ECU's Supernatural class, English 2570, hosts ghost walk

A unique class at East Carolina University that studies supernatural life is fitting for the upcoming Halloween holiday, but it's a class taught year-round at ECU.

The supernatural class or English 2570, is a class taught by Dr. Andrea Kitta, an associate professor in the English department who specializes in folklore.

Some local folklore at ECU involves bumps in the night in campus buildings, doors slamming mysteriously in Christenbury Gym, cold brushes of air in Joyner Library, or children giggling late at night in Messick Theatre.

Ghost stories may not be unique to ECU's college campus, but according to the university, ECU also has one thing that many universities do not – a class that studies folklore and the supernatural.

Dr. Kitta said the intent of the class is not to prove that ghosts are real, but share why belief in stories about the supernatural is important.

"We start with the idea that okay, what if this is all real, what if this is all true, where does that take us, where does that lead us to?" says Dr. Andrew Kitta who teaches the class.

Dr. Kitta is also a folklorist who says teaching the supernatural was her dream class and now in her third year, she thinks students are learning more than just popular ghost stories.

"Especially urban legends, that's one of my specialties and also the supernatural and health communication - how folklore and urban legend intersects with health and helps us with medical decision making," says Dr. Kitta.

Dr. Kitta's supernatural students have one major assignment, to put on a Ghost Walk. One student says the research for the Ghost Walk opened her eyes.

"I realize that there's a lot more about folklore and the supernatural that I never really realized and how it applies to everyday life," says Kelly Quakenbush

Another student says the stories go back for years.

"A lot of the folklore stories we hear, there are like legends that you can find that date back to such and such a long time ago that kind of explain certain things that you're going through," says Ladiamond Kelly.

According to Dr. Kitta, the ghost walk is a great learning opportunity for her students and a fun event for the community.

"Both show the students that ECU is a unique place and it has these unique stories but then also they do connect to these larger stories that are told about all college campuses," says Dr. Kitta.

The ghost walk takes place Thursday night from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 pm.