page_title: Ohio State University attack
section_title: University reaction
hierarchical_section_title: Ohio State University attack / Reactions / University reaction
caption_attribution_description: Pointsettias and a sign left outside of Watts Hall in dedication of the 2016 Ohio State University attack.
context_page_description: On November 28, 2016, a terrorist vehicle-ramming and stabbing attack occurred at 9:52 a.m. EST at Ohio State University's Watts Hall in Columbus, Ohio. The attacker, Somali refugee Abdul Razak Ali Artan, was shot and killed by the first responding OSU police officer, and 13 people were hospitalized for injuries.
  Authorities began investigating the possibility of the attack being an act of terrorism. On the next day, law enforcement officials stated that Artan was inspired by terrorist propaganda from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant and the late radical Muslim cleric Anwar al-Awlaki. Amaq News Agency released a statement claiming the attacker responded to an ISIL call to attack coalition citizens, though there is no evidence of direct contact between the group and Artan.
context_section_description: Soon after the attack, OSU tweeted that all classes would be canceled for the rest of November 28. In a press conference held sometime after, OSU President Michael V. Drake said that he met with Alan Horujko and thanked him for "following his training and being able to neutralize the circumstance within roughly one minute". He also credited the school's active shooter training and campus alert system for maintaining order while police secured the scene. When asked if the attack had anything to do with terrorism or Ohio's Somali-American community, Drake cautioned against "jumping to conclusions", citing a lack of evidence at the time.
  At around 10:00 p.m. on November 28, OSU students and employees gathered in front of a church located near the scene of the attack, to pray for the injured. On November 30, two days after the attack, more than 500 students, employees, and community members attended the "#BuckeyeStrong" event at St. John Arena. Drake spoke at the event, praising the heroic acts of the school community in the immediate aftermath of the attack, as well as the work of the first responders.
  On December 1, Stephanie Clemons Thompson, assistant director of student life at OSU, made a Facebook post calling for compassion to be directed at Artan and hashtagging #BuckeyeStrong #BlackLivesMatter #SayHisName. The post received condemnation on social media for defending a person who attempted to kill others, for implying that Artan's death was wrong, and for comparing a terrorist who targeted his fellow students with victims of police brutality. A Change.org petition calling for Thompson's termination from OSU received over 1,200 signatures. An OSU spokesman said that the post "clearly is not an official statement of the university and represents her own personal viewpoint."  Some people have defended Thompson for writing the post.
caption: Poinsettias and a sign left outside of Watts Hall in dedication of the attack.
exif: {"Image Software": "Google"}