By: Zak Kazzaz Posted: 4/23/07 Early Friday morning, Duke University Police Department received an anonymous bomb threat for Bell Tower Dormitory and another building, which does not exist. The threat-received through a telecommunications device for the deaf-was not found credible by the police, but they investigated the dorm to ensure there was no hazard, said Larry Moneta, vice president for student affairs. Bell Tower residents were not evacuated and received an e-mail about the threat several hours later. The incident added Duke to a list of schools and universities across the country that have received security threats since the Virginia Tech shootings a week ago. Although some universities have chosen to evacuate buildings and cancel classes in response to the threats, others have opted to continue normal activities. "Threats are made over the course of the year, and [the police] exercise a judgment," Moneta said. "They have expertise in determining that something's credible or not." He added that DUPD is currently investigating who called in the threat. Some Bell Tower residents said they were wary of how the situation was handled. Freshman Jordan Rice said he saw a police officer searching the dormitory Friday. "We asked him if he needed any help, and he said no," Rice said. "He looked to be in no hurry." Rice added that he was unsure whether or not evacuation would have been necessary. "They deemed it was not credible," he said. "I trust that, but then again, you really don't want to make the same mistake the Virginia Tech administrators made in not closing down classes or, in this case, evacuating a dorm." Joe Gonzalez, associate dean for residential life, wrote in the e-mail sent to the residents that there was no reason for students to feel unsafe. "We do not believe Bell Tower residents have any cause for concern at this time, but we wanted to make you aware of it and encourage extra vigilance on your part," he said. In addition to Gonzalez's e-mail, Moneta sent out a message Friday to the entire undergraduate body, referencing the threat and encouraging students to remain safe and cautious. "Institutions across the nation and world, including Duke, begin hearing murmurs of violent acts to follow at home on one's own campus," Moneta wrote in the e-mail. "While institutions must take such threats seriously and do their best to explore their veracity, this grim reality underscores our need to be extra vigilant in all that we do." Freshman Jon Silverman, a Bell Tower resident, said he preferred to remain unaware of threats unless the University chooses to take action. "I just don't really want to know that they're not going to do something," Silverman said. "It's perceived risk versus actual risk." He added that, in this turbulent time, bomb threats have the potential to shut down universities and that Duke should only inform students of threats if they are concrete. "If they do start responding to every single bomb threat, we won't have finals or classes," Silverman said. "If they just stop responding and don't let all these copycats take it seriously, then hopefully it'll die off." -- Original Source: Duke Chronicle - April 23, 2007
By: Eugene Wang Posted: 4/20/07 Executive Vice President Tallman Trask spoke about Duke's emergency response system and Jo Rae Wright, dean of the Graduate School, reported on the future of the school at the Academic Council's meeting Thursday. Paul Haagen, chair of the council and professor of law, said he asked Trask to speak about Duke's preparation for "extraordinary safety-related events," in light of the massacre at Virginia Tech Monday. Duke has the plans, equipment and notification systems in place to respond to emergencies, Trask said. He added, however, that a response system alone may not have been able to prevent the tragedy. "In the current circumstances, I can assure you we have taken all prudent preparatory steps to deal with the circumstances," Trask said. He added it is impossible for the University to notify everyone instantly in the case of an emergency. "We don't know of any communication systems that can get a message to 27,000 people in three minutes," Trask said. He also noted that although the electronic door locks can be instantly disabled, there is no way of instantaneously restricting entry to Duke's campus. "We don't even control access to our campus... there are almost 20 different roads anyone could ride down to get into Duke," Trask said. Some members asked why no mass message was sent to the students and their parents after the massacre at Virginia Tech. "We deliberately decided not to send a message to all parents... because none of us really know what to say, none of us know the facts," Trask said. Council members also discussed if Counseling and Psychological Services has the capacity and strategies to deal with students' mental health issues. "We need to be clearer in instructions about what faculty can and cannot do," Trask said. The council also listened to a presentation by Wright on the "strategic plan" for the Graduate School and the state of the school's finances. She said her goals for the future are like a "three-legged stool"-to recruit, retain and train the "best and most successful students." She said the school must improve its financial support packages, including health insurance, stipends and summer research awards, if it hopes to attract talented graduate students. "Having outstanding graduate students is critical to getting outstanding faculty," Wright said. "If we aren't willing to make that commitment as an institution, then we're in the wrong business." She said her priorities for the Graduate School next year include recruiting underrepresented minorities, planning the Graduate Student Center and evaluating teaching assistant training programs. Wright added, however, that the funds to implement these priorities are still uncertain. -- Original Source: Duke Chronicle - April 20, 2007
