Oakwood University Statement – Murder of OU Student

Oakwood University Statement – Murder of OU Student

From the Oakwood President
September 19, 2018

“First, I wish to thank  our alumni, friends, church members, and each of you personally for the numerous messages of assurance, support, and prayer for our campus in the wake of the tragic off-campus incident involving one of our students last weekend.

Second, I want to reassure you as parents and supporters that the Oakwood University campus has been secured at the highest levels.  While it is natural for concerns to be raised, some of the concerns have morphed into unfounded rumors. There were no gun shots on campus, neither were any assailants found in our student population. There are no current threats to our campus.  The joint investigation of OUPD and the local Huntsville Police Department remains active.  We will find and bring to swift justice the suspect in the murder of our student Carvell Goodlow.

OUPD and local police continue to patrol in and around campus on a daily basis.  As an additional safety measure, we have posted two police officers at the entrance of every residence hall, in addition to those OUPD officers working at the security gates. We want to make sure that we are taking every action humanly possible to safeguard our most precious treasures—our students and our employees.

Please be assured that we are taking every precaution in the wake of this senseless tragedy and again we solicit your prayers for our campus.  We have planned an institution-wide memorial service for Thursday, September 20 at 4:30.  You may consult our Parent Information Portal at WWW2.oakwood.edu for ongoing posting of information.  Again thank you for your care and support.  “Behold, he that keepeth Israel will neither slumber nor sleep” Psalm 121:4.  Our campus continues its mission under His care.

Leslie Pollard, Ph.D, D.Min., MBA