Students at Brown University are returning to campus in Providence, Rhode Island, after the deadly mass shooting that claimed the lives of two students and left several injured.
Members of the school community are preparing to start a new semester on Wednesday, amid heightened security measures in response to the tragedy.
Some students have reported increased police presence, which provides a sense of security, but also serves as a stark reminder of the horrific event that occurred on campus on Dec. 13.
“It’ll be interesting. I think it’ll be a big change,” said Brown PhD student Jacob Kuntzleman. “I’m hoping to get a chance to see my friends and talk to them and see how they’re doing.”
Two students, Ella Cook and MukhammadAziz Umurzokov, were killed in the shooting, which injured nine others and left the school community on edge during the dayslong manhunt for the killer.
“I wasn’t here that day, so I’m OK, but I know some people in my research group, for example, were a little shaken up by the whole situation,” added Philipp Wagenknecht, a university staff member working in the building. “But I think things can return to normal after a while. It just takes time.”
The Mayor of Providence, Brett Smiley, confirmed that the additional security measures will extend beyond the university to the surrounding city areas. He also indicated that the city is in the final stages of hiring an external consultant.
“The city law department is finalizing a third-party reviewer contract,” said Smiley.
Earlier this month, the university announced the “Brown Ever True” initiative, which focuses on mental health resources for recovery.
“We begin as a community that will grieve even as we recover — that will reflect and remember, even as we heal and seek repair,” Brown University President Christina Paxson said in a statement. “We are a community that feels loss, while at the same time reclaiming all that it is to be Brown.”
A memorial service or activity in honor of the victims is expected to take place later this month.
