VILLANOVA, Pa. — Police responded Thursday to a report of an active shooter on the campus of Villanova University, sparking panic among students days before the start of classes.
Students shared a text from the Villanova alert system that told them to lock and barricade doors and move to secure locations. A second alert from Villanova officials warned people to stay away from the law school.
In a post on X, Radnor Township told nearby residents and students to shelter in place. No other information was given.
Videos posted on social media showed a crowd being rushed inside a building on campus. New student orientation and registration started Thursday and is scheduled to go until Saturday. Classes begin Monday.
Aerial scenes showed several emergency vehicles on the scene and armed officers milling about at the entrance of a parking garage.
Brandon Ambrosino, a professor of theology and ethics at Villanova who was not on campus at the time, said most faculty members were not on campus, but students moved in on Wednesday. He said he and colleagues were struggling to find information about the active shooter during the chaotic afternoon.
“None of my colleagues know what’s happening. We’re messaging back and forth,” Ambrosino said.
Ambrosino said he was concerned for the safety of students.
“Yeah, terrifying. Obviously, it’s our nightmare scenario. I feel terrible for these kids,” he said.
State Rep. Lisa Borowski, whose district includes Villanova, said that at about 5 p.m. she received a text from Radnor Township Police and Villanova campus police for local residents to shelter in place.
“I am very worried and very concerned,” Borowski said.
Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday said he was aware of the active shooter report and was monitoring.
Villanova University is a private Catholic university in the Philadelphia suburbs. It borders Lower Merion Township and Radnor Township at the center of the city’s wealthy Main Line neighborhoods.
The Augustinian school got extra attention this year as the alma mater of new Pope Leo XIV.