Another University of Pennsylvania Student Has Committed Suicide

Daily Pennsylvanian reports on the school's fourth student suicide this year.

Back in March, we told you that three University of Pennsylvania students had committed suicide since the start of that school year. And now we have learned that another University of Pennsylvania student has killed himself.

As the Daily Pennsylvanian has reported, Theodric Reed was a senior at the university studying English, and he committed suicide on August 24th in Los Angeles. His family lives in Santa Clarita, California.

According to the newspaper, Reed had a history of depression and had been seeing a therapist since the summer after his freshman year at Penn.

The DP story lays out a conversation that Reed had with his mother, Linda Douglas, shortly before his death:

In the middle of the conversation, Reed suddenly said that Penn wouldn’t care if he committed suicide, but would only care if he committed suicide on campus, Douglas said in an interview Sunday night. That was the second time he expressed that sentiment to his mother.

Penn made the following statement after Reed’s death:

We were all deeply saddened to hear of his death, and Penn staff have reached out to his family in California to do everything we can to be supportive.

Meanwhile, a mental health task force created by Penn president Amy Gutmann is expected to present recommendations to her by the end of this calendar year.

For confidential support if you are having thoughts of suicide, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255). Learn about the warning signs of suicide at the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.