All posts by Aaron Jaco

For Faculty Archive, For Staff Archive

Ron and Jane Olson Outstanding Service-Learning Faculty/Staff award

Nominations are now being accepted for the Ron and Jane Olson Outstanding Global Service-Learning Faculty/Staff Award. Nominations are due Friday, April 8, at 5 p.m. The selected awardee will receive a $500 award and will be recognized at the Faculty Awards and Honors Luncheon in May.

Ron and Jane Olson established the Outstanding Global Service-Learning Award to recognize outstanding work guiding and participating in global-service learning initiatives.

A letter of nomination should be submitted recommending an individual for the award speaking to the award criteria:

  • Developed intentional global service-learning opportunities
  • Went above and beyond to coordinate global service-learning
  • Demonstrated an ongoing commitment to global service-learning
  • Exhibited values that encourage global service-learning
  • Supported continuation of global service-learning efforts

The nominee must be a current faculty or staff member at Drake.

Nomination Process
The letter of nomination is due to the Global Service-Learning Coordinator Maria Rohach no later than April 8. The letter should be sent as an attachment to maria.rohach@drake.edu. A committee of faculty and staff will review all nominations and make recommendations to the vice provost for international programs.

—Submitted by Maria Rohach

For Faculty Archive

At-large senators for Faculty Senate elected

By majority vote, the following individuals have been elected to serve a two-year term on Faculty Senate as an at-large senator beginning with the 2016–2017 academic year: Klaus Bartschat, Maria Clapham, Renee Cramer, Deb DeLaet, Jerrid Kruse, and Craig Owens. Now the units needing to select senators will begin their selection process. The full roster of 2016–2017 Faculty Senate membership is expected by the end of March.

—Nancy Geiger, Student Information Analyst

HR Information Archive

Weight Watchers at Work Program

Weight Watchers at Work is a service that brings the No. 1 weight loss program to the workplace. Weekly sessions provide a supportive environment, tools, and the knowledge you need to be successful. Their unique mix of face-to-face interaction with a trained leader, group support, accountability, digital tools, and the convenience of meetings in the workplace have helped participants lose as much as eight times as much weight as those who try to lose weight on their own.

Weight Watchers offers two programs depending on participation. With 20 or more paid participants they offer a 17-week renewable at work series for $186 per person. With a minimum of 15 paid participants they offer a 12-week renewable at work series for $156 per person. Participants may pay the full amount at once or split into three payments.

Meetings usually last 30 minutes with time for a confidential weigh-in prior to the meeting. Dates and times for the program will be determined once there are enough participants to support an on-site series.

If you are interested in participating in this program at Drake, please contact Linda Feiden at linda.feiden@drake.edu. Please make sure you include your contact information and meeting date and time preference. Deadline to register is Friday, April 1.

—Linda Feiden, Assistant Director, Wellness & Engagement

HR Information Archive

Attention 2015 Flexible Spending Account users

Reimbursement claims for expenses incurred from Jan. 1, 2015, through Dec. 31, 2015, must be submitted to Advantage Administrators by March 30. Participants may access a reimbursement claim form in the Forms Library on the Employee Tab in blueView. They may also contact Advantage Administrators at 800-383-1623, or visit the website to obtain account balance information.

—Marlene Heuertz, Assistant Director, Benefits

Campus Announcements Archive

Important construction updates

27th Street Closure
As part of STEM@DRAKE construction, 27th Street will close permanently today, March 14. No parking or thru traffic will be allowed; two handicap parking spaces at the south end of the west side of 27th Street (next to Opperman Hall) will remain open. Sidewalks along 27th Street will also be shut down. For an overview of closures, visit the Building STEM@DRAKE website.


Electrical Shutdowns This Week
Today, March 14, a scheduled electrical shutdown will occur from approximately 7 a.m. to 4 p.m.  The affected buildings include Olin, Bell Center, Fieldhouse, Fine Arts (North), The Knapp Center, and Shivers. This scheduled shutdown is a part of the electrical projects that need to be completed prior to the construction of the two buildings on the campus.  The rain date for the shutdown is March 15.

On March 19 and March 20 an additional scheduled electrical shutdown will occur. Below is a list of the affected buildings and expected time of the power outage for each building:

March 19

  • Olin Hall—2 to 4 hours
  • Bell Center—12 to 16 hours
  • Fieldhouse—12 to 16 hours
  • Knapp Center will be out for both days
  • Shivers will be out for both days

March 20

  • Olin Hall—6 to 8 hours
  • Knapp Center—8 to 10 hours
  • Shivers—8 to 10 hours

Rain dates will need to be found later in the spring semester or early summer.  If bad weather is predicted, we may start on March 18, depending on scheduled events. If a decision is made to start on March 18, all individuals in these buildings will be notified. If you have questions regarding these scheduled electrical shutdowns please contact Jolene Schmidt, director, operations and support services, at jolene.schmidt@drake.edu.


Temporary Sidewalk Closure
The sidewalk between Olin and Medbury will be closed March 14–18 to install a drainage pipe that crosses in that area. Users of this sidewalk will need to either walk south around Medbury or north along Forest Avenue and around Olin Hall. We understand this is an inconvenience, however we would like to take care of this work over spring break to minimize any disruption.

