The usually vibrant campus of Elizabeth City State University in eastern North Carolina was quiet Wednesday.

What You Need To Know

  • A shooting early Sunday morning killed one man and left six others wounded at Elizabeth City State University

  • After the shooting, some students say that they feel anxious on campus and want security to be improved 

  • No arrests have been made, but authorities say they have identified people of interest

The last remaining days of the semester were switched to remote learning after a deadly shooting early Sunday morning at the end of a yearly festival.

Isaiah Caldwell, 24, a visitor from Albany, New York, was killed, and six others – including three students – were wounded at Yard Fest, the final event of the weeklong Viking Fest at the historically Black university in Elizabeth City. Caldwell was a member of the fraternal organization Groove Phi Groove, the group said.

Anxiety is still high for students on campus, said freshman Samiyah Woods, who was inside her dorm at Bias Hall when the shooting happened.

“Since the incident has happened, I have felt unsafe walking around campus,” Woods said. “I feel like most of the students here feel the same.”

She says few students are walking around on campus.

“We have to get shuttled to K.E. White, which is like a little off campus to get meals,” she said. “And I just feel like ever since then, all I've heard is like, I don't feel safe walking around. I don't feel safe going to class.”

School counselors have visited the residence halls to talk and give out bags of treats, but Woods says more should be done to protect students.

“We want to see actual change instead of the event being swept under the rug, and candy being offered,” she said. “We want to see changes in security, and we want to know what they're doing in order to make that happen.”

Security also is a concern for parent Najhda Allen.

“You just got to be careful because it's the open campus,” she said. “Anybody could bring anything on here, so you just got to be vigilant.”

Another parent, Emily Davis, said on Tuesday that she came from Ohio early to pick up her daughter, who had witnessed the shooting and was scared.

University officials have not responded to a request for comment.

Woods says she would like the campus to be closed.

“Since we have an open campus, people can come onto the campus anytime they want,” she said.

After the Sunday shooting, the university canceled classes through Tuesday and said learning would be remote for the rest of the semester, which ends Friday. Exams also will be conducted remotely.

The North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation says it has identified people of interest in the case.