All faculty and staff are invited to join the Center for Public Democracy as we celebrate the contributions of Renée Cramer and wish her well in her new role at Dickinson College. Please join us Monday, May 8, from 5–6:30 p.m. at the Ray Center (lower level of Collier Scripps Hall) for drinks and light snacks. All are welcome to join us in bidding a fond farewell to our colleague and friend!
— Rachel Paine Caufield, Professor of Political Science
The University is currently experiencing a rise in reported cases of COVID-19 among our student population. As of this morning, we are aware of 76 confirmed student cases, 29 of whom are isolating in Ross Hall.
Here are eight reminders and resources to keep in mind to help prevent further spread:
Thank you for your continued vigilance in keeping our community a safe and healthy place to live, learn, and work as we close out the academic year.
— Jerry Parker, Chief Student Affairs Officer
Professor Mary Edrington was recently named as the recipient of the 2023 Hugh G. Wales American Marketing Association Faculty Advisor of the Year. This award, announced at the 2023 International Collegiate AMA Conference in New Orleans last week, recognizes her outstanding contributions to our AMA Collegiate program. It is a notable recognition given there are over 320 AMA collegiate chapters worldwide. Professor Edrington has served as the Drake AMA Advisor from 1987 to 1993 and from 2003 on. The Drake chapter has approximately 50 student members. This award program began in 1977 and is named in honor of Dr. Hugh G. Wales, who was instrumental in founding the collegiate chapter at the University of Illinois–Champaign, and served as its first faculty advisor. Congratulations, Professor Edrington!
See a list of new and notable Relays events happening this week. For a complete list of events, visit the University calendar. Other ways to find information, include: Alumni events: alumni.drake.edu; Athletic events: godrakebulldogs.com, and Student Activities Board (SAB) Instagram or Facebook page.
Grand Blue Mile
NEW! Shot Put Community Event
NEW! Saturday Relays Live
Faculty, staff, and students are invited to attend the 44th Annual Beautiful Bulldog Contest®, Presented by Ramsey Subaru. The contest will take place Monday, April 24 at 6 p.m. Doors will open to fans at 5 p.m. to enjoy the Rescue Dog Festival and Kids Zone before the pageant begins. The event is free and open to the public. There will be a giveaway for the first 50 students to show up with their Drake ID.
The Beautiful Bulldog Contest® at Drake University is a unique trademarked event with an over 40-year history. The event kicks off a week-long Drake Relays celebration. Thirty English Bulldogs walk the pup-way to impress judges in hopes of being crowned the Most Beautiful Bulldog. The winner of the contest will reign as the Most Beautiful Bulldog for the 2023 week-long Drake Relays.
During the contest, each contestant will walk the pageant runway. This is prime time for the pups to show off their stuff or do tricks for our judges. This year’s judges include:
Questions? Please email beautifulbulldog@drake.edu.
Select clothing and gifts are 50% off in-store and online at The Bulldog Shop. The sale is going on now through April 30 and excludes Drake Relays merchandise.
When: May 3 at 5:30 p.m.
Where: Medbury Hall, Room 116
Ambassador Branstad hosts a book club during the academic year to engage the Drake community on topics related to U.S.-China relations. This semester’s book is Getting China Wrong by Aaron L. Friedberg and a limited number of copies are available for students. Drake students, staff, and faculty are welcome to sign up by emailing ambassador@drake.edu stating your intent to read the book and attend the event as well as your request for a copy of the book.
— Luke Clausen, JO, AS ’23
Drake University has selected a new partner for textbooks, course materials, and Drake branded merchandise. eCampus.com will supply course materials and operate the Bulldog Shop, our on-campus retail store, beginning with the Summer 2023 term. This new partnership will focus on increased affordability and convenience through a simplified ordering experience for students and a customer-centric campus retail operation, tailored to the needs of Drake students, faculty, staff, alumni, fans, parents, and community members.
eCampus.com was selected after a comprehensive and competitive review. Survey data from faculty and students helped shape the vendor evaluation criteria. A faculty survey from last fall showed a need to improve the adoption process and overall customer service, while student surveys revealed a shift to online purchases and increasing preference for digital content. Affordability was also identified as a priority. Vendors were asked to highlight their capabilities in each of these areas.
