A University of Wisconsin-Whitewater student was fatally shot late Friday night near campus, marking the fifth college student death in a week as the new academic year begins.
Whitewater police found 21-year-old Kara Welsh of Plainfield, Illinois, with multiple gunshot wounds in an apartment near Main and Whitewater streets. A 23-year-old man, also in the apartment, is in custody and was charged with first-degree murder. The investigation is ongoing.
"We know the news of Kara's death is heartbreaking for our close-knit university community," UW-Whitewater Chancellor Corey King said in a statement. "It is a time when we are all called upon to support one another, to process, and to grieve."
King said Welsh was majoring in management at the College of Business and Economics and was a standout member of the gymnastics team.
The shooting marks the fifth untimely death of a college student within a week, around the time most campuses are beginning classes again.
Harrisburg University student Rupak Reddy Padini, 25, drowned while visiting Lake George in New York on Aug. 27 with friends. The Warren County Sheriff's Office said marine patrol officers arriving at the scene found a group of individuals in distress near the shore, close to a pontoon boat. While the officers were able to rescue those in the water, they realized one person was missing.
Padini was recovered from the water. Despite lifesaving efforts by first responders, he was pronounced dead at the scene. The deceased's name is being withheld until the family can be notified.
The initial investigation determined that no watercraft was directly involved in the incident.
"Our thoughts are with all those involved, especially the family and friends of the student we have lost. Rupak Reddy Padini brought the eagerness to learn that our institution was founded to celebrate and cultivate," university officials said in a statement.
At the University of Delaware, 18-year-old student Noelia Gomez was struck and killed by a motorcycle on Aug. 28, the first day of classes. The motorcycle, evading a police traffic stop, also injured four others as it sped through a crosswalk, according to police.
Police have since arrested and charged 27-year-old Brian Briddle, of Newark, Delaware, for second-degree murder. The crash remains under investigation.
In a joint statement to the school community, university President Dennis Assanis and Vice President Jose-Luis Riera said, "Especially in a moment like this, we must all come together, to lean on each other, and to do so with extra kindness and empathy. Together, we are stronger, and we must live this truth in the coming days. We are one Blue Hen community."
At Rice University, a student was gunned down in her dorm room on the first day of classes in an apparent murder-suicide.
The Rice University Police Department responded to a welfare check request last Monday from the family of Andrea Rodriguez Avila, a junior from Maryland. Police later found Avila shot in her dorm room, school officials said. The suspect, identified as 22-year-old Habeneyom Belai, was found with a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Both were pronounced dead at the scene.
In a letter to the school community, Dean of Undergraduates Bridget Gorman said there was no sign of forced entry. RUPD Chief Clemente Rodriguez told Fox News that Avila had likely given the man access to the building, noting that the two had a preexisting romantic relationship. A note found at the scene by the suspect suggested they were in a "troubled relationship."
"This is a heartbreaking, devastating incident, and it is important to recognize that this loss will affect our close-knit community in the days and weeks ahead," university President Reginald DesRoches said in a statement. "Tonight, I want our students, parents and Rice community to know that our campus is safe, that there is no further threat and that we are wrapping our arms around you with care and concern. As a parent of a past Rice student, I can only imagine how devastating this must be – to Andrea's family and our community."
Gorman said the community was mourning "the loss of a wonderful person taken from us too soon."
The University of Colorado Boulder is also mourning the death of junior Jeremiah Park, who was found off campus in the University Hill neighborhood.
Boulder police responded to an apartment complex on Pleasant Street, less than a mile from campus, around 4:42 p.m. on Aug. 23. The Boulder County Coroner's Office, which will determine the cause and manner of death, said they do not suspect foul play at this time, police said.
The university expressed its condolences over Park's death and is offering support through its Office of Counseling and Psychiatric Services, as well as other campus resources.
"The CU Boulder community is deeply saddened to confirm the death of CU Boulder student, Jeremiah Park, a rising junior who was found deceased off campus late Friday afternoon," the university released in a statement.
