In Loving Memory Of Ella Cook and Mukhammad Aziz Umurzokov
Ella Cook was a 19-year-old sophomore at Brown University from Birmingham, Alabama and Mukhammad Aziz Umurzokov Ella was one of two students killed in a mass shooting on campus on December 13, 2025.
The shooting occurred in the Barus and Holley engineering building during finals period, where a gunman opened fire, killing two students (including Cook) and injuring nine others. The other deceased victim was Mukhammad Aziz Umurzokov, an aspiring neurosurgeon.
Cook’s death was announced during a Sunday service on December 14 at the Cathedral Church of the Advent in Birmingham, where she was an active parishioner. Reverend Craig Smalley described her as an “incredible, grounded, faithful bright light” who encouraged those around her.
She was vice president of the Brown University College Republicans, a devoted Christian, and known for being kind, brave, and outspoken in her conservative beliefs on a predominantly liberal campus. Peers and officials, including Alabama Lieutenant Governor Will Ainsworth, praised her as representing “the very best of Alabama.”
As of December 15, 2025, the suspect remains at large, and a person of interest was released after questioning. The investigation is ongoing, with no confirmed motive yet.