(no subject)
Dec. 16th, 2005 07:14 pmShawn (
draconicdrummer) was one of my very dearest friends, and I'll miss him so very much. This is very tough on me, and I don't even want to get started about his family.
I will write more as I know it, and once I figure out what's going on.
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A Northwest Missouri State University student was found dead in his dorm room on Thursday, and investigators do not yet know the cause of death.
The body of Shawn Bussey, 21, of Springfield, Mo., was found at around 1 p.m. Thursday in his Franken Hall dorm room, where he lived alone. An autopsy will be performed by the Nodaway County Coroner to determine the cause of death. Bussey was apparently an upperclassman.
University officials said this is the first student death on campus since 2003. That death was ruled a suicide.
Students, faculty and staff were shocked by the news of Bussey's death Thursday.
"It's a devastating experience for the family and for the Northwest family," said Dr. Kent Porterfield, the university's vice president of student affairs. "We're all a little bit in shock here tonight, and we're certainly grieving with the family. It's been a tough day."
Two times earlier this week, Northwest activated a special protocol they use when they discover that a student is contemplating or has attempted suicide. Once, the protocol was activated when a student swallowed over 100 Aleve pills in a possible suicide attempt. According to police scanner reports, that student, a female, was found unconscious and transported to St. Francis Hospital. The university would not release any specific information about the incident, and the student's condition is not known.
Porterfield on Thursday said it was not proper to assume Bussey's death was a suicide.
"It's too early to speculate," Porterfield said. "You certainly don't want to feed the rumor mill when you don't have good information."
Porterfield said he did not know Bussey personally, but knew of him. He spoke with several people throughout the day who did know Bussey.
"I spent quite a lot of time with our faculty and staff, and I certainly don't see any signs that this was a student in a psychological crisis," he said.
Earlier this week, Carol Cowles, the university's assistant vice president for student affairs, said student stress and suicide rates traditionally increase during finals week, and they also go up during the holidays. Today is the last day of finals week at the university for the fall semester.
"Finals and holidays are always problem times," Cowles said. "And you've also got the lower light levels and shortened days. Lots of things can certainly combine to cause stress."
Cowles said information is the best way to prevent suicide attempts on campus. She said students need to know who to contact when they feel one of their peers is depressed or suicidal. The university recently received a suicide prevention grant to further publicize the steps students should take to activate Northwest's protocol.
"We've done this because what we know is that students are under a lot of stress when they're in college," Cowles said. "Clearly we're going to let them know that we're concerned about them and we're there for them."
Concerning Bussey's death, Porterfield said he hoped at least a preliminary autopsy report would be available early next week, although a full report could take several weeks to complete.
A memorial service has not yet been planned, but Porterfield said a campus-wide "bell-ringing" service would likely be held early in the spring semester.
Students, staff and faculty members at Northwest in need of counseling services because of the death are urged to call (660) 562-1220.
Watch the Forum as more details emerge in Bussey's death.
![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
I will write more as I know it, and once I figure out what's going on.
------------------------------------
A Northwest Missouri State University student was found dead in his dorm room on Thursday, and investigators do not yet know the cause of death.
The body of Shawn Bussey, 21, of Springfield, Mo., was found at around 1 p.m. Thursday in his Franken Hall dorm room, where he lived alone. An autopsy will be performed by the Nodaway County Coroner to determine the cause of death. Bussey was apparently an upperclassman.
University officials said this is the first student death on campus since 2003. That death was ruled a suicide.
Students, faculty and staff were shocked by the news of Bussey's death Thursday.
"It's a devastating experience for the family and for the Northwest family," said Dr. Kent Porterfield, the university's vice president of student affairs. "We're all a little bit in shock here tonight, and we're certainly grieving with the family. It's been a tough day."
Two times earlier this week, Northwest activated a special protocol they use when they discover that a student is contemplating or has attempted suicide. Once, the protocol was activated when a student swallowed over 100 Aleve pills in a possible suicide attempt. According to police scanner reports, that student, a female, was found unconscious and transported to St. Francis Hospital. The university would not release any specific information about the incident, and the student's condition is not known.
Porterfield on Thursday said it was not proper to assume Bussey's death was a suicide.
"It's too early to speculate," Porterfield said. "You certainly don't want to feed the rumor mill when you don't have good information."
Porterfield said he did not know Bussey personally, but knew of him. He spoke with several people throughout the day who did know Bussey.
"I spent quite a lot of time with our faculty and staff, and I certainly don't see any signs that this was a student in a psychological crisis," he said.
Earlier this week, Carol Cowles, the university's assistant vice president for student affairs, said student stress and suicide rates traditionally increase during finals week, and they also go up during the holidays. Today is the last day of finals week at the university for the fall semester.
"Finals and holidays are always problem times," Cowles said. "And you've also got the lower light levels and shortened days. Lots of things can certainly combine to cause stress."
Cowles said information is the best way to prevent suicide attempts on campus. She said students need to know who to contact when they feel one of their peers is depressed or suicidal. The university recently received a suicide prevention grant to further publicize the steps students should take to activate Northwest's protocol.
"We've done this because what we know is that students are under a lot of stress when they're in college," Cowles said. "Clearly we're going to let them know that we're concerned about them and we're there for them."
Concerning Bussey's death, Porterfield said he hoped at least a preliminary autopsy report would be available early next week, although a full report could take several weeks to complete.
A memorial service has not yet been planned, but Porterfield said a campus-wide "bell-ringing" service would likely be held early in the spring semester.
Students, staff and faculty members at Northwest in need of counseling services because of the death are urged to call (660) 562-1220.
Watch the Forum as more details emerge in Bussey's death.