St. Louis school shooting victims: A ‘great teacher’ and a ‘joyful, wonderful’ teen

A 15-year-old student and 61-year-old teacher have been identified as the victims killed in the shooting on Monday, Oct. 24, at Central Visual and Performing Arts High School in St. Louis.

Here’s what we know about Alexandria Bell and Jean Kuczka.

Alexandria Bell ‘was always smiling’

Identified by friends and family as Alexandria Bell, the 15-year-old student was shot and killed in a classroom at the school, officials said Monday.

Her father told KSDK the outgoing 10th-grader was a member of the school’s junior varsity dance team.

“Alexandria was my everything,” Andre Bell told KSDK. “She was joyful, wonderful and just a great person.”

She would have turned 16 on Nov. 18, KMOV reported. Missouri State Rep. Kimberly-Ann Collins referred to her as a “beautiful, smart and talented girl.”

Alexandria “was always smiling,” her friend Je’rese Luster told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

“I just want her to come back,” Je’rese’s sister, Je’rya Luster, added to the newspaper. “She was just like me. I just want her back.”

Destiny Diamond asked for prayers when she announced the death of Alexandria, her cousin.

“She didn’t deserve this,” Diamond said in a Facebook post.

Jean Kuczka called a ‘hero’

A 61-year-old health teacher, Jean Kuczka has been described as a “hero” following Monday’s shooting. When the shooter entered Kuczka’s classroom, she stood in front of the gunman to protect her students, the Post-Dispatch reported.

She later died at a hospital, police said.

Kuczka, who taught at the school since 2008, had seven grandchildren, according to her biography on the school’s website. She was an avid bike rider.

Her daughter, Abbey Kuczka, said her mom had a “passion” for helping kids.

“She loved making a difference, informing students and the younger generation about health and being healthy, and playing sports and working as a team,” her daughter told St. Louis Public Radio.

“She was a great teacher,” one of her former students, Missouri House Democrat LaKeySha Bosley said of Kuczka, KSDK reported. “She never gave up on me.”

Kuczka attended Missouri State University and was a member of its 1979 national championship field hockey team, university president Clif Smart said in a statement.

“Today we lost a champion, teacher, Bear and hero,” Smart said. “#RestInPeace Jean. Many will always remember what you did today.”