By: Anthony Galanos Posted: 4/20/07 The media coverage of the tragedy at Virginia Tech is rewarding insanity and complicating grief. But there are 32 families, and an entire university who are grieving. Not sad, not upset, not disgruntled... but GRIEVING. And how we treat them in this critical period will determine how they cope now and what the legacy of this past week will be for them. Almost as sad as the loss of life is that this American culture acts like it knows not what grieving is. You want to see grieving, find any child 10 years of age or younger and watch them after their dog or cat dies. It is not a profound concept; it does not require a degree in philosophy or theological training. It is a natural process, common to all humanity. Why we ignore it or complicate it, I do not know, but to accent anything at this raw moment but the grief of the people involved is to confuse them-no, is to use them and to make their journey more complicated and more traumatic than it already is. If my 18-year-old daughter were shot and killed in her dorm, and the only way it was described by her college president was as a "domestic situation" because they thought she had dated the shooter, I would be outraged. I would wonder why this man or woman was on TV and not acknowledging my loss. I would wonder why a famous news anchor is blaming him for police matters (my assumption is that most college presidents know little, if anything, about police work) when I just lost my daughter. And, if the task of losing my child were not difficult enough, then I would have to cope with the media, stating without any evidence whatsoever, that perhaps my daughter's life "could have been spared". Now, and forever, that "what if" question would dominate me. It was not random or the product of psychosis. It was someone's fault, or so say the pundits. What would have been a normal grieving process, is now complicated. I was not afraid to grieve, but my grieving may have no end point. As a clinician, let me pronounce, just like the talking heads on TV, that you have no right to comment on my loss. Indeed, unless you have every fact available, know without doubt how and why it happened or I abdicate it to you... you have no right to judge or comment on my loss. That right does not belong to Matt Lauer or NBC or my priest. It belongs to me and my family. She was ours, not yours. Neither your camera, your microphone or your best intentions allow you to take this moment from us. We teach doctors in training how to deliver "bad news." We have learned that such moments belong to patients and families, not to us. And that our simple presence there, however silent, is more powerful than our explanations of physiology or what went wrong. Cannot we just say "let us let the grieving begin" and we can sort out the details when all of the data are in... and the facts are known? Can we not just let the students at Virginia Tech and the families, just tell us about the people they lost. Who were they? What were they like? How do you want us to remember them? This would be the line of questioning that would let any healing have any chance of taking hold. Can we not simply acknowledge that this moment is theirs, not ours or that of the media? Who was not touched by the dad being interviewed who said at the end of the segment that his daughter's body had not yet been released to him or his family, and that they wanted to see her. The interviewer asked him what he would do if he could see his daughter, almost puzzled by why this guy was asking to "see my daughter." He responded, "so that I can kiss her face." Is that not grieving? Is that not how this man will cope and heal over time? Do we not instinctively know what he is saying? Of course we do, and parents all over America hugged and kissed their children this week. How many phone calls did Duke students receive from parents this week? For some reason, we often wait to express our feelings for one another at the end, on the "death bed," but this man's open grief spurred us to action in the moment. Indeed, "why wait?" This should not just be the purview of doctors, chaplains and counselors. This belongs to all of us, all of humankind. Put grief on the front page, and let the culture of blame do its bidding on the back pages, whether it is Virginia Tech or Iraq. Wherever there is loss of life, particularly of the magnitude of this past Monday or every Monday in Iraq, let us learn how to grieve and how to allow the families involved to grieve. Do not ask me who is to blame, or whether my child could have been spared. Ask me who my child was and then just sit there and be quiet. I will share with you that I need to kiss my child one more time. I will grieve. Do not let the media, however well intentioned, teach you how not to grieve. You already know how. Anthony Galanos, Trinity '75, works at Duke University Medical Center in the Department of Medicine and the Palliative Care Service. -- Original Source: Duke Chronicle - April 20, 2007
By: Anna Lieth Posted: 4/20/07 Days after the Virginia Tech shooter was identified as a Korean-American male by national media outlets, members of Duke's Asian Students Association gathered Thursday night to discuss the possible backlashes the Asian-American community may endure as a result of the gunman's actions. During the discussion, which was sponsored by Counseling and Psychological Services and ASA, students addressed concerns about how aspects of Asian-American culture may intensify frustrations and pressures with which many students struggle on a daily basis. Senior Kevin Fang, outgoing president of ASA, said the event was intended to give students on campus "an opportunity to process all that is going on." "A lot of Korean students at Virginia Tech have gone home," he said. "Although they know that the shooting had nothing to do with race, they feel that there might be some repercussions." The six students present also discussed the national media's coverage of the incident, questioning their decision to identify the race of Cho Seung-Hui, the shooter, and debating the relevance of this information in attempting to understand the motive for his actions. They discussed whether or not the shooter's actions could be explained through his cultural and social identity, and talked about how situations like the one Cho faced can be prevented. Some students shared experiences about other Asian-American students they knew who experienced pressures and feelings of cultural disconnect which led them to lives of isolation and depression. Gary Glass, senior coordinator for outreach and developmental programming for CAPS, said his objective in helping to organize the discussion was to "provide an arena for things to get voiced that aren't often voiced-at least not in any formal capacity." He added that he saw a variety of reactions expressed during the discussion. "If there are voices that if they were more heard would further enrich the campus, then let's create a space where they can be heard," Glass said. He said CAPS is devoted to supporting discourse with all different types of groups on campus, and that the Virginia Tech shooting presented a need for such discourse. The students, however, pointed to the social stigma many students associate with counseling that may discourage students in need from seeking help. The discussion was not limited to East-Asian students and included South-Asian students as well. Junior Shawn Kwatra, a South-Asian student and incoming co-president of external affairs for Duke Diya, said he felt the topic of the discussion was important not only for East Asians but for all Asians and for international students in general. Feelings of alienation are not only unique to Asian-American students alone but also affect foreign students of all backgrounds, Kwatra said. "There is a cultural difference, and that cultural difference is something that doesn't have to be East Asian," he said. Kwatra added that he felt the forum was a first step on the way to finding solutions that could prevent students from taking a similar path to the one Cho took. "I think the biggest thing we need to do is raise awareness," Kwatra said. He added that it is important for peers to be able to recognize when others are suffering or isolated. -- Original Source: Duke Chronicle - April 20, 2007
