The announcement of a doctoral candidate’s sudden collapse and death shocked many members of the campus community on Tuesday afternoon, with former students and fellow professors expressing grief and confusion at the passing of their teacher, friend and peer.

Evan North fell after exercising in Yates Field House Monday afternoon and was pronounced dead upon arrival at the Georgetown University Hospital.

“We are having a hard time wrapping our minds around this … our hearts go out to Evan’s parents and loved ones,” history department chair Aviel Roshwald said in an email.

North was pursuing a doctorate in history and served as a teaching assistant in the department at the time of his death.

“Evan was such a valued member of the department, much loved as a

friend by many of his fellow graduate students and held in deep affection and respect by the faculty. He was a truly humble person of great talent and with a passionate thirst for knowledge, which he also imparted to his students in classes where he taught as a TA,” Roshwald said.

Tony Lin (MSB ’14), who was in North’s discussion section for professor Katherine Benton-Cohen’s U.S. History Since 1865 course, said that he felt a mixture of shock and surprise.

“When I heard that someone had died, I assumed it would be an elderly member of the community,” he said. “I was in shock for a good minute or so.”

Lin described North as “soft-spoken, exceedingly nice, someone who definitely cared about his subject and a pretty good TA.”

Benton-Cohen sent out an email to students in her class on Tuesday afternoon, about an hour and a half before the university sent out a broadcast message notifying the community of the death.

“Evan joined the history department’s master’s and Ph.D. programs several years ago. He won the respect and affection of faculty and students alike, and was the beloved friend of many in the history department. I delighted in his enthusiasm, good nature and open-mindedness. This is an unfathomable loss,” Benton-Cohen said in the email.

North’s family has been notified, and students can send them notes of condolence, Vice President for Student Affairs Todd Olson said in the broadcast message. A memorial service is set for 10 a.m. on April 16 in Dahlgren Chapel.

According to the broadcast email, North collapsed inside the gymnasium. Yates staff responded immediately and notified Georgetown Emergency Response Medical Services.

According to GERMS President Colin Brody (COL ’11), GERMS was dispatched at 4:14 p.m., within five minutes of the initial call. Pete Piringer, spokesman for D.C. Fire and Emergency Services, said that his unit was dispatched at 4:18 p.m. but that GERMS was already on the scene upon their arrival.

“We were able to activate advanced life support units of D.C. Fire and EMS and they assisted us in transporting him to the hospital,” Brody said.

Brody added that the cause of death is unclear at this time and might take weeks to determine.