A sea of balloons crammed in the halls and stairwells of McNeil High School greeted students and teachers as they arrived at school Wednesday morning.

Students who pulled off the senior prank at McNeil in Austin, Texas,  spent hours filling thousands of balloons and plastic wrapping them into the staircases and across the campus.

Some some stayed over night on Tuesday.

Principal Courtney Acosta was elated by the prank, changing her Twitter photo to an image of herself sitting in a swarm of balloons.

She posted several pictures on Wednesday.

"If kids aren't given the chance to play, they will take it," Acosta tweeted. "Thank you for doing it right, '16! #ProudPrincipal."

More than a dozen of the senior boys carried the patrol cart up a flight of stairs to the second floor, plastic wrapping the balloons inside it, with a silly message, “Haha. Now you’re booted. $30!”

About the Author

Keep Reading

Views of the exterior of Druid Hills High School in Atlanta shown on Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2025. In the plan approved by the DeKalb County school board on Monday, everything but the main building, pictured here, will be demolished in favor of a new school building. (Natrice Miller/ AJC)

Credit: Natrice Miller

Featured

Jo'wan Bellamy taught in the GNETS program for 17 years and recently transferred to Atlanta’s new behavioral program at Crawford Long Middle School. (Arvin Temkar/AJC)

Credit: arvin.temkar@ajc.com