A faculty bookstore advisory group was instrumental in evaluating potential vendors, providing input on the adoption tools from each vendor, course material selection support and other vendor offerings. A special thanks to the following members of the Bookstore Advisory Group:
Improving the Student Experience
Another key focus of the selection process was the student experience. The eCampus.com online storefront will give students the opportunity to purchase or rent new and used textbooks online, as well as access to digital content. Students will be provided time and money-saving options, such as price comparison information from other vendors like Amazon or Chegg, free shipping to the campus store, and a price match guarantee program. eCampus.com’s custom-branded online storefront and dedicated customer service will be available to students 24/7.
Improving the Faculty Experience
The move to eCampus.com also allows Drake to structure support for faculty in a more purposeful way. Cowles Library will now be a key resource for faculty throughout the adoption process. Librarians are well positioned to assist in identifying course material resources, including making recommendations to faculty who are interested in using Open Educational Resources (OER) or selecting from the thousands of eBooks in the library’s online collections.
“Drake librarians are eager to bring our expertise to course materials, and eCampus.com has welcomed our involvement, which we appreciate,” said Jill Gremmels, dean of Cowles Library. “We take seriously our goal of being the information provider to the University, but for too long, course materials have been outside that scope. We already own and license over 900,000 ebooks, and we can help professors find both OER and library-provided resources that are available at no cost to students.”
Bulldog Shop Operations
eCampus.com will also assume operation of the Bulldog Shop in the Olmsted Center. The store will continue to offer Drake branded merchandise and support graduation. eCampus.com brings a customer-centric focus to the retail operation and is committed to engaging with the campus community. eCampus.com has also committed to employing students, offering opportunities for retail and marketing positions for student employees. The Bulldog Shop will also accept Bulldog Bucks in the store, allowing greater flexibility for students.
Transition Information
Faculty will submit summer and fall adoptions using eCampus.com’s intuitive online adoption platform called FAST. The last information session about how to adopt using FAST is set for Wednesday, April 5, at 2 p.m.
To join the zoom training session click the link below and “Join Demo” button and it will take you to the training presentation.
https://ecampus.zoom.us/j/8653458271?pwd=OHZUa3ZUWVkzYzU3elNGZFduZEVHQT09#success
The Higher Education Opportunities Act (HEOA) requires higher education institutions to provide the complete list of required and recommended textbooks (including ISBN and pricing information) to the bookstore in a timely fashion. Thus, prioritizing the transition to the FAST adoption platform is an important first step in this process.
To allow for inventory and preparations for a reopened store, the Bulldog Shop in Olmsted Center will be closed May 22–29 and re-open on Tuesday, May 30. A special grand opening event will take place at the beginning of the fall semester.
— Venessa Macro, Chief Administration Officer
Thank you to everyone who has already completed the Great Colleges To Work For survey. We have not yet reached our participation goal, but we’re getting closer! Currently, 63% of faculty and staff have participated. We are striving to have 67% respond. The good news is, there is still time to complete the survey. The survey period ends today, so if you have not completed the survey, please consider taking this opportunity to make your voice heard.
If you have not received an invitation to complete the survey, please check your junk or spam folder. If it is not there, please let Nate Reagen or Maureen De Armond know right away.
We will follow-up before the fall semester with the overall university results of the survey. All unit-leaders (with greater than five employees) will have the results to share by then as well.
— Maureen De Armond, Human Resources; Nate Reagen, Office of the President
Full-time faculty and staff received an email Tuesday, March 21, from ModernThink with an invitation to participate in this year’s Great Colleges to Work For survey. Thank you to those of you who have completed the survey. If you haven’t, please take time to make your voice heard. It is easy, quick, anonymous, and the primary tool used by the University to gather feedback on our workplace culture. Instructions on how to access the survey are included in the email.
The survey period ends Tuesday, April 4, and we have not yet reached our participation goal of 67%, but we’re getting closer! Currently, 46% of employees have participated. The higher the response rate, the more accurate and complete the results.
For further questions, contact Nate Reagen or Maureen De Armond. Thank you!
— Maureen De Armond, Human Resources; Nate Reagen, Office of the President