Just days before homecoming weekend, Morehouse College is mourning the death of a student killed in a crash.
Jayden Mango, a junior from Pelham studying cinema, television and emerging media studies, died early Thursday morning, the college said in a statement. The 20-year-old was killed in a single-car crash in Atlanta, according to the Fulton County Medical Examiner’s Office.
Atlanta police said the crash took place around 2 a.m. at the interchange between I-20 and the Downtown Connector. Mango was ejected from a Hyundai Sonata and pronounced dead at the scene, police said.
“Jayden was a vibrant member of our campus community, known for his creativity, kindness and dedication to his studies,” college leaders said. His “presence enriched the lives of everyone around him.”
The driver and two other passengers were taken to Grady Memorial Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
According to police, the car was traveling east on I-20 when it hit the grassy median area at the interchange with I-75/85. The Sonata hit a light pole and guard rail, then rolled several times before falling onto the Windsor Street exit ramp, where it landed upside down.
Mango was remembered for his generous spirit and his passion for storytelling.
“On behalf of the Morehouse community, we extend our most heartfelt condolences to Jayden’s family, friends, classmates and professors,” college administrators said. “The passing of such a bright, promising young man is deeply felt across our entire community. We ask that you keep his loved ones in your thoughts and prayers as they navigate this profound loss.”
Before coming to Morehouse, Mango was a standout student from a small town in southwest Georgia. He graduated from Pelham High School with honors and earned a college scholarship.
In May 2022, Pelham High shared a photo on Facebook of Mango and a teacher to whom he gave a “golden apple” award, a recognition that honors students give to the teacher who influenced them the most. Mango and the teacher are shown with beaming smiles.
The same month, Georgia’s Own Credit Union announced that Mango would receive its Jump Start scholarship, WALB News 10 reported. The $1,000 scholarship was awarded to students who succeeded academically, showed commitment to their community and demonstrated good financial habits. Mango was one of 20 South Georgia students to receive the scholarship and the only winner from his high school.
The Morehouse statement said counseling services are available to students and staff who need support.
Mango’s death comes just as the campus is gearing up for one of the biggest weekends on the calendar: Homecoming, which will be Saturday. It is also just over a year after a crash took the lives of two students, roommates Hugh Douglas and Christion Files Jr.
Authorities said the sophomore business administration students were driving on Church Street in East Point on Sept. 4, 2023, when their vehicle left the road, hit two power poles and overturned. Both died at the scene.
— Please return to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution for updates.
