After Wednesday's deadly shooting of a conservative political activist, Charlie Kirk, we heard from local students and leaders from the University of Nevada, Reno.

Kirk had made several public appearances in the Silver State over the years, including at the University.

Students on campus after this tragic event were having mixed feelings about how safe they feel on campus or even in public spaces.

"I have full faith in the University and our campus police to take care of and handle all matters that happen on campus," said Andrew Cirincione, the president of the UNR Young Democrats. "But our current political climate, as we all know, is, the temperature is too high, and we need to come together to form a more united country, and that's something that I know we all believe in."

Ella Gregory, a sophomore majoring in nursing at UNR, says, "It does raise safety concerns on campus, because we had welcomed him here to have his debate, and anyone could have come and walked on campus. It's a very open campus, and it's really scary to know that happened just in Utah while we're here in Nevada, and it did raise some concerns for me."

The students agreed that tragedies like these should never happen, and work needs to be done in order to prevent them.

Cirincione says, "It was tragic. The events that took place yesterday were absolutely horrific both in Utah and in Colorado. Political violence must be condemned in all forms, and what we saw taking place yesterday on campus is what we know to be our reality. We must be able to have civil debates about our ideas, and I think college campuses need to be safe spaces for those to take place, and it was absolutely heartbreaking to see."

Gregory goes on to say, "It's truly tragic what happened; gun violence should be reprimanded in America, and it's a problem that we have seen over the past decades."

Cirincione also tells us, "As the tragic events took place yesterday, shortly after tragic events took place as well in Colorado, and it's unacceptable for us to continue as a country living with this cycle of violence, and political violence permeates both sides of our political process, and it needs to be clear that this is not a political or partisan moment. This is something that transcends politics. It speaks to a bigger moment for each of us within this country to understand, and that is we must come together to end these cycles of violence."

Cirincione also mentions that Kirk was welcomed on campus in 2024 and held an event at UNR, and points out that civil debate is how our democracy functions and how it needs to stay. He says political violence is never acceptable.

The Turning Point Group, which was co-founded by Kirk, held a vigil on campus last night to honor him. 

In a post online they wrote, "Charlie was and forever will be such a great man who did so much good for this country. He will never be forgotten. Thank you for everything, Charlie; we will always remember you."

University President Brian Sandoval released a statement about both Kirk's death and the Evergreen, Colorado, shooting yesterday.

In a statement Sandoval says, "These events are stark reminders of the challenging times we face—not just as a nation, but as a global society. The frequency and intensity of violence in public spaces, especially educational institutions, weigh heavily on all of us."

A vigil to honor Kirk is scheduled for Friday in downtown Reno at the City Plaza, set to begin at 7 p.m.