All posts by Erica McGowan

For Staff Archive

All Staff Council Special Interest Committee wants your input

The All Staff Council Special Interest Committee explores initiatives, questions, and/or concerns through research, planning, and collaboration with appropriate offices on campus.

To help ensure that the work of our committee is aligned with staff needs, please share any suggestions, concerns, or other feedback you’d like us to look into using this form. If you’d like us to respond to your feedback directly, please include your name and contact information, otherwise let us know your thoughts anonymously.

The Special Interest Committee chair is Erica McGowan. Additional members of the committee are Laura Shell, Diana Newman, Alicia Mann, Kris Brewster, Teresa Downs and Mady Nachtman.

— Erica McGowan, All Staff Council

Campus Announcements Archive

Drake Municipal Observatory fall schedule; Astronaut Peggy Whitson special guest Sept. 22

Check out the Fall 2023 schedule for the Drake Observatory. Events take place Friday nights from Sept. 15–Nov. 3 at 8 p.m. and are free and open to the public. For more information, visit: https://www.drake.edu/observatory/.

The Observatory is honored to host astronaut Dr. Peggy Whitson on Sept. 22. The Observatory is teaming up with Capital City Pride of Des Moines to make this event possible.

— Aaron Haack, College of Arts & Sciences

Strategic Updates Archive

Provost’s Social Sept. 27 at 4 p.m.

Faculty and staff are invited to join us for the next Provost’s Drake Social, on Wednesday, Sept. 27, in the Cowles Library Reading Room, beginning at 4 p.m.

Refreshments will include wine, beer, soft drinks, and light snacks. This is a family friendly event. Feel free to bring your children and partner.

— Madison Bemus, Office of the Provost

HR Information Archive

New Broadlawns Community Clinic taking patients Sept. 11 with no co-pays for Drake employees

The new Broadlawns Community Clinic at Drake is opening Sept. 11. The clinic will be open to the general community as well as Drake students, faculty, and staff. 

For faculty and staff that choose to use their services, this is an urgent care and family medicine clinic: 

  • With no co-pays for walk-in visits, primary, and specialist visits 
  • A lower out-of-pocket maximum 
  • Lower deductibles for emergency room visits, as well as for both outpatient and inpatient care 
  • All in network 
  • Right across the street! 

You can review the pricing in greater detail on page seven of Drake’s new digital benefits guide. 

— Maureen DeArmond, Human Resources

For Staff Archive

Bulldog Connect Networking Lunch

All Staff Council is holding a Bulldog Connect Networking Lunch for staff members on Wednesday, Sept. 6, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Come join us for a $5 lunch at Hubbell Dining Hall. We encourage attendees to wear their Drake name tag. Anyone is welcome to come—bring a fellow Bulldog along with you. Look for the table with the Drake swag and a special Bulldog Connect table tent in Hubbell. Members of All Staff Council’s Events & Community Service committee will host lunch so you’ll always have a friendly face to talk to! Come and go as your schedule allows.

— Elissa Johnson, On behalf of All Staff Council

Campus Announcements Archive

Anderson Gallery opens with exhibition by internationally recognized artist Judy Pfaff

The Anderson Gallery is pleased to show the work of Judy Pfaff, an internationally recognized artist who is often cited as a pioneer of installation-art and contributor to the Pattern and Decoration Movement. The solo exhibition, Freehand: Prints and Drawings by Judy Pfaff, showcases over 50 drawings and prints and is on display from Sept. 7 through Oct. 15. There are multiple events associated with this exhibition including an opening reception on Sept. 7, an exhibition tour on Sept. 21 and the premiere of the immersive opera Cadence of Life by Nathan Felix, inspired by the work of Pfaff on Oct. 5. The Anderson Gallery does not charge admission and all events are free and open to all. Freehand is supported by a grant from the Iowa Arts Council.

— Lilah Anderson, Anderson Gallery Exhibitions and Community Engagement Manager

News & Achievements Archive

Law Professor Melissa Weresh receives the Berger Award for Excellence in Legal Writing Scholarship

Congratulations to Drake Law Professor Melissa Weresh, the 2023 recipient of the Association of Legal Writing Directors’ (ALWD) Linda Berger Award for Excellence in Legal Writing Scholarship. The Berger Award is ALWD’s highest award recognizing scholarship in the field of legal writing. It specifically recognizes the recipient’s lifetime dedication to and advancement of legal writing scholarship.

