The Haunted Halls of East High

By Avah Hill

It is said by several teachers at East High School that there are ghosts roaming the halls and classrooms. A teacher in particular, Mr. Jason Castellano, claims that there is a haunting hour at the historic school in which strange things have been reported.

At 5:30 A.M., before the sun lights the darkened sky, is the time Castellano said ghost encounters are most prevalent.  He described the chilling experience he had 14 years ago, and said it is one he has never forgotten:“I would arrive at 5:30 in the morning back then to go over my lessons,” he explained, adding that the school was always quiet. He said that he would always run into the facility manager at the time, Lafayette Rockette.

One morning however, as Mr. Castellano arrived at the school, it seemed extremely quiet. Even more odd, he did not see Mr. Rockette anywhere, and thought that it was very strange. The halls were dark and the lights were all turned off as he continued making his way to his classroom #310. 

“I thought it was another normal day, getting work done before school,” Mr. Castellano recalled. “Then I started to hear a door open and close in the room next door. I heard scratching as if someone was using their fingernails on the chalkboard in the classroom next to mine.” He continued saying that he thought the teacher next door, Mr. Noah Geisel, was playing around and trying to scare him.“Haha Noah, very funny,” he remembers yelling from his classroom, but there was no response. He felt a chill down his spine and went next door to see if Mr. Geisel was there. The door to the classroom next door was locked, and the lights were turned off. Mr. Castellano realized there was no one in the school but him.

Who could have made those noises he clearly heard coming from Mr. Geisels classroom?

In order to try and find an explanation, let's look into the history of East High School. First opened in 1924, East is the very first high school in Denver. It is also notable to mention that it is located close to Cheesman Park. According to LEGENDSOFAMERICA.COM, Cheesman Park once served as a graveyard, and an estimated 2,000 bodies are buried there. Not only have ghost sightings been reported on park grounds, but in the neighborhoods as well. So naturally, it is not surprising that some ghosts may have found their way inside the school, especially when several teachers at East have reported ghost sightings. 

Just as there are ghost believers, there are some teachers at East that say it is all a bunch of bologna. Todd Madison, who teaches AP Literature and Film as Lit, told me that there is no evidence to support the ghost claims made by teachers, or by anyone. “Whenever people try to prove the evidence of ghosts, they fail every time,” he said. “People can have strange experiences, but it's hard to make the leap that the only explanation is the spirits of dead human beings.”

When asked about what his fellow teachers have seen at the school, Mr. Madison replied, “I think people are just having fun with fantasies or they are mistaken. I love ghosts in fiction. In Hamlet and in The Shining, they're sensational. But in real life, they are absent.”

Whether you believe in ghosts or not, Mr. Castellano and other teachers were pretty sure about the ghosts at East High School. And if you would truly like to see for yourself, try to visit the school at 5:30 A.M. on a Sunday morning when no one but you will most likely be there.