Two UW–Platteville students died in a shooting in UWP’s Wilgus Hall Monday afternoon.
Kelsie Martin, 22, Beloit, died at UW Hospital in Madison, where she was taken by Med Flight helicopter from Southwest Health in Platteville after the shooting.
A UW–Platteville email Tuesday afternoon said preliminary autopsy results determined Martin died from a gunshot wound.
Hallie Helms, 22, Baraboo, was found dead of a gunshot wound at the shooting scene, according to the email.
Martin’s and Helms’ deaths were announced Monday night more than seven hours after a report of a multiple-casualty incident that brought police, fire and EMS on campus and resulted in lockdowns on the UWP campus and in Platteville schools.
UW–Platteville police responded to a 911 call for a disturbance at Wilgus Hall Monday before 4 p.m.
Police found Martin, who was transported by Southwest Health EMS to Southwest Health before she was Med Flighted to UW Hospital, and Helms’ body.
The state Department of Justice Division of Criminal Investigation is investigating “the circumstances surrounding the death of the two individuals,” the email said.
Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call UW–Platteville police, 608-342-1584.
“Our biggest concern at this point first and foremost is the safety and wellbeing of our students,” said chancellor Tammy Evetovich during a news conference in the Markee Pioneer Student Center Monday evening attended by a room full of UWP students. “What we have to focus on are those students that are impacted and support them in ways that only the people on this campus can do.
“One of the strengths of UW–Platteville is we are small enough to support you personally, so that I ask you all to take advantage of that.”
Dean of students Amber Monroe said counseling services would be available through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Students who were “directly impacted” were individually contacted for how they can access counseling, she added.
The UWP email identifying Martin and Helms said a free, confidential UW Mental Health 24/7 line is available at 1-888-531-2142.
Martin graduated summa cum laude from UWP Saturday with a bachelor’s degree in psychology with an emphasis in human services. She was assistant resident director of Wilgus Hall.
Martin said in a UW–Platteville Residence Life Facebook post that she “wanted to help people the same way my RA helped me through my first year on campus.”
Helms graduated magna cum laude from UWP Saturday with a bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education, according to UWP’s spring commencement program. She was a resident of Wilgus Hall.
Southwest Health EMS was sent to a report of a possible multiple-casualty incident Monday around 3:50 p.m. A few minutes later Platteville Fire was dispatched to set up a perimeter around Wilgus Hall.
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel quoted a UW–Platteville criminal justice student who graduated Saturday as hearing an argument on the first floor of Wilgus Hall around 3:20 p.m. The student then heard a single loud bang and what sounded like something falling on a floor, the Journal Sentinel said.
A text message was sent to students Monday at 4:06 p.m. reporting “an emergency situation” on campus and advising to “avoid campus and shelter in place.”
One minute later another UWP text said to “avoid the Wilgus Hall area.”
Two UWP students who live in Wilgus Hall one floor below the incident said they heard nothing when the incident took place.
UWP student Joseph Lambie said he was in Wilgus Hall when the incident took place. He was told to leave the dorm, and when he tried to leave by the east stairway he was told to leave by another exit.
By 4:15 p.m. after firefighters left the scene, Platteville and UW–Platteville police and Grant and Jo Daviess county sheriff’s deputies were investigating and cordoning off the area. A Southwest Health ambulance left with a patient.
A text at 5:03 p.m. said that “law enforcement has confirmed that there is no active threat to the campus community.”
A UWP email at 5:11 p.m. ended the shelter-in-place advisory.
Students who live on the four floors of Wilgus Hall were moved to Brockert Hall Monday night. Following commencement Saturday students who are not staying at UWP this summer are moving out this week.
UW–Platteville first canceled exams scheduled for late Monday and Tuesday, then decided later to cancel all exams that haven’t taken place at its main and Baraboo–Sauk County campuses.
Provost and vice chancellor Laura Reynolds said finals were canceled because “we are a close-knit community. Both the faculty and staff as well as the students need time to be together, need time to work through this together. We are deeply saddened and know this event has negative impact on our Pioneers, and we know students will want to be able to focus on their own well-being and spend time with friends and their families.”
Reynolds said deans of UWP’s colleges will make arrangements with end-of-the-year assignments and senior projects on a case-by-case basis, including with classes where exams took place before the incident. UWP’s Textbook Center also will be open extended hours this week.
“There are so many varied situations on this campus that it’s impossible to address it as a whole,” she said. “That will be something that the offices of the deans will work out, to make sure that we provide as much equity and as much parity as we can across these experiences. … No solution here is perfect, but we want to opt for what prioritizes you as students.”
An email to UWP faculty said that “traditional final exams are not permitted” faculty may meet optionally with students “to determine the most appropriate path forward.” The email instructed faculty to “ensure that students experience no harm to thir final grade as a result of the disruption.”
Evetovich said “scenario-planning is something we do regularly,” including Monday morning in a different kind of scenario. “We certainly can’t plan for everything, but we do train on it regularly, and I think it did help us in this instance.”
The incident had impacts beyond the UWP dorms.
The Six Rivers Conference track meet was being held at the UW–Platteville Track and Field Complex when the incident began. Participants were sheltered in place in Williams Fieldhouse until the campus shelter-in-place notice was lifted, after which the track meet was canceled.
The Six Rivers meet will be held at River Ridge High School in Patch Grove Thursday at 3:45 p.m.
“Out of an abundance of caution we secured our buildings” and canceled practices Monday afternoon, said Platteville School District superintendent Jim Boebel.
The school district is making counseling available for students this week.
The Platteville High School band and orchestra concert in the PHS auditorium originally scheduled for Monday night was postponed until today at 7 p.m.
Rolling Hills Church and First English Lutheran Church in Platteville jointly held a service Monday night. Community Evangelical Free Church in Platteville also held a service Monday night.
UW–Platteville police chief Joe Hallman said Monday that weapons are not allowed in residence halls. Weapons owned by students involved in such activities as trap shooting are stored at the UWP Police Department. He said police do not recommend students keeping weapons in their vehicles on campus.
Platteville, Cuba City, East Dubuque, Lancaster and Baraboo police, Grant County Emegency Management and the Wisconsin State Crime Lab assisted UW–Platteville police.
UW–Platteville has had two fatal on-campus shooting incidents. UWP student Kathleen Moan, 20, was shot to death in the snack bar of what was the Student Center and now is Ullsvik Hall by another UWP student Dec. 8, 1964. A woman shot herself to death on campus March 20, 1995.
