2018 James F. Cole Memorial Award for Service Recipient
Dr. Patricia Lopez '80, '82, '89
Lopez’s love for NMSU started at age 15 during a state 4-H competition held on campus.
“I remember sitting with my friends near Milton Hall. Back then, there was a bowling alley in the basement and KRWG was housed there,” Lopez said. “I imagined what it would be like to attend college at NMSU. I believe that trip helped seal my decision. Plus, I ended up winning state competition and competed at the national 4-H conference in Chicago!”
After graduating with three computer science degrees from NMSU – a bachelor’s degree in 1980, a master’s degree in 1982 and a doctorate in 1989 – Lopez took her talents to Intel. Today, she is a senior platform applications engineer at the corporation’s datacenter group. She describes these datacenters as the “clouds that store all your data.”
The success in her professional career, though, has not stopped her from giving back. Since 2000, she served on multiple boards at NMSU, including those for computer science and engineering. She has served on the NMSU Foundation Board of Directors and has spoken to students and faculty on campus about graduate school, minority participation and computing opportunities. Lopez also started an NMSU scholarship in 2006 memorializing her parents that supports minority students who attend NMSU.
“It’s important to create visibility for the university, which is a very strong research institution, and to create opportunities for students to attend, graduate and have successful careers as I have had,” Lopez said.
In 2015, Lopez received the Society of Women Engineers’ Advocating Women in Engineering Award, which honors individuals who have demonstrated professional excellence in their chosen STEM fields and have proven to be advocates of women in engineering and SWE’s objectives.
Her guidance to NMSU students is to share their ideas and dreams with those around them.
“Setup some short and long-term goals, and make a list of your accomplishments,” Lopez said. “When you get discouraged, take pride in what you have accomplished, share your concerns and ask for help. People will do their best to connect you with the resources you need. Your dreams are our dreams, and your success is our success.”
Lopez is the daughter of Ross and Lydia Lopez. She now lives in Colorado with her husband Bob Fink who have three children – Marisa, Maya and Samuel Lopez-Fink.