A terrible day for America—and for our universities, and our future.

The news out of Utah is heartbreaking—Charlie Kirk has been assassinated.

They’ve caught the accused assassin. But the story isn’t over.

When I first shared my thoughts on Charlie Kirk’s death, I wasn’t sure why. It’s not the kind of subject I normally write about. But it felt too big to ignore. I had to acknowledge it as a terrible day for America.

In the days since, a few more details have emerged—though what more did we truly need? The tragedy was already undeniable. Still, time has given me space to reflect. My heart breaks for Erika and their two young children. It also breaks for our universities, for our students, and even for the family of the accused assassin.

The coverage is everywhere—the Presidency, every news outlet, every social feed. His death has reached into places and conversations I never expected.

I was also struck by how quickly our young people—teens, and even pre-teens with phones—were exposed to something so terrible. They saw, with their own eyes, a man lose his life. I reminded them: this is not entertainment, not a video game, not a movie. What they saw was real, violent, and tragic—a husband and father whose life ended before them. These are images no young person should ever carry.

A husband and father is gone. Erika has lost the love of her life, her partner, and her rock. Two children have lost their dad. A community has lost a friend and colleague. Our country has lost a future leader.

This tragedy also wounds our universities. A campus should be a place where young people learn, take on responsibility, and grow in maturity—not a playground for recklessness or frivolity, and never a place of fear.Not all ideas are good, and not all paths are worth following. Universities must shape discernment, not chaos.

What further breaks my heart is the age of the accused assassin—and the fact he was an engineering student. Someone who could have been building solutions, designing systems, and creating a better future. Instead, a life of promise is wasted, and two families are shattered—one grieving a loved one, the other grieving the son they thought they knew, and realizing they will never truly know again.

There are lessons here for all of us:

Students: don’t let your friends drift into hate or isolation. Invite them in. Get coffee, grab lunch together. Help each other find the light.

Professors and staff: you see more than grades. Absences, withdrawal, changes in behavior—these are warnings. One nudge, one connection to support can alter a trajectory. Don’t look the other way.

Parents: just because your child turns 18 doesn’t mean they stop needing you. If they start voicing dangerous or hateful ideas, don’t dismiss it as “just a phase.” Set boundaries. Intervene. Correct them firmly at home—before those thoughts harden into actions that can never be undone.

We honor Charlie Kirk’s memory by choosing the harder path—courage, responsibility, and faith—before darkness takes root.

May God comfort Erika and their two young children. We must never allow violence or darkness to take root.