All posts by Theresa Howard

Campus Announcements Archive

Law School to host free powers of attorney clinics

The Law School is once again hosting free Powers of Attorney Clinics in honor of Cady Day of Service, Oct. 20, 2023. Each clinic will consist of a 45 minute overview about financial and medical powers of attorney and living wills followed by a one-on-one appointment with a licensed attorney and/or Drake Law student to complete the required documents.

Select from one of three sessions:

  • 9–10:30 a.m.
  • Noon–1:30 p.m.
  • 4–5:30 p.m.

All sessions will be held in Cartwright Hall.

This service is free and open to the public. Register here.

— Terri Howard, Law School

Campus Announcements Archive

Law School to host blood drive Oct. 20

Did you know that one pint of whole blood can save up to three lives? The Drake Law School chapter of Delta Theta Phi will hold a lifesaving Blood Drive on Friday, Oct. 20, from 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. in Cartwright Hall, Kern Commons. Healthy adults who are 16 years old and weigh at least 120 pounds are eligible to donate. The blood drive is planned in honor of Cady Day of Service.

Schedule your donation

— Terri Howard, Law School

Campus Announcements Archive

Drake Wellness Conference Oct. 25

WEllcon23 is an opportunity for students, faculty, and staff to learn about the resources that Drake has to offer in terms of support through the dimensions of wellness—intellectual, physical, social, spiritual, vocational, emotional, and environmental. WEllcon23 will also serve as an opportunity for learning tools that will be helpful in achieving success throughout the semester and beyond.   

Join us on Oct. 25 from 3–6 p.m. for a variety of educational and experiential workshops (i.e. yoga, body image and nutrition, mental health, and more), pet therapy, massage therapy, and resources from a variety of community and Drake organizations.

— Kayla Bell-Consolver, Student Health Center

Campus Announcements Archive

Sleep hygiene workshop Nov. 4

Do you struggle with sleeping too much, or too little? Trouble falling asleep or staying asleep? Or simply unsure of ways to improve your sleep? Join this workshop to learn about the common sleep concerns and how you can begin to improve your sleep.

Nov. 9 at 4 p.m. in the Drake Room (Upper Olmsted)

Register Here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/sleep-hygiene-workshop-tickets-676015519617?aff=oddtdtcreator

— Kayla Bell-Consolver, Student Health Center

For Faculty Archive

Give feedback to students via the progress survey

Starfish gives instructors a convenient way to support student learning and engagement through the semesterly progress survey. We have opened the Starfish progress survey to instructors who have majority first-year, second-year, and transfer students. The progress survey includes five types of tracking items:

  • You Are Off to a Strong Start Kudos
  • Attendance Concern Flag
  • Low Test Grade Flag
  • Missing/Late Assignments Flag
  • Tutoring Referral

Faculty can also add comments that are visible to students.

Instructors can raise these items in the fall 2023 progress survey until Friday, October 6 @ 5:00 PM.

More information is available on our website: https://www.drake.edu/starfish/.

— Laura Shell, Academic Excellence and Student Success

For Students Archive

Civic Engagement Committee application is open

This form is for you to express interest in joining the Civic Engagement Committee. This is a low-time commitment that will involve at most four hours a month with one meeting per month. The committee will be responsible for helping the Civic Engagement Senator plan events, brainstorm ideas, help students become more civically engaged, and address issues that arise on campus. After filling out the form, I will contact you to let you know if you have been accepted to join the committee. Thank you and please contact me chloe.lepak@drake.edu with any questions.

Join the Civic Engagement Committee

— Chloe Lepak, Sophomore, A&S

Campus Announcements Archive

Drake musical theatre students present WINGS, a World Premiere, Oct. 5–8

Drake University Department of Theatre Arts students present the world premiere of WINGS, a new musical, written by Danny K. Bernstein and orchestrated by Nick Wilders. Bernstein spent a week with Drake musical students last spring directing a reading of the show in preparation for this fall’s performance. Now, for the first time, WINGS is being brought to life on stage in Drake’s own William S.E. Coleman Studio Theatre in the Harmon Fine Arts Center. 

Loosely adapted from the 1906 Russian novella, WINGS tells the story of 4th year university student Vanya, through his eyes, as he navigates his final year of study in St. Petersburg. With no money, and no status beyond the university, Vanya is desperate to win a prestigious fellowship that will allow him to stay at the university. However, matters complicate when he begins working privately on his application with the Fellowship’s current recipient, and the two begin a relationship that neither are quite prepared for.

