Kayla Bell-Consolver, the director of Drake’s Student Counseling Center, shared this helpful document with me.  It was created by Amber Willis, a counselor with the center, primarily to help students as they study abroad this spring—but: I think it is very useful for faculty who may encounter student mental health concerns with from-abroad returning students, advisees who are abroad, and … well …. just about anyone on campus dealing with continual disruptions and stress (ourselves included). I hope you find these tips useful to share with students and colleagues alike.

Taking care of your mental health while studying abroad
Although studying abroad is an exciting time, it is a time of many changes and adjustments. The following is a list of warning signs that indicate that your mental health may need some additional attention. It is normal to not feel this way immediately. Many students experience these feelings after a few weeks/months of being in a new country. Following the warning signs are suggestions that will help you become aware of how you are feeling and ways to combat distressing mental health changes.

Warning signs

• Sadness
• Severe and persistent homesickness
• Frequent crying
• Nervousness
• Changes in appetite
• Changes in sleep
• Difficulty concentrating
• Irritability/Anger
• Physical symptoms (headache, belly ache, etc.)

Ways to maintain/improve mental health

• Check in with yourself every day! Rate your mood, ask how yourself how you are feeling.
• Spend time with yourself journaling. Find time to not only reflect on your experiences, but how you feel and how those experiences impact you.
• Maintain a routine as much as possible. Have the same morning routine, exercise every day, take time each night for self-care.
• Maintain contact with friends and family on a regular basis. If you feel like this is difficult for you to do, communicate with them and encourage them to reach out to you regularly.
• Eat healthy food/eat 3 meals a day. This is your fuel – treat this with a high priority!
• Get no less than 8 hours of sleep each night. It is normal for your sleep habits/patterns to be different for the first week.  Do your best to have a nighttime routine to encourage healthy sleep habits.
• Take care of basic hygiene – showering, brushing teeth, getting dressed. These are all things that can improve your mood.
• Be physically active as much as possible – try to take a walk with a peer every day.
• Download mental health app (Headspace, Snapshot, etc) to hold yourself accountable for personal check-ins.
• Talk to a peer in your program about how you are doing. They likely are having similar experiences and can help normalize your thoughts/feelings.
• Do things that have always made you feel better: warm bath, reading, calling a friend.
• Take time to immerse yourself in new traditions (try new food, participate in native activities, etc)
• Bring enough refills for medications.
• Reduce drug and alcohol use.
• Make a list of your own personal warning signs. What do bad days look like for you?  Compare this list to how you are feeling today.
• If you are feeling suicidal, reach out to a peer or a suicide hotline.

It is important to remember that struggling with your mental health while studying abroad is normal. Being out of your regular routine and without your typical support system can cause feelings of distress, loneliness and feeling out of control. It is critical to employ these strategies to help you manage and make the most out of your study abroad experience.

— Renée Cramer, Deputy Provost

It is with great sadness we share the passing of Harold Dueker Swanson, 91, of La Crosse, WI, who was a biology professor at Drake University for 35 years.

Harold was born in 1930 on a farm near Wichita, Kansas, to Simon and Ottilia (Dueker) Swanson, and grew up there. He died Jan. 1, 2022, and is survived by his wife, Wanda; children Kristin (Alan Hecht), Mark (Nancy Schoenberg) and Celia Swanson; grandchildren Nathan, David (Abby Sterling) and Karin Hecht, and Rachel (Emerson Hardebeck) and Benjamin Swanson.

Harold received his bachelor’s degree from Friends University, Wichita, his master’s degree from the University of Kansas, and his doctorate from the University of Tennessee. He also spent a year in Norway studying on a Fulbright scholarship, where he and Wanda spent the first year of their marriage.

One of his defining characteristics was his insatiable curiosity about the world, as well as the desire to share his fascinations with students, friends and family. Once retired, he and Wanda traveled the world, visiting all 50 states and all the continents except Antarctica.

Due to COVID restrictions, a memorial service will be postponed until a later date. The Schumacher-Kish Funeral & Cremation Services of La Crosse are in charge of arrangements. Online guestbook is available at www.schumacher-kish.com.

