At approximately 4:20 pm, Coral Towers dorm residents heard some sort of impact on the street below– a gathering crowd on the intersection of 14th Street and 3rd Avenue seemed to confirm a crash, as police cruisers, fire trucks, and an ambulance arrived. Eyewitness reports suggest a motorcycle collided with a Ford SUV. Both vehicles remained stalled, and debris was scattered over the street. The motorcyclist, a young Asian male who appeared unconscious, was carried by stretcher into a waiting ambulance. Onsite police and medical staff declined to comment on the condition of either driver.
A few (rather graphic) photos, after the jump.
Friday, November 6, 2009 17:16 - by Jake MooreIn one hour, there will be a memorial service for Andrew Williamson-Noble, the student who died in Bobst on Tuesday. The gathering will take place on the east side of Washington Square Park from 8pm until 9 and the Facebook event creator asks that attendees bring a flower if they can. More information here.
Thursday, November 5, 2009 19:07 - by Lily Q
In an effort to drum up publicity for their joint-film venture The People Speak, Matt Damon and Howard Zinn are coming to speak at NYU on November 12th at 2pm at the Cooper Union Great Hall. The film is a dramatic and musical reenactment of historical US documents and speeches of “Americans who spoke up for social change throughout US history,” and is based on Zinn’s widely-acclaimed The People’s History of the United States (a book a high school history teacher of mine once deemed “too liberal” to include on a source list). For US history nerds, it’s a dream come true, but for those of you who didn’t spend your junior year in grueling study sessions striving for a 5 on the APUSH exam, several celebrities (aside from Damon) are also affiliated with the project–Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen and Josh Brolin, to name a few. The event will consist of live performances, audience discussions and preview clips of the film. Registration is free, but you have to RSVP here, so make sure you do it soon since space is limited. The People Speak premieres on The History Channel on December 13th at 8pm.
So what if you haven’t heard a Weezer song since “Island in the Sun” in middle school? So what if you’re too busy listening to “No Ceilings”? Weezer is still releasing albums — they just released “Raditude” yesterday — and with your help, they could perform at NYU. Of course, you’ll be forced to do something that involves massive corporate advertising (which in this case is brought to you by T-Mobile), but this one isn’t so hard. Just check out this Facebook event:
Step 2. Vote for “New York University”
Step 3. Tell all of your friends to vote for NYU too!
Step 4. INVITE EVERYONE TO THIS EVENT!
Even if you don’t like or listen to Weezer, you can still vote for NYU. We promise that it will not damage your street cred.
Wednesday, November 4, 2009 10:15 - by Kenneth HsuCampus and police sources have confirmed that the death in NYU’s Bobst Library this morning appears to be a suicide.
Rumors have circulated that the NYPD had been investigating the death as a possible homicide. A high-ranking NYU source reports that the NYPD had been considering foul play until they discovered a suicide note left by the student in his dorm room. The NYPD’s press office has corroborated that report.
The NYU source also tells us that the body was, indeed, found on the lobby floor — lending further evidence to the theory that the student jumped.
While the library stacks are supposed to be closed past 1 a.m., our campus source says the elevators were neither locked nor shut off, and that — to their knowledge — the crime scene is also not monitored by security cameras.
For what it’s worth, our source says that these security oversights are something they expect the University will be promptly investigating.
Tuesday, November 3, 2009 22:53 - by Sergio Hernandez
If you were part of that not-so-exclusive fraternity of students chosen to make up the final class of NYU’s former General Studies Program, than you probably spent August of 2007 immersed in either one of two activities: deciding whether it was finally time to post the standard “Hey Roomie!” message on your new suitemate’s Facebook wall after the awkward round of pokes, or resisting the urge to hurl the required summer reading—Peter Singer’s How Are We To Live?—at the nearest household pet when you got to the chapter concerning speciesism, a theory that equates eating meat with being a Nazi, among other things.
Singer was back at NYU, and considerably more down to earth, yesterday for the Sharp Lecture Series in Kimmel to promote his 30th book, The Life You Can Save. While the Australian philosopher’s bold opinion that most Americans need to lead more ethical lives can be mildly condescending (if not accurate) when read in his books, listening to him speak is a far less irritating experience.
Though idealistic for sure, the former professor seemed entirely genuine in his call for society to develop an “ethical standard that people would feel is obtainable.”
