A graduate student from Indiana University is among the victims who died Thursday when a Malaysia Airlines jetliner was shot down by a missile in Ukraine.
Karlijn Keizer was pursuing her doctorate in chemistry at Indiana University in Bloomington. The 25-year-old student from the Netherlands was also a decorated member of the women’s rowing team at I-U during the 2011 season.
"On behalf of the entire Indiana University community, I want to express my deepest sympathies to Karlijn's family and friends over her tragic death," Indiana University President Michael A. McRobbie said in a written statement. "Karlijn was an outstanding student and a talented athlete, and her passing is a loss to the campus and the university."
Keizer was described by school officials as a talented and diligent researcher whose projects all related to improving human health. The last piece of research she completed before heading out to catch her flight for a summer vacation involved a promising drug candidate for treating Alzheimer’s disease.