PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) — Brown University has launched a whole-campus “healing and recovery effort” after last month’s shooting that killed two students and injured nine others.
“Brown Ever True” will offer resources, programming and services to students, faculty and staff throughout the spring semester to support everyone’s mental health, psychological wellness and sense of physical security.
“There is no playbook for what we have been through,” Brown University President Christina Paxson wrote in a letter to students, faculty and staff announcing the effort. “There is no single source of truth for how any of us should heal. No ‘one path’ to begin again, or ‘right way’ to find peace, solace and joy.”
“But we are Brown — the enduring strength of our caring and supportive community has long been a hallmark of who we are. Ever true,” she continued.
Paxson said the effort will intersect with the plans already in progress to bolster campus safety and security.
The effort also includes planning remembrances for Ella Cook and MukhammadAziz Umurzokov, who were shot and killed while studying for finals in the Barus and Holley building on Dec. 13.
“As we process our grief for Ella and Mukhammad, we will memorialize them, as well as the experiences of the nine injured students, in a campus-wide service being planned for late January,” Paxson said.
Paxson confirmed in her letter that each of the nine injured students have been released from the hospital, with the remaining patient being discharged Monday morning.
Meanwhile, Paxson announced general access to the Barus and Holley building will resume on Jan. 20.
“We know that resuming operations in Barus and Holley is particularly sensitive, and extensive work has taken place over the winter break to alter operations,” Paxson said.
Paxson said classes originally slated for the room where the shooting happened, as well as the spaces surrounding it, have been moved elsewhere. She explained that those spaces are no longer visible or readily accessible to anyone in the building due to the installation of new walls and emergency access doors.
Brown University’s long-term plan for the affected spaces, including the consideration for appropriate memorialization, has not yet been determined.
“We all should understand that real recovery is a gradual process,” Paxson said. “The effects of Dec. 13 may surface in uncertain ways, and ‘recovery’ will at times seem elusive. But at the same time, there is no question about the amazing resilience of our community.”