CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill rang the bell tower Wednesday to honor the life of professor Zijie Yan, who was killed in an on-campus shooting Monday.
"I encourage every member of our campus community to take a moment of silence during this time," Chancellor Kevin Guskiewicz wrote in a message to students and faculty. "This is an important way that we can come together as a community to recognize the loss we feel and to support one another."
Tailei Qi, a doctoral student who worked closely with Yan's research group at UNC since early 2022, was arrested and charged with murder in connection to the shooting. Police said the shooting happened in a lab on campus. Qi is being held without bond in the Orange County Detention Center.
Yan and Qi co-authored research papers in recent years on the effect of light on nanoparticles. Yan’s recent work focused on something called “optical tweezers,” a process using light aimed at developing advanced nanorobots within cells, according to an article on the applied physical sciences department’s website.
"We know that the wounds of this tragedy will not heal quickly," Guskiewicz said.
Aiden Scott, a UNC grad student and former classmate of Qi's, spoke with WRAL News about working on a project together with Qi.
"I would have never guessed that he would be the kind of person who could possibly be capable of this kind of thing," Scott said. "He was always very quiet."
In support of the UNC-Chapel Hill community, Duke University's fifty-bell carillon in the tower of Duke Chapel featured UNC's alma mater, "Hark the Sound."
In addition to ringing the bell tower Wednesday, the university held a candlelight vigil at 7:30 p.m. in Yan's memory. The university held the vigil into the Dean E. Smith Center due to the rain.
UNC has provided on-campus counseling sessions for students and faculty members. The university is also providing mental health services with a 24/7 hotline at: 919-996-3658. Additionally, UNC set up a hotline for students, faculty and staff to report safety concerns and ask questions at 919-918-1999.
WRAL contributed to this report.
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