An important aspect of our Continuous Improvement Plan is annually assessing our performance in delivering services to campus. To that end, I encourage you to complete the fall 2017 Survey of Administrative Services. It should take approximately ten minutes to fill out.

The survey focuses on six areas: Human Resources, Facilities Planning and Management, Information Technology Services, Finance, Public Safety, and University Communications. The survey was developed by the Office of Institutional Research and Assessment in collaboration with several other of our colleagues. Continuous improvement efforts are meant to drive intentional and strategic action. Your feedback will help these departments understand where service gaps may exist and how they can better meet the needs of our University.

Thank you in advance for your participation. I look forward to sharing the results with the campus community.

—Marty Martin, President

Eight departments relocated following the opening of Collier-Scripps Hall and the Science Connector Building. We’re happy to announce that the moves are now complete. See the chart below for the new location of Human Resources, Head Start, The Ray Society, I Have a Dream, Drake International, Community Engagement, Adult Literacy, and Drake Online. Thank you to all of these departments for their patience and positive attitudes during this transition.

Also, a special thank you to the painters, electricians, skilled trades, and custodians in Facilities Planning and Management; John Stacy, Michelle Huggins, Jolene Schmidt, Sara Heijerman, Steve Blaylock,  Jerome Hilscher, Clayton Mitchell, Bill Jenson, Joey Bedwell, Laura Schwarz, Gary Johnson, Scott Law, and Tim Reger for their work to ensure seamless and successful moves for our teams.

—Kelly Foster, Finance and Administration

Drake will hold fire drills on Oct. 18, 19, 23, and 24 in compliance with the Higher Education Opportunity Act and in conjunction with National Fire Prevention month. All drills will be conducted at 10 a.m. with the exception of the residence halls, which will be conducted from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Oct. 23.

The dates and times of the drills were planned to minimize classroom disruptions; the majority of academic buildings will be completed during Fall Break. The timing also allows for a more efficient utilization of staff during the drills. For resident halls, drills will be administered during the evening hours to increase participation.

Fire alarms will be activated in all campus buildings to signal the start of the drill. When the alarm sounds:

• Evacuate the building.
• Buildings will be locked down and cannot be re-entered until the drill ends.
• Remember to dress accordingly.

The fire drills will be coordinated through the Office of Public Safety (271-2222) working with the Office of Environmental Health and Safety (271-3804) and Facilities Services (271-3955). Please report any fire alarm malfunctions or evacuation problems to Facilities or Public Safety. Your cooperation in this very important campus safety exercise regarding the Drake Emergency Response Plan is appreciated. Thank you in advance for your cooperation.

Fire drill schedule:

Oct. 18
Olin
Science Connector Building
Harvey-Ingham
Cline
Fitch
STAH
Occupational Therapy
Collier-Scripps
3206 University Ave.

Oct. 19
Meredith
Aliber
Cowles Library
Opperman
Cartwright
Harmon Fine Arts Center
Howard
Carnegie
Medbury

Oct. 23
Olmsted Center
Hubbell
Student Health
Alumni House
ROTC
Bell Center
The Knapp Center
Fieldhouse
Tennis Center
All residence halls (6–9 p.m.)

Oct. 24
Cole
Old Main
Public Safety
University Communications
Kinne Center
Multi-use resource (old Ray Center)
Vote Smart
Legal Clinic
Dial Center

—Chris Nickell, Environmental Health and Safety

Since July 1, over 18 million malicious emails have been sent to Drake.edu email addresses. Fortunately, most of these have been blocked by IT security tools, but even the best tools cannot catch everything. This is why ITS is working to teach the campus community how to detect and avoid being caught by malicious emails that “phish” for personal and campus data.

With October being National Cyber Security Awareness Month, ITS is sharing tips and tools for keeping yourself safe online and not becoming a cyber-victim. Between Oct. 30 and Nov. 17, ITS is holding its second annual Phishing Quiz, a contest where faculty, staff, and students can take a quiz to learn more about how to identify phishing emails and fraudulent websites. The first 300 people to take the quiz will win a free taco courtesy of Taco Johns. Everyone who completes the quiz will be entered to win one of six additional prize packages. Visit the ITS website to take the quiz starting Oct. 30.

With over 200,000 malicious emails sent to Drake email addresses every day, the goal of the contest is to empower faculty, staff, and students to be able to keep both their personal data and institutional data secure. Learn more about IT security by following Drake ITS on Twitter at @DrakeITServices or by reading the regular IT security posts on the ITS website.

It takes all of us working together to keep our information safe. Thank you for doing your part!

—Peter Lundstedt, ITS