FRIDAY, OCTOBER 13TH
From The Stuyvesant Whig:
Murder-Suicide Ruled in VBU Professors’ Deaths
by Mitchell Grant
At a Thursday evening press conference, Stuyvesant County Detective Richard Mercer announced the conclusion of the investigation into the deaths of Van Buren University Professors Ellen Harding and Mark Johnson.
Mercer explained that Johnson shot Harding three times, killing her in her VBU office Tuesday afternoon, then hung himself later that day.
Mercer theorized that Johnson mistakenly believed that Harding was responsible for the death of Johnson’s older sister, Margaret “Peggy” Johnson. Peggy Johnson was a student of Harding’s back in 1984. The same year she died in an accidental drowning in the VBU gymnasium pool.
Johnson’s body was discovered late Tuesday evening in his East Stuyvesant home by two unidentified Van Buren students. Mercer did not explain how the students came upon Johnson, only that they faced no criminal charges.
Harding taught sociology and folklore at Van Buren for the last forty-two years, coming to the university immediately after earning her doctorate at NYU. She served as VBU Faculty Senate President from 1991-95.
Mark Johnson grew up locally in East Stuyvesant. He moved from the area in his early twenties and only returned to teach geology at VBU this semester.
Harding’s murder is the first in the county in eighteen months since Larry Branco, a clerk at Buy-Rite Liquors in Katskill Falls, was shot and killed during a botched robbery attempt...
From The Chronicle:
Chancellor Resigns; Athletic Director to Fill Interim Post
by Laurie Inverso
Dr. Janelle Thornton-Gaston, Van Buren University’s 13th Chancellor, abruptly announced her resignation late Thursday evening.
In an email to the Board of Trustees, Thornton-Gaston expressed a desire to take a break from university administration and spend more time with her family.
VBU Board of Trustees Chair Rance Snead announced a committee headed by Vice Chair Selma Whitaker would begin the search for a new chancellor immediately. In the interim, Athletic Director Don Gehring will serve as Acting Chancellor while continuing his responsibilities overseeing Statesmen Athletics.
While educational observers had generally given Thornton-Gaston’s tenure as chancellor positive marks, the past few months of her administration were marred by a shortfall in fundraising, a parking meter scandal, and a recent string of campus deaths.
Thornton-Gaston arrived at Van Buren five years ago after serving as the Provost of Central Vermont Polytechnic where she was credited with instituting...
From The Underground:
Student Killed in Football Stadium Fall:
Seventh Campus Death in Past Week
by Fallon Ahern
Allison “Lucy” Davenport, a top-ranked member of the Lady Statesmen Golf Team, was killed early Thursday afternoon when she plummeted from the top of Murray-Baldridge Stadium. VBU Campus Police, alerted to the presence of a possible suicide attempt, were present when Davenport fell. Campus EMT Services responded, but Davenport was declared dead at the scene at 2:31 p.m. Authorities have yet to rule her death, accident, suicide, or homicide.
What Davenport was doing inside the stadium wasn’t clear. Technically, Murray-Baldridge is closed to the wider college community, except for sporting and campus events. But students have long made unauthorized use of the football stadium’s steps and track for exercise.
Two other students, whose names were not disclosed, were present with Davenport at the time of her fall. The pair were questioned by Campus Police and detectives from the Stuyvesant County Sheriff’s Department and released. At this time, no charges have been filed.
On Friday, Acting Chancellor Don Gehring announced additional measures to tighten security at the stadium, including reinforced gate locks and frequent police patrols. Gehring also stated grief counselors would continue to be made available to students, faculty, and staff.
VBU Head of Media Relations Julie Fredericton announced that a candlelight vigil would be held on the Main Quad on Friday at 7:00 p.m. The vigil would honor not just Davenport, but all recent campus deaths.
Davenport, a wilderness management major and junior from Binghamton, rose to the number one ranking among Presidential Conference women golfers after shooting a seven-under-par sixty-five at Oak Valley Country Club in a match against Franklin Pierce College on Tuesday.
VBU Lady Statesmen Golf Coach Jan Catlin recalled Davenport as a fierce competitor...