Do Ghosts Linger on Centenary Campus?

Founded in 1867, Centenary has seen many changes. From its early beginnings as a collegiate institute, to an all-girls school; from two-year to four-year college and most recently, gained University status. However, what has not changed is this haunting fact: how students and staff believe spirits linger throughout the buildings on campus. 

Rumor or Reality?

There are rumors that spirits wander through the Seay building, along with Smith Hall and other historical buildings on campus. But is this rumor or reality? We set out to find out by interviewing some people on campus. 

Staff Encounters

Students come and go, but staff often have more longevity and opportunity to experience the long-term paranormal vibe of the campus community. We asked a few staff members about their experiences with spirits–or ghosts–on campus. 

Victoria Ramsay, part-time librarian and archivist

“My main experience was near the library's Wellness Room/Mini Museum, and you're going to have to bear with me, because although it doesn't sound that creepy, it was. I was alone in the library and closing up for the day. I went to shut the lights off in the Wellness Room—the one with all the beanbag chairs—and as I entered the room, one of the beanbags in the corner suddenly seemed to inflate from a heavy decompression as if someone had been sitting on it and now stood up, and I felt some kind of chill in the room as soon as I entered.”

“I have been in that room nearly every day and have never been able to recreate what happened. It legitimately felt like there was someone sitting on the beanbag, causing some kind of dent in it, and then when I entered, they rose to greet me. The chill, too, was weird, since there is no door to the room to swing open and cause a breeze, and it was winter, so the air conditioning was off.”

“When New Jersey Paranormal hold their ghost tours in the library, the Wellness Room and Mini Museum areas are the two strongest areas with paranormal activity, so it didn't feel too far out of reach to say that something was in there.”

“It's become kind of a tradition now when I'm opening up and closing up by myself to say hello and goodbye to whoever is in that room.”

“Just a few days after my experience, Susan Van Alstyne, the library director, also claims to have seen a ghost near the Print Shop—another popular spot according to NJ Paranormal.”

Susan Van Alstyne, library director

“When I joined Centenary University in March 2022 as the director of the Taylor Memorial Library, there were many rumors on campus about ghosts. Although I have always been interested in studies about hauntings and ghosts, I initially didn't pay much attention to these stories.”

“It wasn't until September 2024 that I had my own encounter. We were planning for our Bewitching Birthday Bash to celebrate the library's 70th Birthday, and we were inviting New Jersey Paranormal to host a program during our birthday celebration.”

“One dreary September night, as I was closing the library, I was downstairs approaching the print shop near the doors just outside the archives–there it was: a figure cloaked in a long garment and what appeared to be boots. The figure made a quick turn, swishing movement by the stairwell, and then vanished.” 

“I was startled but thought it was a late night, and I must be tired! However, I could not erase that image from my memory. About a week after seeing the figure, while speaking with the owner of New Jersey Paranormal to schedule their program, I mentioned my experience. I joked about having seen a ghost in the library. He responded, ‘Maybe not: Was the ghost outside the print shop?’”

Darlene White, manager of external conferences and events

Darlene White is in charge of organizing external events at Centenary, including events with NJ Paranormal (NJP), a NJ-based paranormal investigation team who travels across the state to encounter different spirits. 

What does a NJ Paranormal event at Centenary look like? What happens and what are the details of the event?

“The event takes place in various parts of the university, primarily in Seay and the library. Ghost hunters break the group up into smaller teams, led by an experienced investigator. Each investigator has specialized equipment with them including thermographic and night vision cameras, audio recorders, spirit, and voice boxes.”

“Guests rotate to various rooms, working with a new investigator each time in an attempt to discredit any findings. I say discredit as NJP is continually looking for explanations to explain occurrences first, as opposed to jumping to conclusions.” 

“Having worked with them for several years now, they are genuinely interested in the discovery process. Before our first tour, I advised them that we didn’t want this to become a Tillie hunt. They responded that the school was built in the late 1800s. If spirits are present, there are plenty more than Tillie wandering these halls.”

“There are several NJ Paranormal events running at Centenary this year. The first one was held April 12 and sold out well in advance of the event. The next event is July 5; if you are interested, purchase your tickets soon because they sell out fast! They can be found at centenaryuniversityevents.com/events.”

Have you attended the event? If so, what is something interesting you saw happen?

