Student Survives 9-Story Fall

An undergraduate fell from a ninth-floor window in Leverett House Tower F yesterday morning, suffering serious injuries, according to University officials.

The 25-year-old student, Steven R. Snyder ’04-’08, was in critical condition at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center as of yesterday, said the hospital’s spokesman Jerry Berger. University News Office Asssociate Director Rebecca E. Rollins said the student was “improving.”

A Leverett resident, Vaidya G. Rajagopalan ’08, said he was passing through the Tower’s courtyard when he heard the fall.

“I heard the rustle of leaves, and a second later, I heard a thud, and he was lying there,” he said. “He was on his back.”

Snyder fell from the northwest side of the building that faces DeWolfe Street. He landed outside the fence that surrounds the Towers’ courtyard, according to Rajagopalan.

“He was breathing—stomach going up and down. He was kind of rigid,” he said. “His arms were shaking a bit.”

Rajagopalan said a nearby construction worker called the police.

Harvard University Police Department (HUPD) received the call at 10:25 a.m. yesterday and sent officers to 28 DeWolfe St. to investigate a report of an “injured person,” Rollins said.

“The officer determined there appeared to be a fall,” she said. Police are still investigating the circumstances surrounding that fall.

Rooms in the Leverett Towers typically have one large window that doesn’t open and at least one smaller window that can be cranked open. The smaller windows are each about two feet wide and four feet high.

A swarm of officers and University administrators descended upon the scene, cordoning off the courtyard’s entrance at the corner of DeWolfe and Grant streets. As sirens wailed and curious students looked on, Leverett Masters Ann and Howard Georgi, Associate Dean of Harvard College Judith H. Kidd, Associate Dean of Residential Life Suzy M. Nelson, and HUPD Chief Francis D. “Bud” Riley congregated Francis D. “Bud” Riley congregated beside the yellow caution tape.

Meredith P. Ewer-Speck ’09 was studying in the Leverett Dining Hall across the street at the time of the incident.

“We heard some sirens, and a lot of people flocked to the windows,” she said.

Snyder—who is from Avon Lake, Ohio—is a mathematics concentrator.

Snyder’s suitemates did not return requests for comment.

Dean of the College Benedict H. Gross ’71, in an e-mail sent to undergraduates at about 12:30 p.m. yesterday, said a student “apparently fell from a window,” and an “investigation is underway.”

“A time like this can be very difficult for everyone, especially those who live in Leverett. I would like to remind all students and staff that there are many people on campus who can help you through this difficult time,” Gross added. He directed students to the University’s Mental Health Services and the Bureau of Study Counsel.

—Staff writer Stephanie S. Garlow can be reached at sgarlow@fas.harvard.edu.