A word from the cast: 

Being in a new show is awesome, it allows me to be creative and free. There is no reference to anyone else bringing your character to life other than you and the playwright. So you get to create something new.
— Harrison Stull, Vanya 

Danny has written a beautiful new piece of theatre. He writes melodic pieces with intention behind every note and word which pushes me as an actress to dive further into my character and her journey.
— Jude Thurman, Anna Nikolayevna

The most rewarding aspect of being in a Drake Theatre show is the variety of theater that we’re exposed to. WINGS is such a unique show in the way that it is unlike most other pieces of theater that are on Broadway right now.
— Griffin Snow, Larion Stroop

The full company includes: Drake faculty members, Erin T. Degner (director/choreographer) and Tristan Miedema (music director), Note Aguilar, Ben Ankarlo, Carly Arguelles, Rhyan Busch, Laura Breyen, Reece Dickerson, Emma Fishman, Chloe Fox, Miclo Gonzalez, Eliana Mascareñas, Griffin Snow, Harrison Stull, and Jude Thurman. 

Danny K Bernstein is an award-winning composer-lyricist, writer, pianist and music director based in New York City. He holds a BA in Music from Cornell University, where he was awarded the Ellen Gussman Adelson prize in music, and was named the 2014 Undergraduate Artist of the Year. 

Nick Wilders is an NYC-based orchestrator, pianist, and music director.  His theatrical credits as orchestrator include orchestrations and arrangements for Notes From Now, Crave (both Off-Broadway), Beauty & the Beast, Once On This Island (both Summer Theatre of New Canaan), and the upcoming national tour of In My Own Little Corner, starring Chryssie Whitehead.

Ticket prices are $8 for students and seniors and $10 for adults. For complete ticket prices and ticket orders, call 515-271-3841 or visit Drake Fine Arts Box Office.

— Jude Thurman, Senior, A&S

Campus Announcements Archive

Stalnaker Lecture Oct. 12 in Sheslow

Please join the College of Arts and Sciences for the 39th annual Stalnaker Lecture on Thursday, Oct. 12, at 6 p.m. in Sheslow Auditorium. A reception will follow in the lobby. The lecture is free to attend. It will also be streamed live at https://live.drake.edu.

The lecture is titled “The Wreck of The Sparrowhawk: What Is the Fate of Human Storytelling?” by Dr. Carol Spaulding-Kruse, Professor of English.

— Karla Rincon, College of Arts & Sciences

For Students Archive

Cybersecurity Awareness Month: Security culture

October was established as Cybersecurity Awareness Month in 2004 and is a collaborative effort between government agencies and private industry to help individuals protect themselves online, especially as threats to technology and confidential data become more commonplace. Drake is kicking off Cybersecurity Awareness Month with our first topic—security culture.

Whether you know it or not, you play a major role in Drake’s security culture. That may sound intimidating, but chances are you’re already doing your part. Security culture comprises the ideas, customs, and social behaviors of a group or organization that influence its security. Reporting a phishing email to ITS, discussing a news-making cyber attack with a coworker—that’s security culture at work!

To keep yourself and Drake safe, remember the following cybersecurity tips to enhance our security culture:

  • Think before you click. If you aren’t sure about a suspicious email, link, or website, report it and don’t open it.
  • Keep your information private. Use privacy settings on social media and other websites to control who sees your information. Additionally, be cautious who you share your information with. Remember, Drake will not ask you for your passwords, social security number, or other personal information.
  • Strengthen your password. Use a variety of characters, avoid using personal information, use a different password for every app and website, and change your passwords regularly.
  • Use multifactor authentication. MFA provides another layer of security to ensure it’s really you accessing your information.

Drake prioritizes your safety, and we ask you to do your part to strengthen our security culture.

Take the cybersecurity quiz! The first 150 people to complete the quiz will receive a coupon to use at the campus Starbucks, and all student participants will be entered into a random drawing for 1 of 10 Griff II t-shirts. Complete the quiz by October 31, 2023.

Watch for next week’s Cybersecurity Awareness Month topic in OnCampus. Learn more about cybersecurity, watch videos, and become a part of Drake’s security culture at drake.edu/its/csam.

For ITS assistance, submit a ticket at service.drake.edu/its, visit the lower level of Carnegie Hall, or call 515-271-3001.

— Chris Mielke, ITS