“Yes, I’ve attended over four ghost tours at the university. The ghost tour was a fascinating experience! There were some very interesting moments that made me pause. Whether it was history, atmosphere, or something more, it definitely added to the intrigue of the night!”

How many times has NJ Paranormal held events at Centenary, and when did they hold their first event here?

“New Jersey Paranormal has been conducting ghost tours on campus since 2023. They have conducted over 15 ghost tours at the university, including a haunted objects lecture for the library.”

Do you believe there are ghosts on Centenary’s campus? 

“People often associate 'spirit' with something positive and 'ghost' with something ominous. I don’t believe there are harmful ghosts on campus—nothing documented or experienced on tours suggests that.”

“There have been experiences on the ghost tours I can’t explain, and very specific participant readings conducted by local psychic medium Silvia Rossi on campus that brought people to tears.”

“However, the unseen is always up to interpretation. Whether ‘spirits’ exist is open to debate, but the stories and experiences add to the university’s unique character.”

White left us with an intriguing thought; “there is nothing documented to evidence that spirits stay in one place. In fact, if one believes that spirits can attach and travel with objects, follow us to offer protection, leave feathers and objects to let us know they are still around, then it’s logical to presume they are not trapped within the confine of a property.” 

“How boring would that be? If I were a spirit that could travel, I’m hitching a ride on the first suitcase headed to Disney World,” concluded White. 

New Jersey Paranormal: Ghost Tour at Centenary University

By way of a little background, NJP discovered Centenary University by accident. There was another organization planned to come to CU that had a similar name to NJP. After this accidental discovery, NJP researched more on the history and background of Centenary, deciding they wanted to investigate the spirits within the campus.

We were given the opportunity to attend the NJP ghost tour at Centenary on April 12 from 7-11 p.m. 

The people attending the event were split into four groups, each rotating every 45-55 minutes. Four different places around campus were investigated with a different member of the NJP team at each station. We investigated the Little Theater, Taylor Memorial Library, the Whitney Chapel, and the SAC. 

Equipment Rundown

The NJP staff used multiple types of equipment to conduct their investigations. Different pieces of equipment pick up electric and magnetic fields (EMFs); the equipment changes colors to show the changes in EMF. 

Another common piece of equipment is called a REM pod, REM standing for Radiating ElectroMagneticity. The most common type of REM pod is a cylinder with an antenna on the top of it, colored lights surrounding the antenna. If someone (or something) moves closer to the antenna, a colored light turns on depending on how close the spirit is to the antenna. 

There are two other pieces of equipment that work in a similar way: the static dome and the dead bell. The static dome is shaped like a dome and works on static or triboelectric fields; it picks up static fields that are not visible to humans, showing different colored lights that go off depending on the direction of the static. The dead bell is a bell on top of a wooden box with a censor on the box. The bell can be set off by either EMF or touch.

It is important to mention each group of investigators had different experiences--based on group dynamics--at each location. Every person can attract different spirits (for example: family members). The following account was the experience of my group.

Little Theater

The first station we visited was the Little Theater, located in the Seay building. The member of the NJP staff in charge of the Little Theater was Chris Therrien. Spread out within the theater, some people were given blindfolds and some headphones. Two of us sat on the stage with our backs to each other, being used as the “communicators.” 

I sat on the stage with my back to another member of our group, and between us was a static dome and EMF fake candles that spirits could turn on and off. During this part of the investigation, the candles turned on and off a couple times.

In each station, we recorded our group asking questions with 15-20 seconds in between each question to give the recorder time to pick up voices the human ear cannot hear. In the theater, Chris recorded us asking questions but we did not pick up any voice other than our own.

We then moved behind the stage, where there are multiple rooms on the first and second floor. Chris asked if someone wanted to sit in one of the closets blindfolded, so I volunteered. 

I sat blindfolded in a chair in the closet with a static dome sitting near the entryway of the closet. Caelyn Campbell, a senior at Centenary, asked out loud, “if anyone is here, can you go say hi to Sami in the closet.” I felt something walk into the closet and the static dome was set off with a light pointing in the direction of the doorway, meaning it picked up static as if someone walked up to the closet. It felt as though someone walked into the closet and was standing right in front of me, but no one was there. 

