ASUI is moving forward with a monument for the P1FCU Kibbie Dome.
Martha Smith, the President of ASUI, is anticipating that the design will be of Joe Vandal, although a design has not yet been officially chosen. It is projected to be a bronze statue around 8 feet tall.
The monument will be in front of the Kibbie Dome in between the ICCU Arena.
The dome was constructed in 1975 due to the approval of the ASUI President at the time Dirk Kempthorne who raised student fees to build the dome.
The arena had been formally called the Kibbie-ASUI Activity Center for many years until the naming rights were purchased by Potlatch Financial Credit Union.
The monument is projected to begin construction next September, but it could be longer. The budget for the monument has come from the president’s office.
ASUI has independent contractors who are designing the monument and has narrowed it down to four designs.
“The creative process we have had has been really phenomenal to watch,” Smith said.
There is no set date for when they will pick the design, but Smith believes it will be around Thanksgiving break.
“The monument is a way for us to recognize how the Dome got there in the first place and what students did to have that come to fruition and the continued support we have had throughout so many years,” Smith said.
Andrea Roberts can be reached at [email protected].
Tom La Pointe, Class of '76
I completely understand that the UI needs money. As a 'Double Vandal' who worked at our beloved institution for 20+ years, I was also a student when the contentious battles over funding the ASUI Activity Center took place. At that time, I and many other students involved, firmly thought that agreeing to additional student fees meant that the dome would be named after and governed by the ASUI. The Dome governing board lasted a few years and then mysteriously disappeared. Now the name "ASUI Dome" has disappeared as well. What about Kibbie? Well, I understand that there is some question whether he ever donated any money as he had promised. I'll always be a Vandal - I know that. Between my wife & kids, we have 9 degrees from the institution. But the entire "P1FCU" moniker lodges firmly in my throat whenever I encounter it. The "ASUI Activity Center" WAS our monument and recognition for what the students of years past did for the institution. That's evidently gone now, to be replaced by some unknown "monument". How underwhelming!