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Thursday, O c tober 3, 2019 | Vo l u m e 1 2 4 | I s s u e 1 5
Campus remembers legacy of political science professor By Beatrice Nisoli & Makayla Grijalva @BeatriceNisoli @MakaylaEliboria Kendra Koivu, an associate professor in the University of New Mexico’s political science department, passed away on Sept. 27 after a long battle with breast cancer. “She will be dearly missed by her friends, colleagues and students at UNM, and she will be remembered for her striking wit, tenacity and extremely gifted academic mind,” said Timothy Krebs, the chair of the UNM political science department in an email sent to students in the department. The UNM political science department will be closed on Thursday, Oct. 3 so faculty and students alike have the opportunity to attend her services. Koivu leaves behind an incredible legacy among the students and colleagues who had the fortune of being impacted by her wisdom and good humor. Jessica Feezell, an assistant professor in the UNM political science department and one of Koivu’s closest friends, spoke in detail about Koivu’s impact.
“She had fascinating, far-reaching experiences. She has worked every single job. She was a single mother going through grad school, and overall a total bad*ss,” Feezell said. Feezell first met Koivu in the fall of 2012, which was when they were both hired by the University. Since then, they have shared a plethora of memories both as colleagues within the same workspace and as inseparable friends inside and out of University and academia context. “She knows every single actor’s name. I remember being at the Grove one day and I saw this actor, but I couldn’t place him. I asked Kendra later and she knew who it was,” Feezell said fondly when sharing a lesser known fun fact about Koivu. “She had an immense knowledge of everything from ‘Doctor Who’ to ‘Golden Girls’ to World War II history to Finnish culture to Icelandic sagas.” Indeed, Koivu’s Finnish background drastically impacted her perspective on her own life. She often kept the word “sisu” — Finnish for “grit” — in mind to push herself to always operate with stoic determination, responsibility and integrity. According to Feezell, Koivu brought this mentality into
the office and classroom each day. Despite the immense sorrow her passing brings to all who knew her, Koivu lives on at UNM through the life lessons she left behind. “She was really true to herself,” Feezell said. “If I could take one lesson away from her, it is to be strong in your convictions and work toward what your vision of what’s right is — always.” Feezell, along with Jami Nunez — another assistant professor in the UNM political science department — began a GoFundMe for Koivu in early September to support her family for her medical bills and end-of-life care. The funds in the account have now been rolled over into a scholarship fund in Koivu’s name. As of early October, the GoFundMe had raised more than $18,000. Just as Koivu’s tenacious and youthful character is remembered by her colleagues, her academic contributions and professional expertise is as well. “We were SO lucky to have her. She touched so many lives; she was an unbelievable teacher, mentor, advisor, scholar, colleague and friend. She will be missed so much…” Rocca, a political science associate professor, said about Koi-
Photo Courtesy of UNM
Kendra Koivu, associate professor of political science at UNM, passed away Sept. 27, 2019.
vu in an email to the students in his POLS 311 class. Koivu began her journey at UNM back in 2012 when she was first hired as an assistant profes-
sor. In the seven years since, she primarily taught undergraduate courses — Introduction to Comparative Politics, Comparative Political Economy, European
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PAÍS building completes Quarterback construction reflects on loss By Colin Peña @penyacolin
Located at the intersection of Yale and Redondo and overlooking Central Avenue, the Physics & Astronomy and Interdisciplinary Science (PAÍS) building recently finished construction, but classes and research won’t be starting so soon. “We’ll be fully up and ready to serve everyone in the spring semester and probably do a formal ribbon cutting in March, but it is being occupied today,” Mark Peceny, the dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, said. The $67 million project was mainly funded through an institutional bond paid for by an uptick in student fees, as well as $27 million from a state general obligation (GEO) bond, according to Peceny. “We worked closely with student leaders (who) said that in order for people to succeed at the University of New Mexico, we need to provide them the opportunity to work with worldclass scholars, to work in worldclass facilities,” Peceny said. The new PAÍS building on UNM’s main campus, with its gleaming white exterior and sharp swaths of glass wreathing the building’s three stories, will facilitate high-level research
through new laboratory facilities and a focus on spaces for multidisciplinary interactions. “This new building is constructed in a way that allows people to do 21st-century science,” Peceny said. According to Peceny, the current Physics and Astronomy building — at the corner of Lomas and Yale — is inadequate for high-level optics research due to the age of the structure and the delicacy of the instruments. “We’ve created a space in the basement of PAÍS that is perfectly designed to allow people to (do) this kind of optics research,” Peceny said. The Interdisciplinary Sciences Cooperative is a University initiative to bring together experts and students from different academic disciplines to work on problems collaboratively. “Multidisciplinary teams like the ones supported in PAÍS bring new solutions and outstanding training opportunities unbound by traditional academic disciplines,” said Thomas Turner, associate dean for research at the College of Arts and Sciences. According to Turner, many of the groups with dedicated spaces in the new PAÍS building are focused on multidisciplinary
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collaboration, such as the Genomics and Technology Center and the Spatial Informatics Research and Education Center. The PAÍS building is designed to be LEED certified as sustainably built. Due to the energy intensive nature of some of the research inside, the design of the building had to account for its distinctive needs. Peceny said the building was built with a balance between efficiency and research effectiveness in mind. “The next project that will be our emphasis on the next GEO bond is a new fine arts building,” Peceny said. Due to the sensitive nature of much of the equipment that will be moved into PAÍS, moving into the finished building is a timeconsuming process but has already begun. Colin Peña is a beat reporter at the Daily Lobo. He can be contacted at news@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @penyacolin
of grandfather By Dan Goodwin & Alanie Rael @dg_5353 @AllyRael
The University of New Mexico’s clash against in-state rivals New Mexico State University was an edge-of-your-seat kind of game for the 2019 football season. With the game being so close (55-52), it came down to how much fighting spirit the Lobos brought to the field. “After the game, it was about my grandfather,” quarterback and third-year player Tevaka Tuioti said in an interview with the Daily Lobo. “His family service was coming up on Sunday with a burial Monday morning.” Tuioti was essential to UNM’s success over the Aggies, throwing for 355 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. After the win against NMSU, Tuioti gave brief remarks in the postgame press conference. He wasn’t on his way to celebrate the Lobos’ victory with his teammates — he had a flight to California to catch. “I was just so much focused on ‘now that I’m done with the game,’
and I did what I had to do. I just wanted to hurry and hop on that plane and get back to my family to help out with the stuff that needs to be done,” Tuioti said. Over the summer, Tuioti took time off from offseason practice to spend time with his family. When word of his grandfather falling ill reached him, he chose to miss the fall camp that the team held in early August to be with his grandfather in San Diego, California. Tuioti is one of seven siblings: He has four brothers and two sisters. He reflected on what it was like coming from such a large family and the difficulty of moving to New Mexico for college. He also detailed the effort that his grandparents and other family members made to be as involved as possible in his life and the memories of large family outings to San Diego, where his grandparents resided. “Being away from my parents was pretty hard. I’d never been away from them,” Tuioti said, adding that he came to New Mexico with a mindset of “trying to get things done.” Going back home for his grand-
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