Campus Alert Archive
NC A&T

A Few Hundred at the Deese Clock Tower After Midnight: NC A&T's First-Week-of-School Shooting at the Student Center

NCshootingemergency notificationmedium confidence
Confirmed Threat

Around 12:30 AM EDT on August 20, 2025, an estimated couple of hundred people gathered at NC A&T's Deese Clock Tower outside the Student Center when two non-students drew weapons and fired multiple shots. An AggieAlert was issued shortly after. No one was injured. NC A&T responded with tightened security measures including earlier vehicle-access restrictions and Aggie OneID checks at the Student Center.

Alerts
3
Response
—
Killed
0
Injured
0
Institution
North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University
Hbcu · NC
~13,322 studentsAggieAlert
Confirmed Timeline

Alert Sequence

3 messages in sequence

Some alert texts below are approximate reconstructions from news coverage, not confirmed verbatim transcripts. Reconstructed texts are shown in italic with a dashed border. Verified verbatim texts have a solid border and are marked accordingly.

INITIAL ALERTSMS
Approximate reconstruction123 chars
AggieAlert: Shots fired between the Quad area and Obermeyer parking lot. UPD is on scene. Avoid the area. Shelter in place.

This text has been reconstructed from news coverage and may not reflect the exact original wording.

CBS17 reported the first AggieAlert at approximately 1:01 a.m. (WFMY News 2 cited 1:04 a.m.) referencing shots fired 'between the Quad area and Obermeyer parking lot' — the Obermeyer Parking Deck is at 102 North Laurel Street
The initial alert named the Quad/Obermeyer area, not the Deese Clock Tower — the Clock Tower location was referenced in the second alert at 1:24 a.m.
Shooting occurred around 12:30 AM when two non-affiliated individuals drew weapons and fired at an unsanctioned gathering of approximately 200 people
UPDATESMS+23 min
Approximate reconstruction111 chars
AggieAlert: Shots fired in the area of the Deese Clocktower. UPD is on scene. Avoid the area. Shelter in place.

This text has been reconstructed from news coverage and may not reflect the exact original wording.

CBS17 reported 'A second AggieAlert came in at 1:24 a.m. and reported that shots were fired in the area of the Deese Clocktower,' which is approximately 500 feet from Obermeyer Parking Deck
The shift from Obermeyer/Quad to Deese Clocktower in the second alert may reflect updated reporting from witnesses as the crowd dispersed across the plaza
The Deese Clock Tower is adjacent to the Student Center — the central gathering area at the heart of NC A&T's campus
ALL CLEARSMS+2h 4m
Approximate reconstruction156 chars
AggieAlert: ALL CLEAR!! UPD has cleared the scene at Deese Clocktower. No injuries reported. Continue to be alert and report any suspicious activity to UPD.

This text has been reconstructed from news coverage and may not reflect the exact original wording.

CBS17 reported 'A final AggieAlert came in at 3:05 a.m., saying that the scene at Deese Clocktower had been cleared' — about two hours after the initial alert
Uses AggieAlert's signature 'ALL CLEAR!!' double-exclamation convention documented in other NC A&T incidents
Suspects were later determined to be non-students with no NC A&T affiliation; no injuries occurred among the approximately 200 people present
Context

Background

Just after midnight on August 20, 2025 — the first week of NC A&T's fall semester — a social gathering of an estimated couple of hundred people near the Deese Clock Tower outside the Student Center turned into a shooting when two armed individuals drew weapons and fired multiple rounds. University officials confirmed neither shooter was an NC A&T student or affiliate; they had come to the Student Center where an altercation broke out. The gathering was not university-sanctioned. AggieAlert pushed an initial alert shortly after the 12:30 AM gunfire and lifted it about an hour later. No one was injured. The incident sat atop a string of AggieAlerts referencing on-campus gunfire that began with the April 2024 Barbee Hall residence-hall shooting and prompted Chancellor Harold L. Martin Sr.'s administration to roll out a sweeping package of security upgrades the following week: more security personnel at the Student Center, vehicle-access restrictions starting before 9 PM, mandatory Aggie OneID checks on demand at the Student Center, a tightened trespassing policy, and additional security at NC A&T-managed off-campus apartments. The decisions reflected a broader concern across HBCUs about non-student access to central campus social spaces during late-night gatherings.
Analysis

Key Findings

Both shooters were non-students at an unsanctioned gathering of roughly 200 people at the central Student Center plaza — a recurring HBCU access-control concern at late-night informal events
AggieAlert followed its consistent localize-then-all-clear pattern, with the 'ALL CLEAR!!' double-exclamation marker reappearing in the second message
The incident triggered NC A&T's most substantial post-incident security package of the decade: earlier vehicle-access restrictions, OneID checks, and expanded trespassing policy
No injuries despite multiple rounds fired into a crowd of approximately 200 — an outcome that university leaders publicly described as fortunate rather than expected
Outcome
No injuries reported. The two shooters were not NC A&T students or affiliates; both came to the Student Center where an altercation broke out and ended in gunfire. The university announced increased Student Center security personnel, earlier vehicle-access restrictions (before 9 PM), mandatory Aggie OneID checks, an improved trespassing policy, and expanded security at off-campus NC A&T-managed apartments.
Provenance

Sources

  1. News
    Police investigating report of shots fired at N.C. A&T gathering overnight (WUNC)
    wunc.org
  2. News
    Aggie Alert: NC A&T shots fired (WFMY News 2)
    wfmynews2.com
  3. News
    Shots fired at NC A&T overnight, university officials say (WFMY News 2)
    wfmynews2.com
  4. News
    NC A&T tightening security after student center shooting (WFMY News 2)
    wfmynews2.com
  5. News
    1 shot in altercation on North Carolina A&T State University campus (FOX8 WGHP)
    myfox8.com
  6. Official
    AggieAlert Emergency Notification System (NC A&T Official)
    ncat.edu
Tags
shootinghbcunorth-carolinanon-affiliated-attackerstudent-centerfirst-week-of-schoolaggie-alertpost-incident-security-changes
Added May 2026Updated May 2026Via ingestion