Campus Announcements Archive

UPDATE: Tornado drill March 24

—Due to the potential of strong to severe thunderstorms across portions of Iowa on Wednesday, March 23, the Iowa Statewide Tornado Drill has been postponed until Thursday, March 24 at 10 a.m.—

In preparation for Iowa tornado season, Drake University along with Iowa Homeland Security & Emergency Management, City of Des Moines, and the National Weather Service (NWS) will be issuing a tornado emergency test on March 23 24. Governor Terry Branstad has declared the week of March 20 as Severe Weather Awareness Week for the State of Iowa. Please proceed to a designated tornado shelter area or follow the “DUCK” safety list below.

Drake will also be testing the campus emergency mass notification system, Bulldog Alert. You should anticipate a call to the emergency telephone number you provided to the emergency notification system. The test is planned for March 23 24, with the following schedule:
• 10 a.m.—a test tornado watch,
• 10:15 a.m.—a test tornado warning
• 10:35 a.m.—test will be terminated

Because the NWS determined that weather prohibits the test from taking  place on March 23, it will now be on March 24 with the same schedule. Notifications are conducted by the NWS throughout Iowa, and Drake is not able to adjust times to accommodate classroom scheduling. We thank you in advance for your participation and commitment to keeping Drake safe. Additional information about weather alerts can be found on blueView.

Drake University Mass Emergency Notification System: As a NWS “Storm Ready Certified Campus,” Drake University will only activate the emergency notification system when the storm threat is in the immediate vicinity of the campus. Severe weather sirens are activated by the City of Des Moines on an all-city basis; the Drake emergency notification system, Bulldog Alert, is activated for severe weather if there is an immediate threat to the campus.

Remember to “DUCK”:
D—Down to the lowest level like a basement or interior room on the first level
U—Get Under something sturdy
C—Cover your head
K—Keep in your shelter until the storm has passed

—Submitted by Chris Nickell, Director, Health and Environmental Safety

Campus Announcements Archive

Upcoming electrical shutdowns

On March 14, a scheduled electrical shutdown will occur from approximately 7 a.m. to 4 p.m.  The affected buildings include Olin, Bell Center, Fieldhouse, Fine Arts (North), The Knapp Center, and Shivers.  This scheduled shutdown is a part of the electrical projects that need to completed prior to the construction of the two buildings on the campus.  The rain date for the shutdown is March 15.

On March 19 and March 20 an additional scheduled electrical shutdown will occur. Below is a list of the affected buildings and expected time of the power outage for each building:

March 19

  • Olin Hall—2 to 4 hours
  • Bell Center—12 to 16 hours
  • Fieldhouse—12 to 16 hours
  • Knapp Center will be out for both days
  • Shivers will be out for both days

March 20

  • Olin Hall—6 to 8 hours
  • Knapp Center—8 to 10 hours
  • Shivers—8 to 10 hours

Rain dates will need to be found later in the spring semester or early summer.  If bad weather is predicted, we may start on March 18, depending on scheduled events. If a decision is made to start on March 18, all individuals in these buildings will be notified. If you have questions regarding these scheduled electrical shutdowns please contact Jolene Schmidt, director, operations and support services, at jolene.schmidt@drake.edu. 

—Jolene Schmidt

News & Achievements Archive

Reception for Blake Campbell

Please join alumni and development staff, campus colleagues, and friends as we celebrate Blake’s seven years of service to Drake University as director of alumni relations on Thursday, March 10, from 10:30 a.m. to noon. We will gather at the Alumni House, 2700 University Ave., to wish him well as he takes on new professional opportunities.

—Heather Hendrix, Administrative Assistant 1

News & Achievements Archive

Contribute a used bike to the Drake Bike Initiative

LEAD 100 students will conduct a Bike Drive the week of March 21–25 in the Olmsted Breezeway each day from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., where students, faculty, and staff can drop off their bikes. The bikes are being collected to create a bike library on Drake’s campus, available to students, faculty, and staff for their biking needs throughout the year and throughout the city. This initiative is part of the Drake Bike Friendly program with assistance from a grant from Wellmark.

—Submitted by Art Sanders, Associate Provost

News & Achievements Archive

Bulldogs of DU: Jeff Kappen

1 Comment

What do you do?
I’m an assistant professor of international business, and the main course I teach is the globalization seminar, which is required of all undergrad business majors. So by the numbers, I get to work with almost a third of all Drake undergraduates at some point in their time here.

How did you end up at Drake and in teaching?
I spent 10 years in corporate America, and one day I was in a personal development seminar in which they told us to make a Venn diagram of passions, talents, and the least amount of money we were willing to make. Upon completion of my diagram, I decided I was not in the right position. The very next week, there was an article in the Wall Street Journal about the shortage of Ph.D. professors in business. I talked with some advisers and decided to take the plunge.

You’ve studied (and experienced) a lot abroad …
I spent a year of undergrad in Europe, part was in France and part was in Russia. In Russia, I lived Krasnodar, not too far from Chechnya, so we were very close to the conflict [the outbreak of The First Chechen War happened at the time]. Most Thursdays we didn’t have class because there would be bomb threats at the university. I also spent a year teaching English in Brazil and have gone back there several times, including in 2014 for the World Cup. I speak Spanish, Portuguese, French, and Russian.

How do all these experiences affect how you teach?
My students hear a lot of stories; my experiences allow me to talk students about study abroad in a firsthand sort of way. It also helps me relate to the international students who enroll at Drake, because I understand the dynamics of what it’s like to be the only student who’s not from a certain place.