The University announced the death of Jiani Yu, a second-year graduate student in the Critical Asian and Middle Eastern Humanities program in a Sunday email to graduate students.
Yu, who also went by Thea, hailed from California. Before coming to Duke in August 2023, she earned her bachelor’s degree in applied linguistics in 2021 from the University of California, Santa Cruz. Her cause of death has not been announced.
Throughout her time at Duke, Yu’s interest in cultural anthropology and gender studies — and specifically the interdisciplinary study of East Asian feminism and Chinese female immigrants — guided her work on her master’s thesis about the experiences of Chinese massage therapy workers in California.
“As she observed [in her research], tactility is our most reciprocal sense, in that whereas it is easy to see without being seen, or hear without being heard, it is difficult to touch without being touched,” wrote Eileen Chow and Carlos Rojas. “Those of us who knew Jiani were indeed profoundly touched by her brilliance, curiosity and kindness.”
According to the email, the University is planning to work with Yu’s family and friends to identify ways to pay tribute to her and provide support for her community.
The Office of Graduate Student Affairs can connect graduate students with support campus resources at grad-gsa@duke.edu.
Personal Assistance Service, a faculty and employee assistance program, can offer assessment, short-term counseling, and referrals, free of charge to Duke faculty and staff and their immediate family members.