Campus works through grief after murder

BROCKPORT, N.Y. (WIVB) - It's a brutal crime sending shock waves through the SUNY Brockport community.

Police have identified the young woman found murdered in a dorm room. The brutal crime is sending shock waves through the SUNY Brockport community.

She should have been starting the best years of her life, instead Alexandra Kogut’s life was tragically taken, only one month after starting college.

Monday morning, friends and family are remembering her with words, including “lovely,” “sweet,” and “bright.”

Relatives and college officials identify the young woman, 18-year-old Alexandra Kogut, as the SUNY Brockport student who was found dead in her dorm room early Saturday. The college president released the following statement Sunday, "These are trying times for our campus," "But I know we will pull together and support each other as we move through the coming days."

Kogut had suffered extensive body trauma according to University Police. Twenty-one-year-old Clayton Whittemore is charged with second-degree murder for her death.

He was arrested by police at a thruway rest stop near Syracuse around 3:30 a.m. Saturday. Authorities say the two were dating.

Kogut, a freshman, had only been on campus for barely a month, having graduated from high school near Utica.

Kogut’s death has shaken the Brockport community. All weekend, students have been streaming into the campus counseling center, working through their grief and talking about dating violence.

Director of Health and Counseling Libby Caruso said, “I think the students are going to bring this to the forefront themselves. They will probably drive it. Much of our programming comes from student peer educators."

The college has set up a temporary hotline to address questions and concerns from parents. That number is (585) 734-3925.