By: Sarah Ball By now, there isn't a soul in the United States who hasn't seen the greasy, glinting forehead of Cho Seung-Hui, the gunman responsible for what broadcast news and the blogosphere are terming "the Virginia Tech Massacre." His grease and his glint are everywhere, above every fold, at the top of every segment of every news program on every channel. Every anchor and every rural Virginia stringer for every paper have started every story this week with that grease, and that man. Then, invariably, they turn it over to us-to the cell phone cameramen, the bloggers, the Facebook status changers. The era of the citizen journalist, age 19, has arrived. This week, in this new era, I watched major news programs become veritable footage Crazy Quilts, with those same borrowed phone shots and MySpace stills casually inter-cut with traditional anchor shots. In establishing a timeline on that fateful Monday, journalists did not simply seek help from the intrepid reporters at Tech's paper, The Collegiate Times. They posted interview requests to message boards, requested footage to be e-mailed or uploaded to websites, scoured community sites like Facebook and MySpace for leads. Fox News, which has outdone itself with glossy infotainment segments and dirge-like piano soundtracks, ran an entirely viewer-constructed package called "You Report" on the day of the shooting. You Report was comprised of cell videos of police cars and evacuating students, as well as transcribed posts from sites like Fark.com and MySpace. When not plumbing the citizen journalist pool for pre-made reporting, Fox itself reported on other ways students were using Internet tech-kids notifying their families of their safety via Facebook, for example, when cell phone lines were clogged. In the absence of order, the cyber chaos both reported the news and was the news. All this is perhaps unremarkable, given the prevalence of digital communication in collegiate life, and the ways in which crisis tends to unify a body of people in whatever community, digital or physical, they may lie. Yet the transition from man-on-the-street interviewing and reporting in times of crisis to this mish-mashing of homemade footage nuggets can't pass without examination. It's not only a pretty new phenomenon for major network news stations to capitalize on these particular grassroots sources (Facebook? Really?), but it also actually alters the genre of what we're seeing. Ostensibly, we're watching news. But since when did news have weepy soundtracks, or gunman-style storyboard art, or dozens of non-journalist reporters? Is not a Fark post or personal blog entry the kissing cousin of a televised diary-room confession, that familiar feature of reality television that red flags what we're watching as staged and fictional? Even secondary or tertiary differences, like the nauseating bobbing of handheld-cell phone footage, shows viewers a pure and unfiltered strain of raw emotion-a guttural-ness that we perhaps more closely associated with documentary film than with the six o'clock news. Hearing the personal thoughts of students is tremendously moving to me, and has no doubt left my fellow denizens of the beautiful Old Dominion close to breakdown as we wait to hear about friends and family. Yet each time I hear or read those unadulterated thoughts, or see that dizzying cell shot, I am not left with the impression that what I am consuming is news. I am still not sure what I can safely believe. Documentarian takes on soft news, in both conception and delivery phases, may peter out as a trend. We may lose our taste for the sensationalized, the citizen journalist and the unapologetic commodification of fact. At the bottom of a pack of Sour Patch Kids, your tongue eventually goes numb. But we could also adapt. We could learn to better process what hard news means for average citizens, as we see more confessionals, read more superlative language, hear more weepy piano. Emotive, homemade news could be the final frontier in mobilizing apathetic Americans. Or. Jack Shafer, editor-at-large of Slate.com, wrote Tuesday in defense of journalists that there is "no tougher assignment in journalism than knocking on the door of a mother who has lost her young daughter to a killer and asking, 'How do you feel?'" Earnestness and an unshakeable "self-disgust" help reporters to cope and to get the mother on the record in these situations, he continues. Besides, if networks hadn't gone to the wall on this one, chasing Facebook for sob stories, viewers would have been outraged. I'm not sure that I agree. Shafer says we're narrowly avoiding outrageous sensationalism overall, but I'm not sure that it wouldn't take much more than a boost in market competition among media outlets to finally reduce feature journalism to pulp. And if that happens-if rules bend to accommodate the effectively affecting, and if the untrained citizen reporter takes over-what mourning family would dignify that imposing knock with an open door and a somber quote? I know that I would not. Sarah Ball is a Trinity junior and former editorial page editor of The Chronicle. She is a native of Virginia. Her column runs every Thursday. -- Original Source: Duke Chronicle - April 19, 2007
Duke's response to VaTech tragedy lacking
Editorial Posted: 4/19/07 When news of the Virginia Tech massacre broke Monday, to say that students across the country were on edge is an understatement. The horror and randomness of the event forced students to take a step back and examine their own campuses and ask, "Are we safe?" And members of the Duke community began to question what the safety and notification protocol would be if something of this magnitude occurred here. Many wondered what, if any, steps Duke was taking to tighten security Monday. Those with friends and family at Virginia Tech asked what resources were available for them here on campus. But answers to these queries were virtually impossible to discern. President Richard Brodhead released a statement to The Chronicle late Monday night, which was also published on the Duke News website. In the statement, Brodhead expressed his condolences to the Virginia Tech community and announced an interfaith vigil that would be held Tuesday at the Duke Chapel. But nowhere in the statement was there mention of