CORAL GABLES, Fla. – A student was killed earlier this week while heading to the University of Miami’s Coral Gables campus on his scooter.
The university confirmed in an email to students and staff that Daniel Bishop died Monday following a traffic accident.
Bishop, 22, who was a senior at UM, also graduated from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland and was a sophomore at the time of the 2018 Valentine’s Day massacre.
While he excelled in school, he wasn’t just a student. He was also a son, a brother, a survivor and someone who enjoyed teaching others.
Bishop was a senior majoring in mathematics and psychology who worked on campus as an orientation leader and was chair of Hurricane Productions.
He was someone, students say, that was involved and was a natural leader.
His parents told Local 10 News that their son died early Monday morning while riding his personal scooter to class.
Students who spoke with Local 10′s Roy Ramos said they received an email from the university a day after the tragedy, informing them of Bishop’s passing and just how much he meant to his colleagues, who he mentored and tutored -- someone with a true passion for not just learning, but teaching.
“I know a couple of people who know him personally and they are all very distraught because it is just something so casual. We all scooter. We all ride our bikes, and to just see a kid die like that -- it is just shocking,” fellow student William Goldstein said.
Coral Gables police say the fatal crash occurred at the intersection of Altara Avenue and LeJeune Road.
“Honestly, it is devastating,” witness Gabriella Portillo said.
Witnesses who spoke with Ramos described seeing a vehicle involved being towed away from the scene.
“Everything was closed up, like crime scene tape everywhere, and just the whole street was covered up and I just saw all of the debris of a scooter over there,” Portillo said.
While investigators now work to find out what led up to the crash, we are learning more about the UM senior.
His mother says he was the salutatorian of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School when he graduated and survived the tragedy that took the lives of 17 people at his school in 2018.
While his family now mourns him, they are hopeful his legacy will live on through the lives he touched.
Bishop was set to begin his post-graduate career teaching mathematics at Gulliver Prep.
As for the crash, Coral Gables police say it remains under investigation.