The Tuesday night death of a University student has been ruled a suicide by the Centre County Coroner's Office.

Coroner Kerry Benninghoff said an autopsy performed yesterday by a Centre Community Hospital pathologist confirmed that Laura R. Whitaker took her own life. The ruling was made in conjunction with investigations by the State College Police Department and the coroner's office.

Benninghoff said the time of death was about 9 p.m. Tuesday night.

Whitaker, 23, a seventh-semester senior who was majoring in history, was found dead Wednesday morning at The Nittany Quill, 111 S. Fraser St, where she had worked as a clerk. A store employee found her at about 9 a.m. Wednesday.

Benninghoff would not release the exact cause of death or whether a suicide note was found at the scene. Officials found no signs of foul play, he said, adding that investigators discovered precipitating factors and evidence that led them to believe the death was a suicide.

Keith Mernin, co-owner of The Nittany Quill, said she was a good worker who helped customers.

"She was a good friend, too," Mernin said.

Whitaker, a 1988 graduate of State College Area High School, had been elected into the Phi Alpha Theta national history honor society. Whitaker had an interest in dogs, especially her pet Welsh corgi, Barkley.

She is the daughter of Susan Gurry Whitaker and Seldon V. Whitaker Jr., a former superintendent of the State College Area School District. He is currently in residence at the University's Center for Total Quality Schools.

Friends will be received between 6:30 and 9 p.m. today at Koch Funeral Home, 2401 S. Atherton St.

The funeral will be held at 11 a.m. tomorrow in Grace Lutheran Church, Garner Street and Beaver Avenue.