Former Centennial student killed during Virginia Tech shootings

By Daily Illini Staff Report

Austin Cloyd, a former Centennial High School student, was among those killed during the shootings at Virginia Tech, The Associated Press reports.

According to The News-Gazette, Cloyd attended Centennial during her freshman, sophomore and junior years before moving to Virginia with her family. She was an international studies major at Virginia Tech.

Cloyd played volleyball and basketball at Centennial.

“She was a very good student,” said Centennial High School principal Judy Wiegand.

Her father, Bryan Cloyd, a professor of accounting and information systems at Virginia Tech, taught at the University from 1999 to 2005, The News-Gazette said. Her younger brother Andrew attended Jefferson Middle School.

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The Cloyds were active members of the First United Methodist Church in Champaign, Ill., the Rev. Terry Harter said.

Harter, whose church held a prayer service for the family Tuesday night, described Cloyd as a “very delightful, intelligent (and) warm young lady.”

Her father said she wanted to work for the United Nations “in hopes of fostering peace in a troubled world.”

According to a story from The Associated Press, Interim Police Chief Krystal Fitzpatrick says she hopes to prevent tragedies like the one at Virginia Tech.

Fitzpatrick says the University has tried to take a proactive approach to find and deal with possible problems, The Associated Press reports. She said the police department and the dean of students office meet monthly to discuss issues and develop coordinated responses.

Police also meet with the University’s Counseling Center once a month to discuss possible threats, the story said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Check back with DailyIllini.com for more updates on the shootings at Virginia Tech