A man walked into an English class at LeMoyne-Owen College, in Memphis, this morning and robbed 18 students at gunpoint.

The gunman fired no shots, and he escaped from the campus, LeMoyne-Owen’s president, Johnnie B. Watson, said in an interview. Campus officials notified students and employees of the incident, he said, and asked that “no movement take place on campus whatsoever.”

The college canceled classes for the rest of the day to give law-enforcement officers full access to the academic building where the incident took place, Mr. Watson said.

It was not known on Thursday afternoon whether the perpetrator was a student. A surveillance camera at the entrance to the academic building recorded video that police officers are now reviewing, Mr. Watson said.

Classes will resume on Friday at the college. —Sara Lipka