Update, posted Wednesday, June 2, 1 p.m.: E-mail from dean of SCS
Thomas Gibbons, dean of the Northwestern School of Continuing Studies, wrote in an e-mail Wednesday that the SCS community is “very saddened” by the loss of 25-year-old Brian Tsay, a student found dead in a University Library bathroom Sunday.
Tsay’s cause and manner of death are undetermined and pending toxicology tests at the Cook County Medical Examiner’s office, which may take six to eight weeks to complete.
“Brian was a strong student who had come to the school to prepare himself for the next chapter in his career,” Gibbons wrote. “He was appreciated as a hardworking and kind person by many of his fellow students and faculty.
“Our sympathy and thoughts are with (Tsay’s) family in their loss,” he wrote.
SCS will recognize Tsay with a moment of silence at its June 19 Convocation program and is planning a prayer service in his memory early next week, Gibbons wrote.
Update, posted 12:30 p.m.: Investigation details
Officials returning to work Tuesday after Memorial Day weekend offered insight into the pending investigation of the death of 25-year-old Northwestern student Brian Tsay, though a determination on the cause of death awaits results from toxicology tests.
Evanston Police Department Cmdr. Tom Guenther said EPD is working jointly with University Police in the investigation, which is pending toxicology results from the medical examiner.
“They need to see if there were any substances in the body that could have contributed to the subject’s death,” Guenther said.
Police do not suspect foul play.
The doctor who performed a preliminary investigation on the body made no indication of pre-existing medical conditions, said a spokeswoman at the Cook County Medical Examiner’s office who declined to be named.
Guenther did not comment on the subject’s time of death, but said paramedics determined the 25-year-old student had no vitals at the University Library on Sunday.
The student was discovered at about 9:20 a.m.
Check back for more updates throughout the day.
Update, posted Tuesday, 11:45 a.m.: Evanston Police Department news release
Police investigating the death of 25-year-old Northwestern student Brian Tsay do not suspect foul play, according to a news release sent out Tuesday morning by the Evanston Police Department, which is investigating with University Police.
EPD responded to the University Library Sunday after a library staffer discovered a male body in a men’s bathroom within the library at about 9:20 a.m., according to the release.
There were no indications of the cause or manner of death, according to the release.
EPD spokesman Tom Guenther did not immediately return a phone call requesting clarification of the release. A spokesman for UP declined to comment.
Here is the full release:
REFERENCE: Death Investigation
On May 30th 2010, at approximately 9:20 a.m. Northwestern University Evanston campus library staff discovered an unresponsive male in a men’s bathroom within the library. Evanston Fire Paramedics responded and determined that the subject was deceased. A joint investigation was then initiated by Evanston police and Northwestern University police.
Subsequent investigation determined that the deceased was a 25 year-old Northwestern student, identified as one Brian Tsay. Preliminary investigation indicates their were no signs of foul play or physical evidence indicating cause or manner of death.
Furthering this investigation, a postmortem examination was conducted by the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office, cause and manner of death still remain undetermined. This case is now pending a Cook County Medical Examiners toxicology examination, results expected in several weeks.
Check back for more updates throughout the day.
Original Monday article, posted 3 a.m. Tuesday
Details about the death of School of Continuing Studies student Brian Tsay remained murky Monday, the day after a library staffer discovered the 25-year-old’s body in a University Library bathroom.
The Northfield, Ill. native’s cause of death was unclear and pending toxicology results after an examination by the Cook County Medical Examiner’s office Monday morning. A spokesman at the office said no determination would be made on the student’s death until test results are released; those reports usually take six to eight weeks, according to another spokeswoman. Both declined to be named.
Spokesmen from the Evanston Police Department, which investigates deaths on NU’s campus, were unavailable Monday, Memorial Day.
The library, 1970 Campus Drive, was closed Sunday and reopened Monday at 8:30 a.m.
A man who answered the phone at Tsay’s Northfield, Ill., address said he was the student’s father and declined to comment.
The family would like to keep the death as private as possible, the man said.
“He was a wonderful boy, and that’s how I want him to be remembered,” he said.
According to a LinkedIn page, Tsay graduated from the University of Michigan in 2008 with a bachelor of arts in economics and was in a post-baccalaureate finance certificate program at NU.
At Michigan, Tsay participated in the Economics Society, the MBA Finance Club and the Boxing Club, according to the LinkedIn page.
University President Morton O. Schapiro declined to comment Monday given the family’s request for privacy.
SCS administrators were unavailable for comment Monday.
“On behalf of Northwestern, I offer our deepest sympathy to our student’s family, friends and fellow students,” Vice President for Student Affairs William Banis wrote in an e-mail announcing the death to NU students and staff Sunday afternoon. “The death of any one member of our community affects all of us.”
Banis’ e-mail also informed students that Counseling and Psychological Services was available to students seeking assistance following the death.
Melanie Wang, president of the School of Continuing Studies Student Advisory Board, said the death had made her realize the close tie between SCS and the University community.
“We can come together as a broader community to support the people who have been affected by (Tsay’s death),” said Wang, who is studying public policy and administration.
SCS allows students to pursue both graduate and undergraduate degrees as well as certificates. It offers night classes at NU’s downtown campus, making it convenient for students with jobs and families who live near downtown.
Students, who have an average age of 24, take classes on both the Chicago and Evanston campuses.
Wang said the death was a “big shock” for everyone in the student body.
“From the SAB perspective, it’s a struggle to get a sense of Northwestern’s broader community,” Wang said. “Seeing one of our students on the news and the tragedy that has happened, it hits home for us that our students are just as much a part of Northwestern.”
She said she had yet to hear officially from administrators regarding Tsay’s death.
The student’s death is “incredibly tragic,” Associated Student Government President Claire Lew said Sunday.
“Hopefully, as a Northwestern community, we can come together to support part of our Northwestern family,” the SESP junior said.
The student was found the day after Dillo Day, an all-day music festival sometimes associated with heavy student drinking. There were no indications that the death was related to Dillo Day festivities.[email protected]
