WEDNESDAY | 09.24.2014 | MACEANDCROWN.COM | Vol. 57, Issue 5
Student thankful to survive shooting Adrienne Mayfield Editor-in-Chief
ODU student Jerica Carmichael said she is thankful to be alive after being shot at random on Sept. 20 on 43rd Street and Killam Avenue. Zach Chavis | MC
ODU junior Jerica Carmichael was shot in the back Sept. 20 while walking to her car, after a rare evening out to celebrate her best friend’s birthday. She was transported to Norfolk Sentara General Hospital where doctors said a bullet hit her two inches from her spine. “It’s traumatizing. I got shot by a gun. I would never have expected to be shot with a gun, especially not on my own campus. I never expected that leaving my best friend’s house,” Carmichael said. Carmichael said she was leaving her best friend’s house when she noticed the beginning of an altercation between two large groups of African American males near Lot 2 on Killam Avenue and 43rd Street. “I could just tell they were about to fight because the group was that near me were, like, pulling off their clothes and they were yelling,” Carmichael said. One man shot between 10 and 12 bullets before stopping, she said. “The guy immediately retaliated with a gun. Everyone thought he was shooting in the air but we still ran. We didn’t know he was aiming the gun towards anybody,” she said. ODU and Norfolk Police departments responded to the shots at approximately 1:15 a.m. and enacted a two-hour mandatory shelter in the area, according to an email from Giovanna Genard, acting assistant vice president for marketing and communications at ODU.
Doctors told Carmichael that the bullet emerged and exited her two inches from her spine. They said that if it had gone any deeper it would have hit a major vein or exited above her heart, likely causing death. “I was really upset because, I’m like, I was just so shocked. All that kept going through my head was I could have died,” Carmichael said. “I’m actually very, very, very lucky. In such an unlucky situation, I’m very lucky. … I know it was God. He still has plans for me in this life. I feel really blessed.” Carmichael said that she rarely goes out and after Saturday’s incident she won’t be partying for a while. “Its scary that you’re just innocently walking to the car and you just so happen to be at the wrong place and the wrong time and someone can just pull a gun out and shoot you for no reason,” she said. “That was the first time I went out this semester. I definitely won’t be going out for a while – or ever again,”
she said. Police are investigating the shooting. Anyone who has information about the incident should contact the Norfolk Crime line at 1-888-Lock-UUp or the ODU police department at 757-683-4000.
Commuting impedes student involvment Robert Williams Contributing Writer Commuting might be a greater hazard to student success than anyone thought. At Old Dominion University, 76 percent of students commute to campus. According to a study conducted by California State University in Sacramento, students who commute to campus from parents’ homes or housing that is more than a five-minute drive from campus are 65 percent less likely to get involved with their campus. The study also found that students who were less involved on campus were more likely to drop out of school altogether.
In an email, Melissa DiGianfilippo, vice president of public relations for Phoenix-based Serendipit Consulting, explained some of her company’s findings. “Students who drive to campus communicate less with their teachers and do not take advantage of the abundant opportunities that are offered on campus,” she said. “Commuters are unlikely to develop key relationships with people who are involved with co-curricular activities, community service or take advantage of study abroad and internship opportunities. Those relationships help provide the essential fundamentals and foundation for graduates striving to attain starting position in their field.”
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“A lot of students don’t want the dorm life; it isn’t very private,” said Eric Schnieder, the general leasing manager of The District ODU. “Most on-campus housing options have students sharing a room. It is rare, even unheard of, that a student is able to get their own bathroom.” Many of the students interviewed have said that with the policies for ODU’s on-campus housing, it feels more like living in a boarding school rather than in an apartment. “Dorms are strict with their rues. Rules are even strict in the Village,” said student Jasmine Camacho, speaking about the upper-classmen dorms. Some students choose to compro-
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mise, finding near-campus housing like The District. “You get the privacy of living off campus with the luxury of being on campus,” Schneider said. Nearly all campus amenities are a 10-minute walk from The District. In addition, The District holds social events for its residents and their guests, once they are properly signed in. These events consist of game nights, cookouts at their pool, study sessions with complimentary Red Bull energy drinks, watch parties for those who enjoy watching their favorite TV shows with friends, and other perks like free Scantrons that are handed out during exam week. These social events happen at least Continued A5
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