Duke's own security status. Moreover, while Brodhead said Student Affairs was trying to contact "every student with Virginia Tech connections," there is no way they could identify every student with a "connection." As such, those students with friends or acquaintances at Virginia Tech who the administration did not know about-as well as those simply overwhelmed by the tragedy-were told only that Religious Life staff and the Chapel were available for support. There was no mention of other, non-religious resources, such as augmented, emergency Counseling and Psychological Services, that could benefit all concerned students regardless of religious orientation. Most troubling, however, was the fact that Brodhead's statement was not sent to the Duke community. It was published in The Chronicle, but no one could read it until Tuesday morning, nearly 24 hours after the massacre occurred. And while technically online, the statement was buried on the Duke News site, which is not a major source of information for most students. Many schools posted statements on their main websites. Still others, like The George Washington University, sent mass e-mails to students and their families discussing safety protocol. The Duke administration erred in its response. On a day when colleges and universities across the country stood still, shocked by how suddenly and violently an academic haven much like their own had been violated, Duke was silent. On a day when students and parents, faculty and staff wanted reassurance of their own safety and an assertion that the University stood in support of its ACC counterpart, Duke was largely absent. This is not to say there was no campus response. Religious organizations did an excellent job coordinating Tuesday's interfaith vigil and several religious groups sent out e-mails to their members offering support. Such organizations, however, only touch a certain percentage of students; the Duke community as a whole was still left mostly in the dark about the University's security and support responses. As Duke students, we wanted a prompter, more informative, more widely disseminated statement from the administration. In such situations, when our community is questioning its own well-being and mourning the damage done to another school's sense of security and self, we want to hear Duke's leadership loud and clear. We urge the administration to consider new and better ways to inform the community if it is threatened. And we appreciate Tuesday's interfaith vigil and its visible community power. But we still missed and were puzzled by the lack of a simple, widely available statement of assurance and support. While we hope that such a statement will not be needed in the future, if it is needed, we look to the administration to stand as a stronger pillar of information, of comfort, and of guidance. -- Original Source: Duke Chronicle - April 19, 2007
Security, Duke response raise some concerns
By: Zak Kazzaz Posted: 4/18/07 Two days after the Monday massacre at Virginia Tech, students nationwide remained on edge Tuesday as more details of the tragedy emerged and additional security threats occurred on several other college campuses. A bomb threat at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville Monday, just hours after the Virginia Tech shootings, caused university officials to evacuate two buildings there. Another threat received Tuesday at St. Edward's University in Austin, Texas, prompted the university to evacuate buildings and dormitories and cancel the entire day's classes. Although many Duke students said they are not worried about a similar catastrophe in Durham, several said that there are safety concerns for which the University cannot account. "What terrifies me, and what I'm sure terrifies most people, is that it was random," freshman Kate Van Buskirk said. "He just went in and started killing people." Some parents of Duke students also said they have been gripped by fear and anxiety regarding the issue. "I don't know what can happen or what can be done," said Ruth Azimi, parent of a Duke freshman and a Virginia resident. "On campus, everybody can get in, nobody asks for IDs, and now that's kind of scary." John Burness, senior vice president for government affairs and public relations, said Duke is currently evaluating all of its security and response practices. He added that the University is considering a system that can send out a mass text message to all students in case of an emergency. "Let's remind people what's going on, and dust [the emergency systems] off, and make sure they still work," Burness said. Junior Paul Slattery, the incoming president of Duke Student Government, said that text messages, however, might not fully address the issue. "What if a student doesn't have service or doesn't have their cell phone?" Slattery said. The shooter's student status at Virginia Tech makes such an incident very hard to predict since universities place trust in their students, Burness said. "Universities tend to be open places," he said. "With the tragedy at Virginia Tech, it wasn't an individual from the outside, it was somebody from the inside. I think our folks have planned for the best they can, but you can never plan for everything." Students said the main concern raised by recent events is the communication between the administration and Duke community. Several students also said they had been unhappy with Duke's lack of an immediate response to the situation. President Richard Brodhead released a response to The Chronicle Monday night but chose not to send an e-mail to the entire community, Burness said. Nearby ACC colleges, such as the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Wake Forest University, placed their administrators' responses to the shooting on the homepages of their websites. Although Brodhead's response was posted on Duke's website, it was not displayed on the homepage. Burness said the statement was released late in the day Monday because the information about Tuesday's vigil service had not yet been finalized. He added that the administration thought The Chronicle was the best outlet through which to reach students about the day's tragedy. "I would have liked an e-mail to be sent out, given that we're in such close proximity and there's a lot of overlap of friends," Van Buskirk said. "People just had access to the news, and personally I had so much conflicting information." Some parents also said an e-mail should have been sent to both students and parents. "Right now, I think unity is very important," Azimi said. "We have to realize that being together in this moment means a lot to everyone. An expression extending that through to the parents would have been very nice." Brodhead's statement said the Office of Student Affairs would contact students with connections to Virginia Tech. Burness added that Resident Assistants would contribute to this process, ensuring that students are aware of the counseling services available to them. The majority of students interviewed by The Chronicle, however, said neither group had contacted them. -- Original Source: Duke Chronicle - April 18, 2007
