In tribute: Longtime ENMU professor 'passionate'

Kevin Wilson remembers Professor Sue Strickler's pop quizzes that weren't so fun at the time.

It was his freshman year in the fall of 1996 at Eastern New Mexico University. Wilson, a longtime local journalist, was confident he was doing well in his American government class. Strickler thought the class wasn't reading the material. So, she decided to implement a series of pop quizzes.

"They (the questions) consistently got harder as it went," Wilson said. "She said, 'if you missed one you failed.' The class just went bonkers for 10 seconds. And then she burst out laughing and she called herself the funniest teacher ever."

Wilson said a test that Strickler gave out was actually a literacy test from the Jim Crow era that was generally used to keep blacks and poor whites from the polls.

"If you missed one question during that era, you failed," Wilson said. "But that's how Jim Crow worked."

Strickler, 71, died this month, inspiring colleagues, former students and others to remember ENMU's longtime political science professor as passionate, caring, smart and thoughtful.

"She was always just the sweetest, kindest person," said Jim Constantopoulos, a longtime colleague.

Constantopoulos is a professor of geology at ENMU, and he and Strickler became closer when the two were both made chair of their departments.

"She was always a good person to ask advice, and that sort of thing. And, you know, we just remained friends," Constantopoulos said.

ENMU Chancellor James Johnston stated in an email that Strickler began her career at ENMU in 1988 as an assistant professor of political science and was promoted to professor in 2004. In 1991, she was awarded the Presidential Award for Excellence in Teaching. She served on multiple panels across campus and facilitated many Constitution Day programs. In 2013, she was appointed chair to the Psychology and Political Science Department.

Strickler retired in May 2014 and soon began teaching as an adjunct professor. She was living in Modesto, Calif., close to family, at the time of her death, friends said.

Patrice Caldwell, former Chancellor at ENMU, worked with Strickler for many years and served with her as a dean. Caldwell said Strickler made political science a popular major for students.

"She was so passionate about the importance of American national government, and of political movements in the United States," Caldwell said. "She was probably the best person on campus for academic assessment."

Strickler was evenhanded in that she supported both young Republicans and young Democrats. "I think that says a lot," Caldwell said.

Strickler helped prepare her students for law school and more because of her demanding classes, in terms of reading, critical thinking, and writing, according to Caldwell.

She's also noted for her ability to make learning fun, former students said.

Wilson said she was known to award brownie points to good students, and never failed to let them know where they stood. "You would find out over the years that she was not playing games," Wilson said.

Strickler never played games when it came to her cats, either.

"If you wanted to die and come back, you should come back as Sue Strickler's cat because they were wonderfully well cared for and beloved," Caldwell said.

Kathy Durand was a longtime friend and colleague of Strickler.

"She was really smart and thoughtful. And also had a great sense of humor. We would just laugh and laugh and laugh," Durand said.

"It's really a big loss for so many people. We didn't live in the same state, but she still had a way of keeping close to you."