As the leaves turn orange and red, the air grows cold and our minds tend to turn to the supernatural. Ghost stories are shared in hushed voices as we wonder about what’s hiding in the dark. In the fluorescent lights of Timpview the only things that tend to haunt us are upcoming deadlines and our collectively dying motivation. We don’t consider what may wander these halls after dark, or even in the daylight. Perhaps, if one listens hard enough, they will discover that students’ cries of anguish mingle with the cries of the dead. There are ghosts at Timpview, whether you believe it or not.

Legend has it that in 1982 a man named Ian was walking on the catwalk above the auditorium when he took a step too far and broke through the unstable floor. He fell and died, crashing into the chairs below. In some stories Ian was a janitor, in others a construction worker. Some even claim that he was a student, playing hide and go seek with his friends. But one thing that every story agrees on is that he is still in the auditorium, watching.

Madison Tredway, a senior and a member of Timpview’s tech crew shares her own experience with Ian. “Every time we go in the angel room, [the] room that we use to keep food cold, there is an entity.” However, she doesn’t believe we should be too worried about this spector, saying, “I think he’s just trying to make sure all the students are just following the rules, making sure they don’t go through the same fate as him.”

Senior Maggie Nuckolls offers her insight as well. As a member of the pit orchestra she shares what she believes to be her own encounter with Ian. “When we were in rehearsal last year one time the lights flickered four times in a row.” Even with this encounter she also believes that Ian has no intention to harm anyone.

But not everyone feels that Ian isn’t dangerous. Another member of tech crew, senior Sara Wright, claims that whether or not he intends to harm anyone “Depends on his mood and the time of day,” she shares one of her own stories. “I was doing spots for a dance concert and was up on the beam by myself, when I was almost shoved off from behind. But there was nobody else up there. But out of the corner of my eye I could see little things moving, but they would always disappear,” her friend, Jane Booth, a senior, joined the conversation, saying, “For the most part don’t worry about him, but if you’re left alone in the auditorium in the dark, I’m sorry.”

Ian may be here to keep students out of danger. He may be here to terrify students. He may not even exist and these experiences may simply be the result of superstition. But for now if you plan on spending anytime in the auditorium, it might be smart to be respectful, and watch your back.