2 days later, campus still rattled by tragedy By: Kristen Davis Posted: 4/18/07 More than a hundred students, faculty and administrators bowed their heads in silence at 2 p.m. Tuesday, as the Duke Chapel bell tolled 33 times-once for each casualty of the Virginia Tech shootings. The interfaith vigil-which was organized by Craig Kocher, assistant dean of the Chapel and director of religious life-was held at the same time as a memorial service in Blacksburg, Va., to display solidarity between Virginia Tech and Duke. In his reflection, Dean of the Chapel Samuel Wells spoke about the "fragile beauty" of human life and prayed for all those affected by the tragedy. A Buddhist chant of compassion was offered, and Carlisle Harvard, director of the International House, urged students to be sympathetic to Korean students' possible anxiety over the ethnicity of the shooter, who was identified Tuesday. Many Duke students-including some of the more than 500 undergraduates and graduates who call Virginia home-said that in the past two days they have felt the effects of the tragedy in a variety of ways. "Being at Duke, we usually don't have time to deal with personal issues, so it was good to have time to release and vent and have a moment of silence," said Tiffany Scott, a senior from Virginia who added that she was relieved to learn that none of her friends at Virginia Tech had been hurt. Alan Combs, a third-year Divinity School student who is also from Virginia, said his brother-in-law, a freshman at Virginia Tech, used his cell phone to take one of the pictures that appeared on CNN.com. Combs' brother-in-law was not injured in the shootings, but at least one of his friends was killed. Combs, along with several other students, said the events encouraged deeper self-reflection. "[The massacre] reminds everyone of the contingency of our lives, which is not necessarily something to be fearful of, but more of a reminder that I don't control my own life," Combs said. Many students also said that although they have made an effort to keep updated with news of the incident, they do not approve of the media's coverage of it. "I tried to avoid watching the television because instead of acknowledging the tragedy, they spend time specifying motives and who's to blame," Combs said. Students have used Internet technology, however, to broadcast their support for their fellow college students at Virginia Tech. The Facebook group "We Love You, Virginia Tech (Dukies in Support of Techies on a terrible day)" had 144 members as of Tuesday night, and many students have changed their Facebook profile pictures to a black ribbon with the maroon Virginia Tech insignia. "A lot of schools are creating their own logos [with their mascots] for support," junior Nick Pardo said. "'Today we are all Hokies.'" -- Original Source: Duke Chronicle - April 18, 2007
Virginia Tech, our thoughts are with you
Editorial Posted: 4/17/07 Horrified silence saturated campuses across the country yesterday, as the death toll at Virginia Tech climbed to at least 32 fellow students. The deadliest mass shooting in United States history can be described only as a true tragedy. To begin, as members of the Duke community we express our sincerest condolences to families and friends of the deceased and wounded and to the entire Virginia Tech campus. Our hearts go out to all of those in the Virginia Tech community and all of the students here at Duke who have been touched by this shocking disaster in one way or another. A tragedy like this makes us pause to reflect upon our own mortality. Days like yesterday-filled with images of bloodied young bodies, terrified faces and drawn guns-bring violence and death close to home. As young men and women now in college, we can only hope (although likely and sadly in vain) to never see a day like this past Monday again. And during such times, there is a very human urge to point fingers-to place blame on administrators for not responding effectively or efficiently. But scenarios like those that played out yesterday are extremely hard to prepare for. Hindsight is 20/20, and we cannot judge the Virginia Tech administrators with the knowledge we now have. We trust they had students' best interests in mind and do so still as they seek to recover from the shock and horror of a day nobody can ever really anticipate. Monday's tragedy does, however, provide an opportunity for Duke's administrators to examine their own emergency response procedures. We depend on Duke administrators to keep us informed when urgent situations arise. Although mass e-mail lists serve great informative purposes, a faster mass communication system must be devised to alert students in times of emergency. Because many students come from differing parts of the country, Duke must also devise a plan to inform families quickly or to make themselves available for inquiries in situations of mass chaos. As members of a media publication, in the face of this tragedy we were dismayed to find that some media outlets displayed an almost-salacious interest in this story. The Washington Post ran an article titled "Virginia Tech's Reputation Had Recently Been Soaring," which inappropriately dehumanized the catastrophe as something that could have an effect on image and ranking rather than something that did have a profound effect on human lives. Similarly, a reporter at a press conference asked what sort of effect this event will have on the school's admissions. Such questions were both inappropriate and unanswerable. Subjects like Virginia Tech's reputation can be addressed during another, more appropriate period. Although yesterday's tragedy is in no way comparable to the Duke lacrosse case, the response of some reporters to the Virginia Tech shooting is yet another example of a fact we as Duke students know all too well-how shallow the media can be. The media must remember there is a human element to every event, particularly this tragic event, and they should not rush superficial sensationalism nor dehumanize questions of status. Even though the media has immense power in portraying events and situations, we must remember that a period of coverage does not characterize or define a school in its entirety. No matter how the media portrays a singular event, our schools are not defined by one moment. They are defined by their people, their resolve and their ability to overcome. Virginia Tech, Duke's thoughts are with you. -- Original Source: Duke Chronicle - April 17, 2007
