There are several initiatives underway to memorialize, honor and remember those we lost and those affected by the Feb. 13, 2023, tragedy. As part of that process, MSU’s Office for Resource Support and Coordination remains in contact with those families most directly impacted to gather input and feedback.
Feb. 13 Permanent Memorial Planning Committee
The committee, made up of students, faculty, staff and community liaisons, is actively meeting and working to define a process to involve the MSU community and our connected communities in gathering input for the creation of a lasting memorial on campus. MSU’s National Charrette Institute is supporting and facilitating the community engagement process. Additionally, the Office for Resource and Support Coordination is having private conversations with those most directly impacted by the violence.
The process
A community engagement survey to help shape the campus memorial was active February to March 2024. Respondents were asked to identify the most important purposes of the memorial, potential modes of interaction and the kind of location that promotes the purpose and interaction. In addition to the survey, public focus group sessions were held in March on campus and in the City of East Lansing, as well as online. Focus groups with directly impacted groups continued through the end of April. An executive summary of the findings is available.
Those findings helped develop a request for proposal to design, build and install a permanent memorial in one of two campus locations:
- Sleepy Hollow between Beaumont Tower and the Music Practice Building, or
- Old Horticulture Garden located near the Student Services Building.
The RFP, available for review, was distributed to artist organizations across the country.
Next steps
Below is a general timeline of next steps:
- Late Fall 2024: The planning committee has reviewed the submitted proposals and is going back to several designers with clarifying questions.
- Early Spring 2025: The committee will present a final selection of proposals for community input. After the public comment period, the memorial committee will summarize responses and, in coordination with the Public Art on Campus Committee, recommend a final design.
- Spring/Summer 2025: Work to construct the permanent memorial is planned to start.
Memorial bench
Through the efforts of MSU Infrastructure Planning and Facilities and MSU Student Life and Engagement, as well as a generous donation from the Associated Students of Michigan State University, a bench honoring the memory of students Arielle Anderson, Brian Fraser and Alexandria Verner has been installed in a plaza near Berkey Hall.
Additional funding was made possible via MSU’s Campus Beautification Fund, which supports various landscape and beautification projects across campus.
Archiving Feb. 13-related memorial objects at the MSU Museum
The MSU Museum is serving as the central repository for memorial items placed around campus following the tragedy of Feb. 13, 2023. These items include signs, letters, candles, stuffed animals and various personal mementos and ephemera, all of which will be documented and preserved.
Throughout 2024, the MSU Museum will focus on cataloging and digitizing all memorial items, performing preventative conservation and ensuring proper storage. Museum staff will continue collaborating with campus partners to collect additional materials placed around campus in commemoration of the one-year mark.
In the near term, the collection materials will remain on restricted access and will not be available to the public. The MSU Museum and its campus partners are determining the best ways to manage this important collection in a trauma-informed manner.