Kalamazoo Student Dies, 120 Others Get Precautionary Treatment

KALAMAZOO (AP) - A sophomore at Kalamazoo College has died after being diagnosed with bacterial meningitis and at least 120 people are getting antibiotic treatment as a precaution, officials said.

Emily Stillman, 19, of the suburban Detroit community of Oakland County's West Bloomfield Township, died Sunday due to complications from the infection after being taken to a hospital early Friday, the school said in a statement. Her funeral is Tuesday at The Dorfman Chapel in Farmington Hills.

Meningitis is an infection of the fluid that surrounds a person's spinal cord and the brain. No additional cases of bacterial meningitis have been reported, the school said, and those in close contact with Stillman were urged to get antibiotic treatment.

Health officials said the likelihood of additional cases at Kalamazoo College is low.

About 350 students, faculty, and staff at the southwestern Michigan school gathered in Stetson Chapel on Sunday to remember Stillman. Some wrote messages to her on lanterns made out of paper bags and candles, and placed them on and around a bench.

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