Shooting hoax at Villanova spread panic during student orientation

VILLANOVA, PA — Just days before the start of the academic year, a report of a shooting at Villanova University on Aug. 21 sent panic through the campus as frightened students and visitors scrambled to barricade themselves inside nearby buildings.

The report of an active shooter that forced the university into lockdown on the first day of orientation was deemed a "cruel hoax," according to the school's president, Rev. Peter M. Donohue. A campus alert was sent around 4:30 p.m. local time during an orientation Mass welcoming new students, who had recently moved in on Aug. 20.

The school's alert urged students and visitors, including many families sending off their loved ones, to move to a secure location and lock or barricade doors. Authorities later began clearing the scene after conf