As we all know there are rumors that surface about the “secret places” around Elder High School. The roof top pool, the secret stair well, and what is really in the teacher’s lounge are just a few of the places that allegedly exist within the walls of Elder.

We start off our search for the hidden places of Elder in the basement. There are only a few classrooms underground, however, it is not the classrooms that are secret, but the doors that only a few people have actually entered.

Behind one of the closed doors in the basement lies stacks of candy and Powerade. No this is not a joke, the room is actually filled with a surplus supply of all of the candy and drinks that go into the vending machines. Mountains of Big Texas’, and stacks of Sockers line the walls. But good luck getting into the room. The door is locked with a finger print key pad and a number pad.

The next room we visit is not really a secret, but what goes inside is only spoken about in whispers among the teachers. Yes, it’s the teachers’ lounge. The teachers claim they just get coffee in there, but there is much more that what they are telling us. We made our way into lounge one day after school and boy were we surprised. A full service Starbucks and a massage parlor fill the area where one would think teachers should be doing school work. (In fact it is actually a boring room with a stale pot of coffee in the corner.)

We asked the man with the key to everything, Mr. Otten, where the best kept secrets of Elder are hidden. His answer raised a few more questions than answers.

“The tower on the Seton end of the building.” Mr. Otten told us that Archbishop Alter, insisted that the tower be built to improve the buildings aesthetics. “The room has never been used, it’s just there.” Now that just sounds strange to me, they build a room, just to build it. What is Elder really hiding up there?

Another place unknown to the common Elder student is what is under the pit. We have all stood in the stands, but what is really under the cement and steel.

The entrance to under the pit is located behind the horse shoe by the notorious Elder Lacrosse wall. Under the horse shoe is not home to rats and mice like one would expect, but to Elder track and field. Inside the vast cavity, is a full scale pole vaulting set up.

We took a good hard look at the Elder faculty and looked for who we thought would know the most secrets about Elder. We landed on Mr. Dabbelt. With Mr. Dabbelt being the athletic director, we figured he had to know so many pretty chill shops around the school.

“My favorite secret place would have to be the fifth floor.” The fifth floor has the greatest view in the school. The room overlooks the pit, and gives a great view of Price Hill.

Another secret of the fifth floor is that it is the door way to the roof top pool. Now some the underclassmen thought that the pool was just a myth, though it is in fact more real than Santa Claus.

The Fifth floor pool can only be accessed by a key card given to the seniors on the first day of school.

Now we all know there are secret rooms, but did you know there is a secret stair well? Well, in fact there is.

On the third floor right by the science labs, there is a door that leads to a hidden set of stairs. The stair way doesn’t lead to anywhere special, just to the ground floor.

With all of these secrets hidden around the school, it makes me wonder what else Elder is hiding from us.