Arlington HS construction students create haunted courtyard for Halloween

For the first time, the construction students' haunted holiday project will be open to the public as a fundraiser

The courtyard at Arlington High School is usually a place to relax, but for weeks, it's been a place of nonstop activity as construction students transform it into a haunted courtyard for Halloween.

"It's just like a haunted house, but instead of inside a building, it's just inside our courtyard," Arlington High School construction teacher Christopher Grimaldo said.

Students wearing hard hats and reflective vests were busy constructing "Jason's Cabin," "The Shining Hallway," and giant monsters that brush the treetops.

"The kids have come up with the ideas of what they wanted to do, the movies they liked," Grimaldo explained. "The idea is to go big and scary but not too graphic."

That's because the haunted courtyard isn't just for students this year. It's for everyone.

"It's fun," junior Alexander Martinez said. "It's really hands-on. I used to come from another district where there was never anything like this."

Martinez wants to be an electrical contractor one day. The six-week project constructing a haunted courtyard was a good experience.

"You're really getting to know the trade," Martinez said. "This is like the reality, you know? Sometimes people are out working in the sun, working a long time, you know? Lifting up heavy stuff."

"So this can help me so I will know how others build," junior and aspiring architect Francisco Romero said. "So my drawings, my buildings, won't be so hard for other people to do."

The experience now, while they're in high school, makes the prospect of doing it in the real world less scary.

"They are a little underestimated," Grimaldo said. "They are honestly great, great young adults. They are very accountable. They are very responsible."

The Arlington High School Haunted Courtyard is a fundraiser for the school's construction class. It opens Thursday, Oct. 17, from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. Admission is $5.