A graduate student in the School of Education passed away Thursday in Syracuse.

Marinda Williams, who received a master’s degree in school counseling from Syracuse University in 2009, was pursuing a certificate of advanced study. She was also the diversity education specialist for Conversations About Race and Ethnicity in the Office of Multicultural Affairs, where her twin sister Marissa Willingham is a staff member.

In an email sent to the SU community Friday evening, Rebecca Kantrowitz, interim vice president and dean of student affairs, said that Chancellor Kent Syverud, student affairs leaders and other university staff are working to support Williams’s family, friends and colleagues.