In DeKalb, Illinois, another university has suffered a tragic shooting.
Oh my God, not again.
Today--February 14, 2008-- a gunman stepped from behind the curtain at a crowded lecture hall at Northern Illinois University. He shot 21 people, including the graduate student who was teaching this ocean science lecture class. At the time of this writing, six people have died, including the shooter, and at least two others are in critical condition.
After the massacre at Virginia Tech this spring, this tragedy is all the more raw and horrible. As someone who spent 18 years of my life as either a college student or instructor, this just breaks my heart.
Colleges are emotional places filled with stress, anger, and occasionally, rage. Students are anxious, angry, and frustrated about grades. For graduate students, who commit such a major portion of their lives to school, these feelings are all the more intense. The NIU shooter was a former sociology grad student, and one can only imagine his motivations.
To everyone at Northern Illinois University: my thoughts and heart are with you.
