UConn identifies student who died after falling from Storrs campus parking garage

A student who died after falling from a parking garage at the University of Connecticut campus in Storrs has been identified as a Milford, Mass. resident, according to a university spokesperson.

The student, identified as Jackson Carneiro, 20, began his UConn career in the fall 2022 semester, according to the university.

Carneiro was a Digital Media Design major in the School of Fine Arts and was focusing on 3D animation, according to an email shared by Nathan Fuerst, UConn vice president of Student Life and Enrollment and Fany D. Hannon, Interim Dean of Students.

Carneiro “had the ability to light up a room with his quick wit and beautiful smile. He loved writing and producing music, watching the Sopranos, and spending time with loved ones,” his obituary says. “He enjoyed going to Cape Cod every summer with friends and family. He loved his time spent traveling with his family to Portugal, Spain, and England and cherished traveling to Florida to visit his family.

He was an athlete, a musician and an artist, who “attended Saint John’s High School, in Shrewsbury, where he was a member of the National Honor Society and graduated in 2022,” his obituary notes.

“Jackson was dedicated to the arts with a particular talent for illustration,” the email said. “In his first year at UConn, Jackson was a member of the Innovation House Learning Community.”

“This is a difficult time for the University as we navigate the many emotions people have after experiencing the loss of another community member,” the UConn leaders said in the email. “In addition to the sadness of this immediate incident, we are aware that tragedy may trigger our own personal histories of loss and grief. Staff and faculty are encouraged to reach out to UConn’s Employee Assistance Program if they are in need of support.”

“The loss of a community member is extremely difficult, and our deepest sympathy goes out to Jackson’s family, and friends during this time.”

The incident occurred around 9:30 a.m. March 7; UConn Police and Fire Department personnel responded to reports of a person falling from a high level of South Garage onto the pavement of Jim Calhoun Way.

Carneiro was taken to Windham Hospital with serious injuries, and the university was later notified that he had died, according to Stephanie Reitz, UConn spokesperson.

The student’s identity has not yet been made available, the university said in a release. Reitz said the cause and manner of student’s death will be determined by the Office of the State Medical Examiner. She said UConn police are continuing the investigation into the circumstances, “but have found no criminal or suspicious element.”

“The University extends its deepest condolences to his family and friends, and is providing support and resources to other students with whom he was connected,” Reitz has said.

Reitz said Monday that UConn Police “found no criminal or suspicious elements in the circumstances of his death, and the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner will determine its cause and manner” of Carneiro’s passing.