The Job Corps initiative is a successful way for young adults who have had a rough start prepare for a smooth future. The Corps will aid you in finishing your education, train you for a job, and give you a place to stay while doing so. The Job Corps in Albuquerque is no different, except that some of those “living” there may have just been there from a time when the building was an orphanage and boys’ school.

In 1918, the Sisters of St. Francis established the orphanage and boys’ school and cared for children without homes until 1971, when the Department of Labor claimed it. There are city records that describe an occurrence of one of the nuns, a Sister “M” who went insane and seemingly randomly murdered a number of the boys. When the school was installing a swimming pool in the location of an unused well, they found the children’s bodies in the well shaft. It is said that you can still hear the cries of dying children.

Since the Job Corps has taken over the old orphanage, many of the stories have been kept hushed up. One has to wonder exactly what does the Job Corps know about the haunting of its buildings? In the Job Corps handbook, it specifically prohibits the use of Ouija boards on campus. Though the school tries to keep any hauntings “mum,” tales of strange noises and sightings have leaked out. One of the most prevalent is seeing a nun carrying a baby outside of the cafeteria. Could she be the murderous nun with a young victim? Or a caring nun who is trying to watch out for the kids even to this day?

A bench in front of the old Independent Dorm is also the location of some strange activity. If you take a seat there at night, you just might hear the laughter, cries, and noises of children playing, as well as adults scolding them. It is as if the area in front of you is a playground for ghosts.

Looking up to the top of what used to be the Chapel when the tract of land contained an orphanage, some have seen what seems to be a lantern floating about. The building at the front gate may also have some haunting activity, but the security staff are not admitting nor denying it, as they have been told not to encourage any “ghost talk.”

A student who attended in the 1980’s remembers the dorms having lots of activity. There were sounds of laughter, crying, and the click-clack of hard-soled shoes walking down the halls when there was no one there to create such a distinctive noise. Past students have also alluded to people seeing things in the silvered mirrors of the older rooms.

One of the more eerie incidences reported is that, on occasion, all clocks in the haunted Jobs Corps Center, including wristwatches, stop at the same time.

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