200 miles away, Duke students hold vigil, admins offer support By: Anna Lieth Posted: 4/17/07 After violent shootings shook students and administrators on Virginia Tech's campus Monday, members of the Duke community gathered last night to mourn and come to terms with the tragic events of the day. Just 200 miles southeast of Virginia Tech's home in Blacksburg, Va., Duke students said the news sent a shock wave through the campus. For some, the shock was followed by fear for friends and loved ones in Virginia, but for others fear was displaced by disbelief and worry that a similar event could take place at the campus they call home. And for one group of students, the natural response to the news was to pray. About 30 students gathered on the steps of the Duke Chapel for an emotional vigil and prayer session for the victims of the shooting, their respective families and the gunman Monday night. "[The vigil is] not just to console people, but also to know that there is a community that is here to support people and that as a community we need to act together," said sophomore Ashley Dunfee, who attended the event. "We have a root that we act from and that ultimately should be the source of what we do and where we're going." President Richard Brodhead, in a statement released to The Chronicle, recognized the magnitude of the events at Virginia Tech and emphasized efforts the University is making to reach out to members of both the Virginia Tech and Duke communities who were affected by the tragedy. "This is the deadliest campus shooting in United States history and a profoundly sad day for everyone directly affected-and the nation as a whole," Brodhead said. "On behalf of the entire Duke community, I express my condolences to those who are grieving at Virginia Tech. They are enduring a time of unspeakable loss this evening." John Burness, senior vice president for government affairs and public relations, said Brodhead also reached out following news of the event to Charles Steger, Virginia Tech's president, to offer his sympathies. Brodhead said the University is working to provide support for students on Duke's campus who have been personally affected. "Student Affairs is in the process of trying to identify every Duke student with Virginia Tech connections and to make personal contact and to offer counseling," he said. "Our Religious Life staff is also available for counseling and the Duke Chapel will be open as always for those who wish to seek a quiet place to reflect." The Duke Chapel and the Duke Religious Life staff have organized an interfaith prayer vigil to be held on the Chapel steps at 2 p.m. today. "This vigil is a small gesture at being in solidarity with those in Blacksburg," Craig Kocher, assistant dean of the Chapel and director of religious life, wrote in an e-mail to the student body last night. Kocher said the vigil will include a time of silence followed by prayer and a bell toll for each person who died yesterday and will conclude with an open session for students to speak about the experience. Virginia Tech will be hosting a similar event on its campus simultaneously, Kocher said. -- Original Source: Duke Chronicle - April 17, 2007
Shootings stun campus By: Michael Hippchen (11:50 a.m., April 16) While this morning's shootings on Virginia Tech's campus may have come to an end, with one shooter apparently have been captured, things are far from returning to normal on campus. Classes have been cancelled for the remainder of the day and students were told to remain in their dorms with the doors locked. I was walking to my class at 10:10 and I heard six shots fired from the Norris area, which was about 200 yards away. While standing in the middle of the Drillfield, I heard students screaming then running out of the academic buildings across the Drillfield, as well as cops running toward Norris Hall. During the evacuation, the campus was in full-blown riot mode. I did not feel safe at any time that I was out on the Drillfield, as well as when I was walking back to my dorm. My friend, Jordan Littauer, said he didn't know what was going on. "I was sitting in my Econ class, and a girl next to me got an Instant Message saying that cops questioned her roommate about a shooting that happened on her hall," said sophomore Jordan Littauer. "I didn't know shooting was going off at all. I heard students running and screaming all over campus." -- Original Source: Big Lick U - April 16, 2007
Chris Winston <Chris.Winston@biglicku.com>
By: Shamus Williams (April 16 -- 11:55 a.m.) I am on campus as we speak and am under lockdown in Shanks Hall, which is located on the opposite side of campus from the shootings. But it is still too close for comfort. I was in class, working on a paper, when I got an e-mail saying that a shooting had occurred on campus. It was about 20 to 25 minutes later when we received word that the gunman was loose and we were on lockdown. It is a pretty scary thing, because of the recent bomb threats and the whole William Morva thing that happened earlier in the year. The students in my class have been pretty calm. Everybody is trying to reach friends and family and let them know that we are OK and that nothing has happened on this side of campus. We have all been sending instant messages trying to find information, and there are plenty of rumors swirling. We are all trying to figure out what is real and what is not. There are plenty of different emotions flying around the room. Some people are trying to make jokes to lighten the mood. Others are trying to scour the Web for information (I would fall into that category). Somehow, others are still trying to get their paper done. I'm definitely not trying to do anything associated with schoolwork with this thing going down. I really think that it will be a long time before we are let off campus, and the longer they keep us in here, the more worried we are all becoming. -- Original Source: Big Lick U - April 16, 2007
By: Shamus Williams (April 16) Well, I'm back safe and sound in my off-campus apartment. It has been a very scary and hectic past couple of hours to say the least. We were released at noon, but it was not an assisted evacuation as we were hearing that it would be. I was a little apprehensive that we were not assisted in leaving the campus, and I was constantly looking over my shoulder. I have never seen so many police officers in my life. There were police cars, ambulances, SWAT vehicles and other emergency vehicles lining every street possible that I could see. There were students running to their cars and it seemed every person was on their cell phone trying to call friends and family. It is definitely a scary time on campus. I am usually not one to worry about these things, but this has surpassed anything that the mind can even fathom. This is probably the most scared I have ever been in my life. The police made things seem somewhat safe, but I'm not sure all the police in the world could have made things seem perfectly safe. -- Original Source: Big Lick U - April 16, 2007
