Rocío Villaseñor, a local journalist and Columbia alum, died on Nov. 10, as a result of a Brighton Park house fire. She was 31 years old.

Villaseñor was a graduate student at Columbia, receiving her master’s degree in the Fall of 2018. She has written for publications like Block Club Chicago, La Raza, Cicero Independiente, City Bureau, Journalism Gateway Review and Modern Healthcare.

Former Columbia professor Curtis Lawrence, who taught Villaseñor in the now defunct journalism master’s program, remembers her as a quiet but, “serious,” student who wanted to cover education and the Brighton Park neighborhood, where she was born and raised.

Len Strazewski, a retired associate professor who taught Villaseñor in data journalism, said Villaseñor had a bright future. “She was somebody who had a long and good career ahead of her, and unfortunately she lost that opportunity,” he said.

Villaseñor also took “Reporting in Spanish” and “Digital Storytelling” both classes taught by Elio Leturia, an associate professor in the Communication Department. “It took me by complete surprise,” he said.

During her time at Columbia, Villaseñor covered a story on an exhibit Leturia had for Instituto Cervantes. She reported on it in Spanish and in English which Leturia was proud of.

“It’s very sad to see someone so young and with so much to offer,” Leturia said. “Especially when we need these voices to tell the Latina story.”

A GoFundMe campaign has been set up to help the Villaseñor family that survived the fire. It has raised over $40,000 out of its $100,000 goal as of Tuesday morning, Nov. 28.