In the tragic event of a death of a student that occurs while they are enrolled at the University of Washington, the Office of the Vice President for Student Life serves as the campus’ official point of notification.
Once notified of a student’s passing, our office will begin to work with family, faculty and staff to resolve the University-related affairs of the deceased. In collaboration with colleagues in the Student Care Teams, Student Life also provides emotional support to the family, friends and classmates of the student, tailored to the student’s relationships on campus.
If you have a notification or a question, please contact us at stulife@uw.edu or 206-543-4972.
How should I respond?
Following a student death or tragic accident, staff and faculty, especially those who directly worked with or supported a student, may need to respond to in-person, email, social media or phone inquiries or comments from students or community members faster than a response is available from central University administration.
To support you in times when you need to respond to such requests, we have developed the following language for your use:
“It can be hard to hear about difficult situations in our community. Please know that support resources are available at the UW during the week – the Counseling Center provides a safe and confidential place to process any reactions students may be having. In addition, you can consult with a counselor through the Husky Helpline (24/7 mental health counseling or crisis service) or Let’s Talk. If you are an employee of the UW, you can access the Employee Assistance Program for support.”
UW’s typical process in the event of a student death
There are several factors that may determine what happens in the hours and days immediately following the death of a student, and some of these factors will impact how much is known, how much is shared and what happens next.
The UW learns of a student death in a variety of ways, most often directly from the family or from a partner agency such as the Seattle Police Department. If the death occurs on the UW campus, the UW Police Department is generally the first to notify the Office of the Vice President for Student Life. The University relies on local authorities, such as the King County Medical Examiner, to make official determinations and notifications to families.
When the University becomes aware of a student death, the following actions are typically taken:
- UW will first try to ensure that the family is notified so that they do not learn of the death through social media or other means without the requisite support and care.
- UW will make all efforts possible to identify the student’s classes, social circles, residence hall/Greek house, etc., and begin outreach to impacted parties.
- If the student held a particularly strong relationship with a department or office, we may lean on that department to work closely with us on notification, support or other needs.
- UW will deploy a range of support services that are as responsive and expedient as possible following a student death. This may include:
- A Student Care Team representative visiting a department, residence hall or other impacted community.
- Student Life working with a department/school/college on how to craft an announcement, if appropriate*.
- LiveWell conducting individual outreach to students who need significant support in navigating resources following a death.
- The Counseling Center working with departments and impacted students to curate the support services needed, such as Healthy Grieving sessions.
- The UW President will reach out to the family with condolences and relevant resources.
- The Vice President for Student Life will follow up with the family with additional offers of support.
- Student Life will initiate protocols that help the family resolve the student’s affairs with the UW, including (but not limited to): recouping tuition when possible, unregistering from classes, alerting faculty and teaching assistants, activating insurance, closing accounts, removing fees, removing from mailing lists, etc.
The support that Student Life provides to the family, impacted parties, and departments may last several months.
*Many factors, including the nature of the incident, the impact on the UW community, the wishes of the family and resolution of any police investigation, will all shape the nature, scope and timing of the UW response and any announcements to students.