School cites Va. Tech in response to shootings

Key differences
The shootings happened under different circumstances. The Virginia Tech rampage began at 7 a.m. as students thronged the campus and headed to morning classes; at Delaware State, it happened in the middle of the night, when many students were in their dorm rooms.

The panel that investigated the response to the Virginia Tech shootings noted that it would have been tough to shut down the 2,600-acre Tech campus; Delaware State is only about 400 acres. But it appears Delaware State responded to the crisis well, said Gerald Massengill, who led the group.

“I think just like post-9/11, there’s a post-April 16 mentality,” he said.

Alex Bishoff, 20, a freshman from Washington, D.C., said he heard five gunshots and looked out his dormitory window to see people scattering. He said he immediately thought of the Virginia Tech shootings last April.

Students were warned within about 15 minutes, Bishoff said. “I think they handled it pretty well,” he said.

Students react to situation
Timmara Gooden, 20, of Philadelphia, said in a phone interview from her dorm room that she and her suite mates kept each other calm and were making sure that their parents understand that they’re OK.

Students weren’t even going into their dorm hallways. “We don’t want to walk out there, because we don’t know what’s going on,” Gooden said.

Students were still being advised Friday afternoon to remain in their dorms, but were being escorted to the cafeteria for meals. Officials also made arrangements for students who wanted to leave campus for the weekend, during which hordes of race fans and recreational vehicles converge on the town for NASCAR action across the street at Dover Downs Speedway.

University president Allen Sessoms emphasized the shooting was not random.

“This is an internal problem,” said Sessoms. “There are no externalities ... this is just kids who did very, very stupid things.”

At the start of the semester, the campus held a memorial service for three students and an incoming student who were shot execution-style Aug. 4 as they hung out at an elementary school in their hometown of Newark, N.J. Natasha Aeriel, 19; her brother, Terrance Aeriel, 18, and Dashon Harvey, 20, were students. Iofemi Hightower, 20, had planned to attend Delaware State this fall. Natasha Aeriel, the only survivor, helped police identify six suspects who have been arrested.

Holmes said there was no indication that Friday’s shooting was related in any way to the Newark, N.J., killings. Both of the victims in Friday’s shootings were from the Washington, D.C., area, officials said.

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