ALEX CHADWICK, host:
And we have begun to learn more about the people who died in the attacks yesterday. One student, Ryan Clark, was among those killed in the first shooting in the dorm. He was the RA, the resident adviser - 22 years old, African-American, a month away from graduation, a member of the Marching Virginians pep band.
MADELEINE BRAND, host:
He triple-majored in psychology, biology and English. He wanted to pursue a Ph.D. in psychology, with a focus on cognitive neuroscience after graduating.
CHADWICK: Emily Hilscher also died in the dorm shooting. On her MySpace page, she wrote: My friends are what keep me smiling. I unfortunately am alone, all alone. I have a wonderful guy who is hopefully going to change all that, but don't know what is going to happen.
BRAND: Another victim, Reema Samaha, was the child of Lebanese immigrants. She loved the arts and won a talent contest with what one of her family friends, Luanne McNabb(ph), described as a great belly dance.
Ms. LUANNE MCNABB (Friend of Reema Samaha): Reema was delightful. She never changed. Reema had a love of life that was infectious. She had a beautiful smile and a mischievous glint to her eye, and she was so joyful. I mean, she loved to dance. She was very creative. My children and the Samaha kids made movies, and she always played these wonderful roles.
She recently was at Westfield High School, played one of the sisters in "Arsenic and Old Lace," and just stole the show. You could see that smile and her little glint. I mean, Reema was just delightful, just a beautiful girl.
BRAND: Luanne McNabb, remembering Reema Samaha. Reema's older brother also went to Virginia Tech. She was an 18-year-old freshman.
CHADWICK: Two professors who taught at Norris Hall also among the dead - Kevin Granata and Liviu Librescu. Their colleague, Scott Hendricks(ph), remembers them.
Professor SCOTT HENDRICKS (Friend of Dr. Granata and Dr. Librescu): Kevin Granata and Liviu Librescu are two of my colleagues in the engineering science and mechanics department, who are both dead.
BRAND: Tell us first about Dr. Granata.
Prof. HENDRICKS: Dr. Kevin Granata has been with us a couple of years, and he's got a young family. He's a dynamic individual. He's a prolific researcher. He's going to be a tremendous loss to the department. He's got some small children at home, some of them the same age as some of my children, and he's going to be a tremendous loss. He was a gentle, hardworking soul. I served on some of the committees that his students were working on their Ph.D.s and their masters, and he was just a wonderful, wonderful fellow. He will be greatly missed.
BRAND: And Professor Librescu.
Prof. HENDRICKS: Professor Librescu is actually a Holocaust survivor. He's from Romania. He's an older gentleman, quite a prolific researcher. I've worked with many of his students also, and they loved him. He was a wonderful man. I hear rumors, and I can't confirm this, that when the shooting started in an adjacent classroom, he was the one that barred the door and took the brunt of the attack while his students were able to jump out the window. And I think most of his students got away, but he was killed.
BRAND: Thank you very much for speaking with us.
Prof. HENDRICKS: You're welcome.
BRAND: Virginia Tech professor Scott Hendricks remembering his colleagues Kevin Granata and Liviu Librescu, both shot and killed yesterday at Virginia Tech. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
