All posts by Ashton Hockman

For Students Archive

Need extra cash? These campus departments are hiring

Drake Dining
Drake Dining is hiring all part-time positions at the following locations:

Starbucks at Olmsted
Hubbell Dining Hall
Drake Catering
Spike’s C-Store

Please visit drake.joinhandshake.com to submit your application.

— Casey Morgan, Dining Services

Drake Recreation Services
Open recreation employment offers very flexible schedules, competitive pay, and a fun work environment. For more information, or if you are interested in working, please send a resume to recservices@drake.edu.

— Emily Madsen, Recreational Services

Office of Events
The Office of Conference and Event Services is hiring student workers for the 2021–2022 school year. Responsibilities include setting up, tearing down, and working during a variety of events across campus.  Scheduling is flexible, and there are opportunities for promotion.  Prior events experience is not required.  Email steve.ramsey@drake.edu for more information and to apply.

— Steve Ramsey, Events Management

For Faculty Archive, For Staff Archive

Jewish holidays calendar for download

On Thursday, Aug. 26, you should have received an email with a link to calendar entires to mark the significance of the upcoming Jewish holidays: Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, and Passover.

These calendar entries are a reminder to not schedule co- and extracurricular events on these Jewish holidays as well as the evenings prior (each of these holidays begins at sunset the prior day).

Open the email sent Aug. 26 with the subject line “Jewish Holidays Calendar for Download” and follow the steps below to add the holidays directly to your Outlook calendar:

For PC computers:

  1. Drag the .ICS file (attached in my email sent to campus Aug. 26) into your calendar tab. The dates should appear on your personal calendar.

For Mac computers: 

  1. Double-click the file to open it. If it doesn’t open, you might need to save your file to your computer before you can open it. 
  2. When you open the .ICS file, Outlook opens automatically. The event will open in a separate window with the subject: Rosh Hashanah.  
  3. Click Save & Close on the event window to save the holidays to your calendar. 

The individual dates are also listed below if you need to add them manually.

There are several holidays in which Jewish law officially says Jewish people are not to work and there are parts of the country where, whether or not you are Jewish, your business or organization would be closed in observance of these holidays (New York City, for example!).

I want to urge the Drake campus community to avoid scheduling events on:

  • Rosh Hashanah, which is the Jewish new year. (In 2021, beginning at sundown on Sept. 6 and concluding the night of Sept. 8).
  • Yom Kippur, which is the Day of Atonement and considered the holiest day in the Jewish calendar. (In 2021, beginning at sundown on Sept. 15 and concluding the night of Sept. 16.)
  • The first and second days of Passover mark a week of honoring the deliverance of the Hebrew people from enslavement in Egypt and through a seder—a ritualized meal, shared in community while remembering the Jewish story of liberation. (In 2022, beginning at sundown on April 15 and concluding the night of April 17.)

Many Jewish members of our community cannot participate in anything that we schedule on these dates.

I want to strongly encourage you to import these calendar holds, and especially as Rosh Hashanah is only a few weeks away. But also, the Office of Equity and Inclusion is working on creating a University-wide Outlook calendar that is inclusive of other major religious holidays. We plan to have this available for you sometime in the next several weeks.

Jewish Holidays

2021
Rosh Hashanah      
Evening (6:00) September 6 all the way through September 8, 2021

Yom Kippur
Evening (6:00) September 15 all the way through September 16, 2021

Passover
Evening (6:00) April 15 all the way through April 17, 2022

2022
Rosh Hashanah        
Evening (6:00) September 25 all the way through September 27, 2022

Yom Kippur
Evening (6:00) October 4 all the way through October 5, 2022

Passover
Evening (6:00) April 5 all the way through April 7, 2023

2023
Rosh Hashanah       
Evening (6:00) September 15 all the way through September 17, 2023

Yom Kippur
Evening (6:00) September 24 all the way through September 25, 2023

Passover
Evening (6:00) April 22 all the way through April 24, 2024

— Jen Harvey, Associate Provost of Campus Equity and Inclusion

Campus Announcements Archive

Many campus departments have a new home

In the last year, a number of campus departments have relocated. Please make note of where each department now resides.

Public Safety is now located on the lower level of Ross Hall (1214 31st Street) in suites 102–108. Public Safety remains a 24 hour a day, 7 day a week service for campus. Public Safety can be reached at 515–271–2222. 

Human Resources is located on the top floor of Old Main, Room 319.

The Registrar’s Office is located in Carnegie Hall, Room 101.

Student Accounts and Drake Loans & Past-Due Accounts are located in Carnegie Hall, Room 103.

The Cashier Office is located in Carnegie Hall, Room 104.

The ITS support center is located in the lower level of Carnegie Hall.

Global Engagement is located in Cowles Library near the south (University Avenue) entrance.

Community Engaged Learning is located in the lower level (southeast corner) of Cowles Library.

University Communications and Marketing is located in the lower level of Old Main. (Marketing/PR, Room 102; Executive Director/Brand Integration, Room 105)

OLLI at Drake (formerly named the RaySociety) is located in the Alumni House.

Institutional Research/Academic Success is located in on the second floor of Howard Hall, Suite 203

Drake Online and Continuing Education is located in the lower level of Jewett Hall.

Head Start is located at 3800 Merle Hay Rd., Suite 323, Des Moines.

Campus Announcements Archive

Public Safety moved to Ross Hall

The Department of Public Safety has a new home on campus. Drake Public Safety is now located on the lower level of Ross Hall (1214 31st Street) in suites 102–108. Public Safety remains a 24 hour a day, 7 day a week service for campus. Public Safety can be reached at 515–271–2222. For questions, contact Scott Law, executive director of Public Safety and University Operations, at scott.law@drake.edu.