Tuesday, November 3, 2009 14:30 - by Heather Baysa
“The death of a College of Arts and Science junior early this morning in Bobst Library is a matter of great sorrow for the NYU community. In a close-knit community of young people such as ours, the death of a fellow student is always keenly felt.”
“While the cause of this death is still being determined, indications are that he took his own life.
“Suicide among college age men and women is a national problem and a leading cause of death. In spite of the extensive systems NYU has in place to support the health and mental health of students – a highly-regarded 24-hour hotline called the Wellness Exchange; a model health center with doctors, nurses, psychiatrists, psychologists, and counselors; constant reminders to students on the availability of help – we are not immune to this national challenge.
“We have reminded all students again today of availability of counseling and other types of assistance through NYU’s Wellness Exchange at 212-443-9999 (or 999 from any campus phone), and we have reinforced that as a community we need to look out for one another and never hesitate to offer a helping hand or attentive ear.
“The University has been in touch with the family to convey the condolences of the NYU community; our thoughts and prayers are with the family, friends, and loved ones of this young man. The family has asked that it be accorded the greatest possible privacy and sensitivity in this time of mourning, and we would hope that everyone would respect its wishes.”
Tuesday, November 3, 2009 13:45 - by Surekha RatnatungaThe following is the text from an email to the current NYU ambassadors from the Assistant Director of Recruitment Initiatives. The email was sent at 10:36am, before the tours began:
“Dear Ambassadors,
As many of you are already aware, there was a death in Bobst library this morning.
First off, if you or anyone you know is grieving, I want to remind you that NYU’s Wellness Exchange is available at all times at 212.443.9999 or wellness.exchange@nyu.edu
I also want to provide more guidance as you give tours and answer phone calls over the next few days. Bobst Library is open and we will continue to visit the library as part of our campus tours and share the information as we normally do.
While we should not volunteer details about this tragedy to university guests, we must be candid and honest if asked. At this point, our message is as follows: it is a tragic death and is currently under investigation. Please share this response if you are asked. Those seeking more detailed information can be directed to the Office of Public Affairs at 212.998.6840
Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns.”
The ambassador who forwarded us this email said he believed Bobst remained a stop on the tours because if it were skipped then people would ask why. He said that the ambassador party-line would be something like, “Suicides at NYU are not typical,” and then refer to all the services that NYU provides.
Tuesday, November 3, 2009 13:05 - by Surekha Ratnatunga
There were no fewer than four NYU tours taking place in the atrium of Bobst at 11:30 this morning. According to NYU ambassador-in-training Natalie Veenhof, Bobst is a routine stop and the tours were scheduled in advance of today. She said she only found out about the suicide at Bobst when she arrived here this morning, and she did not know whether the ambassadors conducting the tours even knew about it yet.
Veenhof said that NYU ambassadors go through special training to hande difficult questions, but she hasn’t gone through it herself yet and did not know whether suicide was one of the topics covered.
Tuesday, November 3, 2009 12:25 - by Surekha Ratnatunga
A male NYU student died in Bobst this morning at 4:30am, according to a report by WSN. The library is currently closed. We’ll get back to you with more information as it becomes available.
Update 9:20am: Public Safety would not confirm anything, and we’re waiting for John Beckman to get back to us.
9:21am: Bobst is now open. NYU spokesman John Beckman will be releasing a statement shortly.
10:10am: No area of Bobst has been cordoned off. Spoke to a security guard and a Bobst employee – neither could confirm the nature of the death.
10:41am: Gothamist is reporting the death as a suicide. A tipster who e-mailed us early this morning also believed it to be a suicide. However, there has not yet been official confirmation on this fact.
10:54am: Note that Gothamist says NYPD confirmed the student jumped. There are Plexiglas walls in addition to the railings on every floor with a walkway overlooking the atrium except for the 2nd floor.
12:20pm: President Sexton just sent out a university-wide e-mailing acknowledging that a junior in CAS has died by suicide. Full text of the e-mail after the jump.
12:22pm: NYU is still running campus tours in Bobst.
If you want to discuss this or any other problems that you’re experiencing, please remember that the Wellness Center is available to help 24/7 at 212-443-9999.
Tuesday, November 3, 2009 12:22 - by Jessica Roy
