11An unidentified man entered a religious studies class and smashed a pie in the face of a black student who was sitting in the back of the room, prompting the Department of Public Safety to open an investigation into the incident.
The assailant’s motive is unknown, and DPS is interviewing students and faculty in the class who witnessed the Feb. 17 incident. About 90 students are in the class.
The attack occurred in 123 Pacific during assistant professor Deborah Green’s Introduction to the Bible class. Approximately 15 minutes after the lecture began, a man wearing a green, hooded Oregon jacket and aviator sunglasses entered the room carrying a duffel bag over his shoulder.
“My first instinct was the guy was suspicious,” said Jay Montrose, a student in the class. “He was hunched over and carrying the bag in a weird way.”
The assailant yelled something indecipherable and then threw the pie in the student’s face before running out of the classroom, Montrose said.
“Everyone sat there stunned,” Montrose said. “The teacher asked him if he was OK, if he knew the guy. He said he didn’t.”
A different student sitting in the back of the room, who wishes to remain anonymous for fear of retribution, said she saw the assailant and he had his hand in the bag. He was walking briskly, she said.
The man seemed like he knew who he was hitting, she said.
The student said another man who also acted suspicious was sitting in the back of the room. The man was wearing a black, zip-down jacket and had a backpack, the student said.
According to the student, the man didn’t sign the attendance sheet before passing it to her and he wasn’t taking notes. She noticed after the incident happened that he had a small video camera that he was trying to conceal in his jacket, she said.
The man left approximately 10 minutes after the incident and didn’t stop when the teacher asked him if he had been hit with pie as well, according to the student.
Green asked one of the graduate teaching fellows, Aaron Greer, to chase the assailant before excusing the victim to clean himself up, Montrose said.
Greer wasn’t able to locate the assailant.
“I wish I had reacted sooner,” Greer said, “but I didn’t really understand what had just happened. I didn’t see it because I was facing the front of the room.”
“By the time I got outside he was long gone,” Greer said. “It’s hard to chase after someone when you don’t know what they look like. But I know he wasn’t a student in the class.”
Greer said the other man who left shortly after the incident also wasn’t a student in the class.
Green stopped lecturing to discuss the incident and discussed several Bible passages that teach tolerance and respect for all people, said Tianna DeLeon, a student in the class.
After the incident, the University “initiated our systems to provide support and counsel to the student, (and) the students and faculty who witnessed the event,” according to a University statement. “We will respect the student’s wish for privacy regarding this matter.”
“Despite our efforts and our desire to have a campus that is safe for all and welcoming for all, our campus reflects all of the problems present in the larger society,” the statement read. “Nevertheless, we have a collective responsibility to foster a campus culture that will not tolerate these occurrences and must continue to work toward a campus climate that is open, safe and welcoming for all.”
The Emerald could not reach Green or DPS for comment.
The University urges anybody with information about the incident to call DPS at 541-346-5444.
Contact the crime, health and safety reporter at [email protected]