— Scott Law, Public Safety and University Operations

Campus Announcements Archive

Welcome Natalie Russell, mailroom supervisor

Campus Mail Operations is pleased to announce Natalie Russell as the new mailroom supervisor in the Olmsted Center. Natalie comes to Drake from the University of Texas at Austin where she was the supervisor of residence hall mail center operations.

“I am excited to fulfill my role as the lead in the mail operations center with new and innovative changes and future improvements,” said Natalie. “I have received a warm and friendly welcome from all and I look forward to meeting each one of you.”

For questions about anything mail related, contact Natalie at campusmailoperations@drake.edu or 515–271–3162.

A few fun facts about Natalie:

  • Natalie owned and operated a small flower shop for 10 years.
  • Natalie likes to bake cookies—and share them, of course!

Welcome, Natalie! We are thrilled to have you on campus.

— Scott Law, Public Safety and University Operations

For Faculty Archive, For Staff Archive

Move-in curbside check-in volunteers needed

A new class of first-year students will arrive to campus Aug. 23, 24, 27 and 28, and the Office of Residence Life needs your help. Faculty and staff volunteers are needed to help greet students and assist with the check-in process. If you are interested in volunteering (and have approval from your supervisor) please sign up for a shift.

Move-in day volunteer sign up

Volunteers will greet students and their families curbside in front of their residence hall and direct them to the hall front desk to check-in and get their room key. In the meantime, move-in helpers will unload and take the student’s belongings to their room. 

We need 2–3 volunteers per hour, per building for the dates of Aug. 23, 24, 27 and 28 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. Volunteers can choose to work one hour or multiple hours. Please select as many hours as you are available, but make sure not to double book. In other words, do not sign up to volunteer at both Morehouse and Carpenter on Aug. 23 from 1–2 p.m. Also, if you can only volunteer for a partial shift, that is okay, just let us know when signing up.

On move-in day, volunteers should report to the residence hall front desk of the building for which they are volunteering to receive instructions. We encourage volunteers to wear Drake apparel, their professional name badge, and a mask. 

Move-in would not be possible without the help of so many gracious faculty and staff volunteers. Thank you for your time and consideration!

— Lorissa Sowden, Office of Residence Life

Campus Announcements Archive

In Memoriam: Joanne Brown

Joanne Brown, beloved associate professor emerita of English at Drake, passed away at her home Aug. 5, 2021, in the presence of family. Joanne earned her master’s (1969) and doctorate (1980) from Drake University. She then became a tenured professor in the English department where she taught business writing and authored four books.

In her retirement, Joanne taught courses at the RaySociety, now referred to as the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) at Drake. She also continued to pursue her passion for theatre. Her final stage appearance was at age 84 in Marjorie Prime as Marjorie.

Joanne was a long-time volunteer and active in her community. She was dedicated to literacy and served as a tutor at the Adult Literacy Center, located at Drake from 1976–2018. She also volunteered as a children’s theatre teacher, Des Moines Community Playhouse board member, and facilitator of book groups at Temple B’nai Jeshuran.

Joanne was known for her loyalty, independence, and generosity, and will be remembered with love and gratitude by colleagues, friends, and family alike. Donations in Joanne’s memory may be made to Temple B’nai Jeshurun or to Planned Parenthood of Greater Iowa. A funeral service was held on Sunday, Aug. 8, and can be viewed online.

Read Joanne’s full obituary and leave a message of condolence.

For Staff Archive

Let’s Talk About It: Critical Race Theory and the Drake Community

Critical Race Theory, or CRT, has been a prevalent topic in the news lately. And, lots of attention is being paid to CRT and college campuses. But what is CRT? Why are we hearing about it so much right now?

Drake staff are invited to join a conversation with Jen Harvey, Associate Provost for Campus Equity and Inclusion, on Tuesday, Aug. 17, from 11 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. in the Olmsted Center, Parents Hall South. Registration is not necessary.

This inclusive discussion will cover ways we can better understand different reactions to CRT, sort through our own perspectives about it, and get prepared to support students and their families in understanding what CRT does (and doesn’t?) have to do with a Drake education.

— Jen Harvey, Campus Equity and Inclusion

Campus Announcements Archive

“See something, say something:” Catalytic converter theft

During the Spring 2021 semester, Drake Public Safety issued a safety alert for the theft of catalytic converters from cars in University parking lots. We have begun to receive additional reports of stolen catalytic converters from Toyota vehicles in campus parking lots, so once again, we are asking members of the campus community to “say something, if you see something.”

Throughout Des Moines and the rest of the country, catalytic converters are probably being stolen for scrap, or they could be reselling them to people installing them in cars. All cars have catalytic converters, so although the recent thefts have been aimed at Toyotas, any car could be the subject of a theft.

Because removing a catalytic converter typically requires getting underneath the vehicle with a metal saw or some other type of heavy-duty cutting tool, DPS is asking people to watch for suspicious activity in and around parking lots. 

During the summer months, we see less cars on campus and those cars may be unattended for longer periods of time.  At times during the summer, campus community members and guests may park unregistered vehicles in the lots and risk ticketing. Having only registered vehicles in our lots helps us to prevent criminal activity both in the lots as well as in and around buildings. DPS officers will continue to enforce the requirement that all cars parked in Drake parking lots have a Drake parking pass. Any car found in a Drake lot without a Drake parking permit may be subject to towing or being booted.

If your car has had its catalytic converter stolen or you have observed someone underneath vehicles or tampering with cars, we ask that you contact Drake Public Safety at 515–271–3860 or contact the Des Moines Police Department by calling 911.

— Scott Law, Director of Public Safety