaret Cunningham arrived that year in the fall
To teach in her hometown where she knew or was kin to one and all.

By the fall of 1970 when I arrived
Fairview Elementary was really beginning to thrive.
There were now three teachers in many grades
With primary classrooms having Title 1 aides.
With last names of Jones, Mangrum, Chester and Hall
They really helped kids to "stay on the ball."

By the fall of 1971,
All classrooms were filled and then some.
Grades 7 and 8 were moved to the high school then
Giving Fairview Elementary room to grow once again.

T'was the fall of 1974 when Robert Cantrell arrived
To be principal at Fairview where he survived
For 23 years the whims of various superintendents and directors,
Until he retired in style in 1997, a defector,
To a more leisurely life of tending hearth and home,
With an occasional trip out west where he liked to roam.

By 1976, Fairview Elementary had outgrown
its building so plans were drawn
For new additions on either end,
One for the upper grade--the other for kindergarten.

In 1977 we had an opening for
A new secretary with duties galore
That's when Linda Lampley arrived on the scene
To meet new challenges and hone her skills till they were keen.

Student population slowly crept upward until
In 1981, the sixth grade moved to another school but still,
We grew, having 4 or 5 teachers per grade
Until plans were finally made
To move the fifth grade to Fairview Middle School in 1985
Fairview Elementary, once again, had room to thrive.
 

We moved right along at a steady pace,
Until once again we were out of space.
So a new second grade wing was built out back for us
Opening in February 1992 without much fuss.

In the years to follow our school was updated,
With fluorescent lights throughout, and new drop ceilings, we were elated,
New coats of paint were applied, new cabinets installed,
A classroom was, by removing some walls,
Converted into a spacious office complex complete with conference room,
A clinic and spacious offices, 'twas not a moment too soon.
Finally, the dark coal room which some of us remember well,
Was miraculously transformed into a guidance room which is really swell.

In the fall of 1997, Michelle Lufkins became
Fairview's fourth principal and thus began
Her tenure here
Which has lasted for three years.

In the last few years our student population has grown
Until there are now 6 teachers in each grade alone,
Plus a preschool, pre-K, and three Reading Recovery slots,
Teachers in PE, music, art, guidance, library, Spanish--that's quite a lot!
Plus special ed teachers, teacher assistants and speech therapy
A secretary, and bookkeeper to help you and me,
Other support personnel such as cafeteria staff
Who feed the children daily in our school "caf".
Let's not forget those who push mops and clean,
Like Gail, Evelyn and Miss Esterline.
Remember James Harrison our "Mr. Fix-It" man who drove a bus
And also stoked our boiler with coal morning and evening without any fuss.

Here we are now in the new millennium
We at Fairview Elementary have seen many changes and then some,
But none like the change which is about to take place
It's all happening because we once again need more space
More space for children to grow and to learn,
For teachers to teach them so for knowledge they'll yearn.

Fairview Elementary was formed 38 years ago
By blending students from smaller schools into one, so
Now, it is time for a change once again
But this time, no schools will close, but a new one will open,
Taking with it students and teachers who will move down the road,
To a new building called Westwood which will lighten the load
At Fairview Elementary so there will be space
For fifth grade students to return to this place.

So, it's ring out the old and ring in the new,
For all the students, faculty and staff here at Fairview.
Though there will now be two schools in the Fairview community,
May we continually strive for unity,
Never losing our focus, nor the goals we wish to attain,
For in the end, we know, it's the children who must sustain!

written by
Elaine Warwick
May 15, 2000