Campus police and officials at Western Kentucky University are responding to a vandalism incident in which a student’s car was keyed with a racial slur. 

Cheyenne Mitchell, an African-American student at WKU, found that her car was keyed with a racial epithet and other scratches when she returned to Parking Structure 2 on Tuesday afternoon. 

The incident really upset her, Mitchell said. 

“It just made me mad that anybody would take the time to do that to someone’s car in broad daylight,” she said.

Mitchell was so upset she snapped pictures of the damage and shared them on her Facebook page, also mentioning WKU President Gary Ransdell in the post to get his attention. 

Ransdell responded to the incident in a statement sent to the Daily News via university spokesman Bob Skipper. 

“Earlier today I was made aware of an incident involving racial vandalism that occurred on our campus. I have communicated with the victim and spoken with her father and assured them that we will exhaust all means available to fully investigate this matter and take appropriate action.

“This is not reflective of our values and our commitment to diversity on the WKU campus. We expect our students, faculty and staff to treat one another with respect and civility and to work together to create a safe, welcoming campus environment that fully embraces diversity.”

Ransdell also commented on Mitchell’s Facebook post and corresponded through email. 

“I’m so very disappointed this happened to you,” he wrote, also echoing a promise from the university to follow up on the incident. “Thank you for reporting this incident promptly to WKU Police and for bringing it to my attention. Rest assured, we are fully committed to a safe and welcoming campus environment. I look forward to meeting you and getting acquainted personally.”

Mitchell, a senior from Lexington, said she’s never experienced anything similar on campus. 

“It doesn’t make me look at the university any different,” she said. “Everybody’s been contacting me and working with me as best they can.”

A Facebook picture of the damage shows the racial epithet carved into one of the doors on Mitchell’s car and other scratches above a wheel. 

Mitchell said she still has to use the car with the damage for now, but that the university has also offered to help fix it. She doesn’t know what the person looked like, but said the time frame was between 9:20 a.m. and 1:50 p.m. Tuesday. She said the vandalism could have been over a parking dispute where her friend was saving a space for her. Her Facebook post was shared well over 300 times Wednesday evening. 

Student body president Jay Todd Richey described the incident as sad and a clear attempt to hurt Mitchell. The university’s Student Government Association has been working to improve inclusiveness for campus minorities through its MyCampusToo initiative. 

“It’s our responsibility as decent human beings here at WKU to ensure students like Cheyenne know that we care about them,” he said. 

WKU Police Department spokesman Capt. Dominic Ossello said the investigation is ongoing. The newspaper asked for a report of the incident, but Ossello said it wasn’t complete yet. 

While the department investigates, Mitchell faces uncertainty. She encouraged others to stay alert. 

“Just be aware of your surroundings and just be aware of what goes on around you,” she said. 

— Follow education reporter Aaron Mudd on Twitter @BGDN_edbeat or visit bgdailynews.com.