Taylor Memorial Library

Our group left the Little Theater and moved to the Taylor Memorial Library. The library had the most activity compared to the other locations we visited on campus. John Ruggiero was in charge of this station. 

We started the library investigation by standing by the Tillie Smith display, all of us standing next to each other in a line holding an EMF rope. The rope works in the same way as the other EMF devices do, changing color when it detects a difference in the electric and magnetic fields. Our group asked questions while we again recorded ourselves, but we did not hear any voices that were not from us.

We then moved into one of the rooms in the library and spread out at different tables. There were three static domes in a line down the path between the two rows of tables, along with a dead bell sitting near the entrance of the room by the Tillie Smith display. 

A device we used in the library was an SLS camera, or structured light sensor. These cameras show the silhouette of a person, therefore picking up silhouettes of spirits we cannot see. Three of our group members took turns holding out a static dome in our hand while John pointed the SLS camera at us. The last member to try had another figure standing near them, which was significantly smaller and led us to believe it was a child. The spirit turned on the static dome while the group member was holding it, and he claimed he felt his pant leg move.

John then told the spirit if he could turn on each static dome in the line, he would give the spirit a piece of candy. The spirit then turned on each of the three domes in a line. 

We used an app that allows spirits to speak and for us to hear what they are saying; an iPad was connected to a speaker so we could all hear what the spirits were saying. 

The spirit said “I want it” through the app, referring to the candy John promised them. Caelyn had a pack of gum in her bag, so she handed a piece of gum to John. As she handed it to him, the app said “give it to me.” He then put the gum on the ground in between the static domes they had just set off. John said we would love to talk to them, and the app said “Joseph” just as John was about to ask what their name was.

We did another audio recording to try to talk to Joseph. I asked, “were you in the area when the fire at Centenary happened,” and we could hear a voice say “ashes” in response. 

John asked again if Joseph could light up one of the domes on the floor and he would give him the whole pack of gum. Instead of turning on one of the domes, the spirit rang the bell near the entrance of the room. We were scheduled to go into the basement of the library, but we ran out of time in our session.

Library Continued: John, Caelyn, and Sami

After our session in the library, we were given a 15 minute break. Caelyn and I decided to stay with John and investigate the library further.

The three of us were walking back towards the Wellness Room and Mini Museum in the library when I pointed out the room Victoria Ramsay had mentioned seeing a bean bag inflate as if someone was sitting on it. As soon as I finished telling John the story, the dead bell went off. 

We went back into the room where our session ended and were talking to John about what happened. While we were talking about how Caelyn and I ghost hunt on our own time, we heard a noise from the front entrance of the library. 

The three of us walked near the entrance to see if anyone was there, but we were the only ones in the library. We moved things around to see what the noise could have been, and the best representation of it was pulling one of the chairs at the round table by the doors against the hardwood floor. It was not as loud, but it was the exact sound we heard. 

The Whitney Chapel

After leaving the library, we moved to the Whitney Chapel in the Seay building where Tania and Ken Lund were in charge of the investigation. 

There was not much activity present during our time in the Chapel. We all asked a question and Tania recorded it, which led to no responses. We moved up to the second floor of the Chapel and repeated the same process. Ken stayed on the first floor, seeing if any devices went off.

No devices went off, but Ken heard the piano on the side of the Chapel by some of the seats being lightly tapped. 

The SAC

The SAC, located in the Seay building, was the last station we visited with staff member Danielle Vas. During this investigation we did the Estes Method where one person is used as the “communicator.” The person communicating is given a pair of headphones and a blindfold; the headphones are connected to a spirit box, which allows for spirits to speak to humans. It shuffles through AM/FM frequencies and the person listening will say the words they hear out loud. The rest of the group asks questions out loud to see if anything the person wearing the headphones says will correlate. 

Three different members of our group tried the Estes Method. None of the words the people said correlated with anything specific, as they were mostly unrelated words. 

Do Spirits Linger on Centenary’s Campus?

The events outlined here are from our objective experience at the NJP event here at Centenary. Proof of spirits and ghosts is hard to authenticate, as it is best to find other causes for detection devices going off before jumping to conclusions. However, there was enough evidence through different detection devices during the NJP Ghost Tour showing that spirits are possibly present at Centenary University. And we cannot discount that staff have shared their personal encounters. 

Now it is up for you to decide whether you believe or not.