NIU faculty and staff received advice from a Virginia Tech counselor on how to handle the students' return from an 11-day break after the shootings, The Chicago Tribune reported Saturday.

"I want to be prepared for anything. The key to the class is going to be flexibility," said NIU public speaking Professor Kim Gatz.

Christopher Flynn, Virginia Tech's director of counseling, visited NIU last week to advise hundreds of staff and faculty on how to help students through the remainder of the semester.

Virginia Tech experienced a similar campus shooting last April that left 32 students dead and 25 injured.

"Taking time to help the kids emotionally is essential to be being able to help them achieve academically," said Dr. David Schonfeld, director of the National Center for School Crisis and Bereavement.