By: Amrita Raja (April 16) "April is the cruelest month," wrote T.S. Eliot. He might have been right, I recall thinking, as I watched snow land on flashing police lights this morning. There must have been a reason I flopped back onto my bed after turning off my alarm this morning. As a compulsive email checker, I opened my mailbox at least every other minute as I balanced a bowl of Honey Bunches of Oats in my lap. I checked the weather, checked Blackboard and grabbed a shower. Yet in retrospect, even my morning rituals seemed a bit off - and that might have been because I was pulling on a jacket and scarf mid-April. I had a 9 a.m. class today. Like usual, I left my dorm at 8:50 a.m. to walk to Smythe, only a five-minute walk since it's on the residential side of campus. During class we heard sirens wailing around the Drillfield in between the wind's howling, but I chalked it up to another day on a college campus. I lingered to talk to my professor, ignoring the fact that I might be late to my 10:10 a.m. class, all the way across campus. As we stepped outside, the sirens got louder. I smiled at the student walking beside me. "This campus is going crazy," I said. "And I don't think it's just the weather." He grinned and shook his head. Approaching the Drillfield, I couldn't help but note the absurdity of the scene that presented itself. There was the calm, with large flakes floating to the ground, and there, too, was the fear - students running in herds toward the residence halls, backpacks flapping. "There's a guy with a gun on the other side of campus," someone said. "He was in AJ this morning." That was the first I'd heard of it. I needed to get to GBJ, I was meeting a friend there to pick up notes. My cellphone had only a few minutes left to its battery, and I gave him a call. "I don't think I'm going to make it to that side of campus. The cops are yelling at us to get back to our dorms," I rushed to tell him the news. "Let me know if you hear anything." When I got back to my room, my inbox was full - 12 new messages, several from listservs and the university, a few from concerned friends and professors. For the past three hours, I've been watching the TV screen, scouring the Tech Web site and waiting on phone calls. I found out a friend of mine had been injured, shot in the leg. I sighed relief as a dormmate made it back across campus, having been held up in Randolph. There have been several mixed messages throughout the day from the media. Faculty are being evacuated, I'm told. Someone heard that students will all have to leave as well. I'm not leaving campus, not until I get an email from President Steger and a cop knocking at my door telling me to get out. -- Original Source: Big Lick U - April 16, 2007
Local knitters will gather Saturday to make blankets for the affected of April 16 By: Amanda Mullins (June 15) When the owner of Mosaic, a local Blacksburg yarn store, first started talking about Hokie Healing, she probably wasn't expecting the knitting project to take off like it did. Gina Bonomo simply reached out to her knitting community, asking for 8-by-8 inch knitted squares that would eventually be sewn into blankets for the families of those killed or injured in the April 16 shootings at Virginia Tech. Well, the response turned out to be overwhelming. To date, she and the ladies at Mosaic have received more than 6,000 squares, hand made by knitters in all 50 states and 18 countries. The patterns, designs and colors vary, but the dual message of hope and healing is the same. And the story continues to spread. When I entered Mosaic this past Thursday, News Channel 7 had also dropped by to interview Bonomo, some of her employees and a few of her customers about the project. All were excited - it's hard not to be when surrounded by piles of maroon and orange squares - and were ready to begin making the blankets. On Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., the ladies of Mosaic will host a sew-in, of sorts, and everyone is invited. There, Mosaic employees and other volunteer knitters will piece together the first 32 blankets, which will eventually be shipped to those families whose loved ones died two months ago. From there, the ladies will continue to make blankets for those affected by the tragedy until they run out of squares. Even if you've never held a needle in your life, don't be afraid to come on down to the Inn at Virginia Tech. Local restaurants will provide refreshments, and the first 100 people who arrive will receive a goody bag filled with, well, goodies from Starbucks, the Weight Club and other local businesses. Also, a few lucky knitters will receive door prizes, such as hand-knit sweaters, jewelry and autographed books. Finally, a silent auction, whose proceeds will go toward the blankets' shipping costs, will keep knitters and bidders on their toes. "Everything is going great," Bonomo said. "We're overwhelmed, in a good way, with the response, and we're really looking forward to Saturday." -- Original Source: Big Lick U - June 15, 2007
More than 20 news outlets toured the April 16 shootings site By: Amy L. Kovac (June 14) The cinderblock walls of Norris Hall's second-floor classrooms and hallway are covered with a new coat of cream-colored paint. The classrooms stand bare, save for some newly installed white boards where blackboards previously hung. New doors replaced the ones on classrooms 204, 206, 207 and 211 that Seung-Hui Cho shot through in his violent fit almost two months ago. But if it were not for the dozens of journalists, with their cameras and notepads, roaming the hallway, that second floor might have looked as sterile and uninhabited as any newly renovated building on Virginia Tech's campus. The news media got their first post-April 16 look at this now-infamous building, starting at 10 this morning. Previously, journalists had been blocked from entering Norris. "A horrendous and heinous and horrific crime occurred on our campus and on state property, and I owe it to you as members of the working press to see this," said Larry Hincker, the associate vice president for university relations. "I simply did not want to subject families to images of Norris Hall at that time," he explained. "It was my decision, and I'll take the heat for closing the building at the time." The university has offered each of the families of the victims - the murdered and the injured - the opportunity to tour the building to help in the healing process, Hincker said. So far, 18 families have walked through Norris Hall with university police escorts. The building, where 30 of the 32 people were killed by Cho on April 16, houses several laboratories used by various engineering departments and will reopen to faculty, staff and students Monday. Three of those labs, including the