Cheron Perkins shared a video of the noose, hanging from a tree. She and fellow program members found the symbol of hate Friday night.
Perkins said the sight scared her, but the New Orleans-native was angered by what she said was the University's dismissive response.
"It just didn't sit well with me. I felt very uncomfortable about the whole situation. And then once we talked to the police, and they just said, 'oh well we took it down.' No there needs to be more done than just taking it down."
The noose was removed.
Stanford's Department of Public Safety says it is investigating the incident as a "suspicious circumstance" and will reclassify it as a hate crime if new evidence is uncovered.