As the cool breezes of October welcomes fall, more stories of Terrace lore get whispered around the building. Taking the form of inside jokes mentioned in passing, or anecdotes of years past brought up during class lectures.
Especially as Halloween draws nearer, rumors and creepy stories arise.
Some of the teachers who have been around MTHS longer have untold tales and mysteries of former students and teachers.
They’ve had many years to accumulate them and while time has passed, they are not yet forgotten. One of the many stories shared of events within the school walls just so happens to be found on the roof.
Down a hallway and to a room, there is a rumor a chair with a singular light stands at the end. While discussing stories with senior history teacher George Dremousis, he said, “I’ve never seen it nor been up there but I know some kids who swear that that thing was there. Then over the years it became this spooky story that people would go up there and find duct tape on the chair or other objects. People assumed it’d been used as some torture room. I have no idea, [it’s] just a rumor.”
While the telling of this tale has declined over the years, there are more spooky rumors and fun festive traditions that used to take place.
In the past, on an early October morning, staff would team up for an amusing trick. Using caution tape from Dremousis’ closet and applying their joint creativity, they would gather near the forested area by the tennis courts and make a spooky crime scene for a good scare! They would tape off the area and make a chalk outline for an extra touch.
Always a fun to wake up at 7 a.m. for the students of the past! That’s not the only frequent wake up for students, however. A frequent occurrence at Terrace (and most schools) are fire alarms.
Either pulled by students, accidental triggers, drills, or for actual emergencies.
Rumor has it that in the first two years the new building was open alarms went off more than 30 times.
You wanna know what else was fire? Sophomore history teacher Christopher Ellinger’s classroom.
One of the alarms for a real fire originated from the second floor of the building where Ellinger normally teaches humanities.
As a prank, a group of students had grabbed some paper towels and layered them on the floor until the entire ground was covered in sandy brown. They then grabbed a match and set the room alight.
While not the brightest idea, it definitely made the room a whole lot brighter (thankfully no permanent damage was done).
Another area where students don’t tend to have the brightest ideas is on the road. Juniors and seniors learning how to drive (and actually driving) can in itself can be a bit scary.
However, what’s even more terrifying is drunk driving, and the old drivers’ ed program at Terrace definitely agreed with that sentiment.
Though we no longer have drivers’ ed, most high schools in the state, including Terrace used to offer it in partnership with the Department of Motor Vehicles Curriculum. Students would take it as an after school class at the building or took it during the summer. The school used to highlight the dangers of drunk driving in a creative way.
“They would bring a totaled car in, from my understanding it was from a fatal accident and they’d kept this mangled car and they’d put it in the parking lot and get a volunteer student to get in the car and they’d put fake blood on them,” former science teacher Mark Burbank reminisced. “They would have students come out and look at it and the effects of drunk driving.”
The school partnered with Mom’s Against Drunk Driving to make it realistic, making a memorable but gory scene. One can only hope the message got across and that it prevented future drives from ending in a ghostly tale.
The visual really hit home for some students, as alumni to this still remember the bloody scene that definitely wasn’t expected. The presentation was usually timed right before senior prom to discourage drinking and driving.
As costs went up and the drivers’ ed requirements changed on the state level, it was removed from curriculum.
Yet, the message that came from the old program was remembered, and will continue to be remembered down the line like other stories here at Terrace as something interesting, and something to keep students.
Despite the many spooky traditions that have faded out, you can still find some fun fall seasonal activities in the classrooms!
Burbank and history teacher Michole Mattix both contribute to spooky spirit with unique activities like guess that candy and mummifying apples.
These are just a few of the many spooky stories and traditions surrounding Terrace, contributing to a fun community environment. Though, hopefully no more fake crime scenes will be spotted as an early scare for students. If you do ever need to make one, or need caution tape for a variety of reasons, stop by Dremousis’s room!