Signs plastered the windows of the Batten Arts and Letters building on Old Dominion University’s campus Monday afternoon. Flowers, teddy bears and other small trinkets sat below them. Chalk covered the pathway out front.
Each forms a memorial for a student who died outside the BAL building Wednesday.
Some messages offer words of hope and encouragement for students. “You are valued.” “Don’t be afraid to ask for help.”
The others show students’ anger at the administration. “ODU admin does not believe in community.” “Take accountability now.”
Zaryab Iqbal, the interim dean of the College of Arts and Letters, sent a message to students and faculty Monday morning that the memorial would be removed. People were encouraged to collect any tributes they wanted to keep. Some would be shared with the student’s family, the email stated. Others would be “carefully preserved and archived as a record of the many ways in which our community came together to grieve and honor this loss.”
That decision is the latest in the university’s handling of the death that has angered students. Students questioned why classes weren’t paused longer last week to give time to process the death; they said leaders’ emails felt inauthentic and that it felt too soon to remove the memorial.
Senior Jordan Kennedy was among the students sitting outside BAL on Monday. It was a solemn scene as students took in the messages and tributes before walking into the building.
Kennedy said students and faculty were in an uproar because removing the memorial is like ripping the Band-Aid off prematurely.
“I feel as though they could have went by their decision a bit more wholeheartedly,” she said, “and understand that we are here to show our love and keep it up here as a visual reminder to students that we love them and that we're a part of a big Monarch family.”
In a statement to WHRO, ODU Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs Brian Payne said the tributes have been a “meaningful expression of the compassion and support our community has shown during this difficult time.”
The items are being removed “with care and sensitivity, particularly in recognition of the family's wishes for privacy.”
He said the university does not have an official policy for memorials establishing a specific duration but strives to “respond with compassion, respect and sensitivity to those most directly affected.”
“We recognize that members of our community may have different feelings about when and how these tributes are gathered,” he said in the statement. “We respect the deeply personal ways individuals experience and express grief. Removing the items does not change the significance of this loss or the many expressions of care from our Monarch community. We are committed to supporting.”
Some students were frustrated at the removal of the memorial and about how the university responded to the death. Several pointed out that the building was only closed for the afternoon, with students and staff returning the next day. Others said it appears messages from President Brian Hemphill and other administrators were crafted with artificial intelligence, making them question the authenticity of those remarks.
Kennedy said she feels like ODU admin is opening the floor for students to share their concerns, but it feels like there’s a “huge disconnect,” and it’s not taking the right actions to mend the relationship.
But if there’s one message Kennedy said she hopes people outside of ODU understand after hearing students’ reaction, it’s that “Monarchs are full of love.”
“We don't want this to happen to our peers, and this is not going to stop us from letting our voices be heard by our administration.”
ODU shared support services for students, faculty and others in crisis. Students are encouraged to contact the Office of Counseling Services. Faculty can access employee support services. There are several planned in-person and virtual “Connect and Care” events scheduled.
Anyone experiencing a mental health crisis can call the National Suicide Hotline at 988.