Weresh is the Dwight D. Opperman Distinguished Professor of Law and the Herb and Karen Baum Chair of Ethics in the Professions at Drake University. Her scholarship examines the art, science, and ethics of persuasion and advocates for the modernization of law school teaching. Mel has championed the professionalization of the legal writing discipline, including improving status for legal writing faculty. She has previously served as president of the Legal Writing Institute, chair of the AALS Teaching Methods Section, member of the LexisNexis Law School Publishing Advisory Board, and member of the Editorial Boards of both Legal Communication & Rhetoric: JALWD and The Journal of Legal Education. In 2017, she was awarded the Thomas F. Blackwell Memorial Award for Outstanding Achievement in the Field of Legal Writing.

— Theresa Howard, Law School

For Students Archive

Dining Dollars vs. Bulldog Bucks

Are you unsure what the difference is between your Dining Dollars and Bulldog Bucks?  Dining Dollars are funds that are a part of your meal plan.  They are intended for on-campus dining.  You can use these funds at the Olmsted Starbucks, Hubbell Dining Hall, Spike’s Convenience Store (Lower Hubbell), the Library Cafe (in Midnight Hall), or at Concessions in the Knapp Center.

Dining Dollars are loaded at the start of the fall semester, and will carry forward to the end of the spring semester.  You’ll want to use these funds before you leave for home in the summer.

Bulldog Bucks are an optional account, also on your ID card, that you (or your family) load funds to as desired.  These funds carry forward from year to year until you leave Drake, and can be used both on and off campus.

Bulldog Bucks can be used for any on campus dining location (listed above), and can also be used at the Drake Bookstore, at campus printers, in the campus mailroom, at participating off campus locations, and on the GrubHub app.

Funds can be added online in the myDrake portal, or at www.acceptinglocations.com/drake.  You can also see the participating off campus merchants at this link.  Please note that the off campus merchants cannot take your Dining Dollars, they can only take Bulldog Bucks.

If you have any questions about your Dining Dollars or meal plan, feel free to contact dining@drake.edu.  If you have any questions about your Bulldog Bucks account, contact studentservices@drake.edu.

— Sara Heijerman, Student Services Center

Campus Announcements Archive

The Writing Center opens Sept. 11

WHAT WE DO: The Writing Center’s trained peer tutors advise and assist students at any stage of the writing process:

  • Understanding instructions/prompts
  • Generating ideas and ways to develop ideas
  • Outlining and organizing
  • Writing, expanding, revising, and/or copyediting a draft

We are a free service for all Drake students, including graduate students and those in professional programs.

HOW TO SIGN UP TO VISIT: Please go to https://library.drake.edu/writing-center/ to book an appointment with a tutor—instructions for booking and visiting are available on the site as well. Appointments are approximately 30 minutes, and students can sign up for more than one session if they wish. They may also request that a tutor keep a regular time slot available for them if they would like to come in each week. If you cannot attend your scheduled appointment, please remember to cancel and reschedule.

WHERE WE ARE: The lower level of Cowles Library—please follow the signs. We offer hours daily, from mornings to late afternoon/evening (including weekends). Students with health concerns can request an appointment on Zoom.

FOR FACULTY AND STAFF: If you refer a student to the workshop or require all students to visit, please let us know via email (megan.brown@drake.edu). Ask students to bring their assignment prompt/instructions to the Writing Center, as well as any writing they have done so far. When students are referred, or required, to visit, the tutor will email you to let you know that your student has attended and briefly describe what work was done. When students attend on their own, we do not inform professors unless they specifically ask us to do so.

IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS please contact Prof. Megan Brown, Director of Writing (megan.brown@drake.edu).

— Megan Brown, Professor of English

HR Information Archive

Invite Employee & Family Resources to your next department meeting

If you have never explored Drake’s Employee Assistance Program through Employee & Family Resources, now is a great time to do so.  They offer a wonderful range of resources—including confidential counseling, free webinars, podcasts, a blog, self-assessment tools, and a free mobile app.

Their services also include financial and legal consultation, child/elder care resources, and life coaching.  You may reach EFR by phone (800-327-4692) or visit their website.

Did you know that representatives from EFR are available to attend a department or staff meeting, or other on campus employee groups (in-person or virtually) to highlight their resources and help answer any questions?  They will present to groups of any size.  With the start of the academic year, this can be a valuable resource. If you would like EFR to speak during one of your meetings, please send an email to linda.feiden@drake.edu.

— Linda Feiden, Human Resources