Joanna Li '12 Dies

UPDATED: May 9, 2013, at 4:04 p.m.

Joanna Y. Li '12, a Kirkland House resident and neurobiology concentrator who had been on leave from the College since last spring semester, died Tuesday in Somerville, Kirkland House administrators announced in an email to the House community Wednesday night.

Kirkland will hold a gathering in the Senior Common Room at 5 p.m. on Thursday to remember Li.

In their email, Kirkland House Masters Tom C. and Verena A. Conley and resident dean Cory T. Way urged any community members in need of counseling services to reach out to them, House tutors, or University Health Services.

“The news is disquieting for everyone at Kirkland, especially for the students, faculty, and staff throughout the College who have known her,” they wrote. “We mourn her passing.”

In an email to the Harvard community Thursday morning, Dean of the College Evelynn M. Hammonds described Li as “a beloved member” of the Kirkland House community whose loss “will be felt deeply” at Harvard.

Hammonds wrote that Li had been on leave from the College since February 2012. She wrote that medical examiners have not yet determined the cause of Li’s death, but that they do not believe foul play was involved.

—Check TheCrimson.com for a forthcoming obituary.