university's only machine shop, were part of the media tour. "Not being able to get in the building has basically shut down what many researchers on campus used," said David Simmons, the supervisor of the machine shop. "It was a big hindrance to not have it open. These students have been begging to get back in here." The machine shop, which is also used by researchers at the Corporate Research Center, is the site where law enforcement officers entered Norris Hall on April 16. Cho had chained other entrances shut but not the doors to the shop. Officers shot through a lock on the shop's large doors and went up the stairs on the northwest side of the building. A 4-inch by 4-inch wooden block now covers that lock. The four affected classrooms and the other general-use classrooms in the building will be converted into rooms for other uses by the Engineering Science and Mechanics department. See Big Lick U article: Tech's Norris Hall to begin phased reoccupation None of the classrooms on the second floor are marked with room numbers anymore. Neither do they contain any desks or chairs or any other furniture besides the white boards. The hallways on the second floor are also bare, in stark contrast to the first floor, where bulletin boards are covered with colorful flyers placed there before the shootings. One of them publicized an April 18 vigil for a National Day of Silence for those "who are forced into silence by violence and fear." The renovations to Norris thus far have cost approximately $400,000, Hincker said, and included emergency clean-up and general remediation, such as asbestos removal. The two wings of Norris Hall, named for a former dean of Tech's school of engineering, were built in the early 1960s and together cost $907,000. -- Original Source: Big Lick U - June 14, 2007
Tech students are happy with proposed design By: Bryan Schamus (June 7) Virginia Tech released its plans today for an intermediate memorial for the victims of the April 16 shootings, one day after announcing that Norris Hall, the site of 31 of the 33 shootings, would reopen on June 18. The memorial site will be located on the Drillfield, in front of Burruss Hall, where a makeshift memorial sprung up after the shootings. "The university community, and particularly the students, has become attached to this location. It seems only appropriate that we continue this tradition with something more substantive while we begin the process of looking elsewhere on campus for a permanent and fitting memorial to honor the memory and lives of our fallen students and faculty," Tech President Charles Steger said in a press release. Thirty-two small, upright Hokie stones - each etched with the name of one of the victims - will be installed in crushed gravel and surrounded by a semi-circular walking path. Construction is expected to be completed by the time students return for fall semester. Students walking around campus today seemed content with the decision when they saw an artists' rendering of what the memorial would look like. "Wow, that looks nice," and "Very cool" were their reactions when I showed them a copy of the design pictured above. "I personally really like the design," said Sumeet Bagai, a coordinator of Hokies United, the group that helped erect the first temporary memorial on the Drillfield. "I think it affirms the university's commitment to what students want and is more of a permanent version of what Hokies United did." The intermediate memorial and its location were chosen by a committee of about half a dozen Tech community members, including four students. Vice President of Alumni Relations Tom Tillar chaired that committee. Part of the temporary memorial currently on the Drillfield is a 33rd stone with Seung-Hui Cho's name next to it. That stone was not placed by the university or any university-affiliated group but by the community, Bagai said. The university's design for the intermediate memorial includes no plans for a 33rd stone. All 33 stones from the original memorial will be offered to the families of those who died, according to university relations and Bagai. The intermediate memorial will remain until a permanent one is constructed elsewhere on campus. Another committee will be convened to decide on the location and type of permanent memorial that the university will construct. Tillar's committee suggested the area on the Drillfield across the street from the Duck Pond and off of West Campus Drive as a location for the permanent memorial. "This is a prominent position and a place of honor immediately opposite the Memorial Chapel with its Pylons that honor Virginia Tech war dead. The memorials will symbolically anchor either end of the Drillfield, another hallowed location on this campus," Tillar said in a statement. The permanent memorial will likely take several years to construct. -- Original Source: Big Lick U - June 7, 2007
The Matawan Ribbon Campaign for Virginia Tech
When the events of April 16 happened, I was sitting in school, not aware of what was going on. As soon as I got to my eighth period class, which was English 4 with Mr. Lloyd, I sat down and was looking for my pen. A friend of mine walked into class late because he was talking to a teacher. He said, "Something happened at Virginia Tech. 22 people were killed." I looked at him and the entire class looked at me because I am the only one from my high school attending VT in fall 2007. I was upset, but held it together until I got home. Once I got home, I put CNN on and sat down, processing everything that I was seeing on TV and hearing. My world turned into a big blur. I had to do something to make myself feel better. Two hours after I got home, I went to Michaels and bought enough ribbon and pins to make 30 ribbon pins to hand out to anyone who would take them. Two days later, I ran out of ribbons and had to go to Michaels to buy a lot more. I had people asking me for ribbons. Thursday of that week, my school principal authorized me to sell them as a fundraiser, and he bought the first one. I ended up selling or handing out over 100 ribbons and the money totaled $200. I had my school district cut the check and send it down. When I tell people about my fundraiser, it makes me feel good, because I can say that I did my part to help.
This photo was captured at the Ohio University vigil for the Virginia Tech victims. Original source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/bond159/465093635/ Photo Courtesy of Cuong Nguyen
Permission: Cuong Nguyen http://www.flickr.com/photos/bond159/465093635/
This photo was captured at the Ohio University vigil for the Virginia Tech victims. Original source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/bond159/465088664/in/set-72157600093950887/ Photo Courtesy of Cuong Nguyen
Permission: Cuong Nguyen http://www.flickr.com/photos/bond159/465088664/in/set-72157600093950887/