From the moment principal Josh Cooley announced the harsh punishment for any attempt at a senior prank, Ian Spetnagel knew it had to be broken.

The hopes and dreams of his entire class rested on his shoulder the senior prank is the ultimate symbol of seniority, it is what students across the school dream of for years.

“This was my chance. My chance to prove to the administration that we were going to say no. That we were going to stand up for ourselves and our school. These policies by ‘the man’ have been keeping us down for far too long,” said Spetnagel when asked his opinion on the new rules.

However, it was no small step. Cooley condemned any prank in no uncertain terms. While The Haystack was unable to get a direct interview with him, one senior said, “Cooley would expel anybody who even talked about a prank. Not only that, all their friends wouldn’t get to walk at graduation. And their family wouldn’t be able to step foot on the campus of Wheat Ridge for 87 years. It was rough man. And I know it’s true because my friend has a friend who went to the senior meeting, and he definitely heard Cooley say it.”

The entire senior class knew that they had to one-up the pranks of the past, but it would be no easy task. After all, who could forget the car in the lobby, the alarms on the doors, and…whatever they did the year before that? With such a storied tradition, the lack of a senior prank is like a spit in the face to all seniors.

“Man, I didn’t get angry when the school board was being recalled, when my legislators took no action on gun legislation, or when I was harassed by security for not having a sticker on my I.D., but taking away our prank was one step too far,” said senior Hattie Juarez.

These angry students took the initiative, meeting covertly in order to plan the prank to end all pranks. They labored hours over it, missing school, homework, sports, and parties, opting instead to sit in a dark corner of the annex formulating their master plan.

“Nobody knew we were working. They called us slobs, said we had senioritis, threatened to call home, but we had a higher cause,” said Spetnagel. “A cause that we would go to any lengths to complete.”

Some students were less invested in the future of the prank. “Our school does senior pranks? What have we done the last three years? You have to be joking, if anything had actually happened, I would definitely remember it,” said senior Aidan Shelburne, after being disgruntledly cajoled into giving an interview.

Finally, they could go forward. All the hours of labor created a work of beauty, and the day before spring break they unleashed it on the school. As 1,200 students filtered into the front door, they saw a masterpiece. All the desks in the school had been turned around 180° from their original position. For a few glorious minutes the engineers of this act worthy of the gods watched as the tired and mildly annoyed student body took a few minutes out of their first period class to turn the desks back to their proper orientation.

Though the four students behind it were caught quickly by the security cameras in the school, they are satisfied with their handiwork. “Seeing those hours of work pay off right before our eyes made it all worth it,” said Spetnagel. “Sure, we spent the entire night turning those desks, and sure I’ve lost any chance to go to prom, graduate, go to college, or form a future, but I showed them. I showed them what real Farmers are made of. Nobody can keep us down!”

Students who experienced the prank also recognized the true spirit of the school through it. “Oh, that was the prank? Yeah, I guess it was okay. I kind of forgot about it. I can’t wait until next year though; our prank’s going to be the best, no one will be able to stop talking about it,” said junior Rory Seidel.

The school’s ingenious prank will truly be long remembered and cherished in the hearts of its students. Some may say that kids these days have lost their drive or independence, but these acts truly show that the spirit of youthful rebellion still shines bright in this generation.