Rebekah Cherniss

Rebekah Cherniss, one of the freshmen injured in the fatal accident last Friday night, will undergo surgery Friday morning on her back and jaw to repair injuries from the accident.

Cherniss, freshman Ad/PR major from Katy, has been in Hendrick Medical Center since Friday night. She improved to fair condition on Tuesday, but has several fractures on her L4 and L5 vertebrae, located in her lower back. Her mother, Susan, said the surgeons will fuse the two vertebrae together, using a bone graft. While she is still under, they will also repair her the right side of her jaw, near her wisdom teeth, with a plate to replace her damaged skull.

Deanna Romero, the other student injured in the accident still in the hospital, remains in good condition.

Susan Cherniss said she has seen significant improvement in her daughter’s condition.

“She’s engaged, having conversations, making silly remarks,” Susan said. “She still gets confused, but she’s remembering more and more.”

The doctors told her family that if everything goes as planned, Rebekah could be able to be discharged in three or four days. She may have to go to a rehabilitation center or do outpatient rehab from her home.

Susan said the community’s outpouring of support has made the difficult situation better.

“Everybody here has been absolutely amazing: the school, the students, the hospital staff,” she said. “We’ve been blown away with the whole community.”

Susan wants all the students at ACU to know how special the university is.

“You all should be very proud of the school you go to,” she said. “It’s very unique. Most places aren’t like this.”