Find Harold’s complete obituary here: https://www.desmoinesregister.com/obituaries/dmr119380.

As part of the project to update the former MyDUSIS system that began this past May (new My Information and Employee Dashboard screens), these changes were implemented last week:

On myDrake:

• The MyDUSIS link in the Commonly Used Apps section of myDrake was changed to Self Service and takes you to a new landing page (see navigation guide linked below)
• The My Information link was removed from the Commonly Used Apps section (it is still in the HR section for faculty/staff and the My Drake Profile section for students)
• Other former MyDUSIS-related links have been renamed or removed as Self Service has prominent links to access key functions

In Self Service (formerly MyDUSIS):

• New navigation (see Navigating Self Service (How-to) for details)
• New student profile page (see the Self Service for Students guides)
• New screens for faculty members (see the Self Service for Faculty & Staff guides)
• A new method, Proxy Access, for students to allow parent(s)/guardian(s) access to their financial and academic information (see Authorizing Proxy Access (How-to) for setup details). There will be a transition period through February 1 to provide sufficient time for students to re-enroll parents/guardians and determine their appropriate level of access.

Please remember multi-factor authentication (MFA) is now required for accessing Self Service. Learn more about MFA and see links to guides on how to use it at Multi-factor Authentication Project (FAQ).

— Kris Brewster, ITS

Nominations are being accepted for the Principal Global Citizenship Award, recognizing outstanding contributions to global engagement and internationalization of the campus and curriculum on the part of faculty or staff. The selected awardee will receive a plaque, up to $3,000, and will be announced at the 2022 Global Citizen Forum in March. A screening committee will review all nominations and make recommendations to the Provost.  Nominations should be submitted to Bonnie Ehler at bonnie.ehler@drake.edu by Monday, Feb.14, 2022. 

A letter of nomination should be submitted recommending an individual for the award and explaining the context and manner in which the nominator has come to know the faculty or staff member. This letter should speak to the following qualifications:

Pursuant to the University’s mission to develop “responsible global citizens,” explain how the nominee has made outstanding contributions at Drake toward realizing the following:

1. Support Drake University as a global institution by creating linkages to global partners in local, national, and international settings;
2. Develop and/or actively support global and intercultural learning opportunities for Drake students;
3. Develop infrastructure, resources, and partnerships to support internationalization and global engagement.

The nominee must be a faculty or staff member with at least four years of service at the University. The nominee cannot have won this award within the past five years. Faculty and staff members who report directly to Global Engagement are ineligible.

Nominees who indicate a willingness to be considered will be invited to submit a resume or C.V. and a statement discussing their contributions to the above goals. Up to three letters of support from unit or institutional leadership, faculty, staff, or students will be accepted (this is optional).

Any individual who was nominated for the award in 2021 may be re-nominated if the nominator resubmits a letter offering the individual for consideration this year. Files of previous nominees are maintained for one year. If a faculty/staff member is re-nominated, the nominator will be invited to review the file from the previous year to ensure that the nomination is as current as possible.

Past recipients include:

2021 – Sally Haack, Professor of Pharmacy Practice, Clinical Sciences

2020 – Jody Swilky, Ellis and Nelle Levitt Professor of English/Writing Workshop

2019 – Pramod Mahajan, Professor of Pharmaceutical Sciences

2018 – Tim Knepper, Professor of Philosophy/Comparison Project Director

2017 – John Rovers, Professor of Pharmacy & Health Sciences

2016 – Ellen Yee, Professor of Law/Director of International Programs

Nomination letters are due by Feb. 14, 2022 and should be sent as an attachment to bonnie.ehler@drake.edu.  Questions may be directed to Annique Kiel, executive director of Global Engagement and International Programs, at annique.kiel@drake.edu.

— Annique Kiel, Global Engagement

Need some information regarding Drake’s students or faculty? You can find it on the Office of Institutional Research and Assessment (OIRA) website. Databook 2021 is updated (aside from student outcomes and staff information) and uploaded.

— Christine Marchand, Institutional Research