Howard University community devestated after two students die days before graduation

Sollomon Buckhanon Crowder was reported missing on April 28. The university is reeling from not only his death, but the loss of a graduate student who was set to receive her doctorate next week.

A community is grieving after two students set to graduate from Howard University next week have died.

Dr. Stephanie Buckhanon Crowder shared the unfortunate news on Threads that her son, 21-year-old Sollomon Buckhanon Crowder, had been found by the homicide unit of the D.C. police.

“An investigation is forthcoming,” Stephanie Crowder wrote. “Our pain is grossly profound.”

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Sollomon, a Computer Science major, was reported missing on Tuesday (Apr. 28) with his last known whereabouts being the Blackburn Center. Stephanie put out an urgent plea on social media on Thursday, asking anyone for help finding her son, as Howard police and D.C. police were already investigating the case. On Friday morning, she shared the devastating update, prompting an outpouring of condolences from individuals who saw the story on their feeds and hoped for a more positive outcome.

He was set to graduate from Howard next week. A cause of death has yet to be determined.

“This is heartbreaking,” Melech Thomas wrote on X. “His parents are colleagues in ministry and friends of mine. How devastating this is for the Crowder family and for the Howard University community. Praying for them, as well for our alma mater.”

The news of Sollomon’s death comes as Howard grapples with another loss from its 2026 graduating class.

Hours after Sollomon’s mother revealed her tragic update, Howard’s Graduate School announced that Dr. Jimisha Relerford, who was days away from accepting her doctorate in philosophy, had passed away. No cause of death was mentioned.

“It is with tremendous sadness that the Graduate School at Howard University announces the passing of Dr. Jimisha Iman Relerford, Class of 2026,” the group wrote on Threads. “Jimisha was a dedicated scholar of African diaspora literature, African American rhetorics, and Black women’s writing, humor, and satire. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in English and Classics from Howard University and her Master of Arts in English with a concentration in Rhetoric and Composition from Georgia State University. She returned to Howard as a first-year writing instructor and doctoral student in the Department of English. In both cases, she served her academic community with distinction.”

The group added, “In recognition of her scholarly achievement and contributions to the field, she will be posthumously awarded the Doctor of Philosophy degree on May 10, 2026. Dr. Relerford’s intellectual contributions, commitment to her students, and service to the university community leave a lasting legacy. She will be deeply missed by colleagues, students, and all who had the privilege of knowing her.”

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