On September 11, 2001, New York City and Washington, D.C . were targets of the worst terrorist attacks in the history of our nation. Over 6,000 people lost their lives in this horrific tragedy, and the impact of it was felt across the globe – including on the campus of N.C . State.

The normal beginning of an abnormal day

Eva Holcomb was an undergraduate student on September 11, 2001. She began her day just like any other: walking to class.

Like many others, she still remembers exactly where she was when she first heard news of the attack.

“I was walking down Avent Ferry Road, headed to my Weather and Climate class in Withers Hall,” Holcomb said. “A friend called me and informed me that a plane had crashed into the World Trade Center. We discussed how odd this was, and then I continued on to campus. “

Holcomb graduated from N.C . State in 2002 with degrees in chemistry and science education. She is now the director of the Park Scholarships program.

She said that many people didn’t realize the severity of the attacks when they occurred.

“We held class as usual,” Holcomb said. “Though many of us had cell phones, this was before texting and no one seemed aware of the seriousness of how the situation evolved during class.”

Hailey Queen was also an undergraduate student on September 11, 2001. Like Holcomb, Queen began her day just like any other.

“I remember getting out of my math class in Harrelson and going to the Atrium to get a late breakfast with a classmate and seeing people gathered around the TVs mounted around the room,” Queen said. “At that time the first plane had crashed into one of the World Trade Center buildings.”

Queen graduated from N.C . State in 2004 with a degree in textile engineering. She is now an academic advisor in the College of Engineering.

Like many other Americans, Queen and her friends did not immediately realize the scope of the attacks.

“People thought it was a terrible accident,” Queen said.

Not an accident

Students across campus quickly realized that these occurrences were no accident.

“After I left class, I called my friend again and learned there had been a terrorist attack,” Holcomb said.

Holcomb said that she went to the first building she could find with a television, which was Mann hall.

“I entered Mann Hall and found a group of people in a tiny conference room huddled around a TV,” Holcomb said. “I watched with them for awhile and was stunned at what I saw.”

Holcomb, a native of West Point, Virginia, said that her thoughts immediately went to relatives that live in the New York and Washington areas.

She said that the mood on campus was a somber one.

“I then went to Talley Student Center where someone had set up a TV on a stand,” Holcomb said. “Everyone in Talley seemed to have a grave awareness of the situation at that point, and was walking around in stunned silence.”

After Queen and her friend purchased their food from the Atrium, they also quickly learned that the attacks were no accident.

“By the time we finished paying for our food the second plane had crashed into the World Trade Center,” Queen said. “Then, there were reports that this was not an accident, but an act of terrorism.”

Queen said that it was difficult to understand the severity of the situation.

“It was a difficult thing to grasp since nothing remotely like this had happened in our lifetime,” Queen said.

Holcomb said what she most remembers from that day was from sitting in her car after class.

“All of the radio stations were covering the attacks,” Holcomb said. “My most vivid memory from that day is shedding tears in my car as the full weight of the situation set in.”

Queen said that the day was a “very surreal day for everyone.”

The University responds

Holcomb said a little while after the attacks, she learned of the first response from the University.

“I received an email from N.C . State that afternoon classes had been canceled,” Holcomb said.

Jon Barnwell , deputy chief for Campus Police, said that the University immediately did an internal check of their own security.

“We immediately looked at defining our critical assets and determining security coverage needed to help keep them secure,” Barnwell said. “We also contacted federal officials in an effort to determine what the potential risks were associated with universities.”

Safety at Carter-Finley Stadium was of the utmost concern, according to Barnwell .

“With it being football season, we understood the potential target a stadium full of people could be and immediately began enhancing our security coverage in conjunction with federal officials,” Barnwell said.

Another immediate concern on campus was backlash against the Muslim community, Barnwell said.

“We coordinated with the Muslim Student Association to have a meeting to advise our community that there would be zero tolerance to any harassment or intimidation towards members of our community who are Muslim,” Barnwell said.

According to Barnwell , the impact of the attacks impacted security procedures across the nation and on campus.

“9/11 changed the entire thought process of security and safety in the United States,” Barnwell said. “Almost every decision made in regards to security has in some way been impacted by the events of 9/ 11.”

A unity like no other

According to Queen, the attacks evoked desires to volunteer and help in any way possible.

“There were a lot of memorials services and calls to give blood and volunteer for anything and everything after the attacks,” Queen said.

She said that for herself, the attacks evoked new feelings of patriotism.

“Prior to the attacks I don’t recall ever being particularly aware of my nationality or feeling particularly bonded with others because of our shared nationality,” Queen said. “But after the attacks there was this feeling of a shared bond with others because of our nationality,” Queen said.

While the attacks’ negative impact was – and still is – widespread, there was also the light of unexpected positivity.

“[The attacks] brought a lot of people together and really did bring a lot of good out of people,” Queen said.  ”Many people did volunteer, give blood, even join the military because of a sense of patriotism and a need to help others around them.”