This is a reminder that employees on Drake’s health plan need to complete a physical with their designated Primary Care Provider (PCP) between Dec. 1, 2020, and Nov. 30, 2021, and submit a Physician Exam Completion Formto Human Resources by Dec. 2, 2021, to continue receiving the wellness health insurance premium discount in 2022.
If this form is not submitted by Dec. 2, you will not be eligible to receive the discount in 2022 and will pay the regular health care premium rates for the 2022 benefit year (starting Jan. 1, 2022). Should you have questions, please send an email to linda.feiden@drake.edu.
Drake senior Hannah Cohen has created a beautiful 16- by 20-inch Des Moines poster featuring her original artwork. Hannah is donating all proceeds (minus printing costs) to Des Moines Refugee Support, a local non-profit organization that strives to meet the needs of refugee children and families right here in our community. Each poster costs $35 and comes packaged in a cardboard tube perfect for wrapping as a gift. Your support will go a long way in helping DMRS! Order by completing this form.
— Erin Bell, University Communications and Marketing
The 2021 United Way Campaign began yesterday, and as of this morning, we’ve raised $17,098 from 105 faculty and staff members. Thank you to those who have donated. For those who have yet to give, please consider contributing by 3 p.m. Friday, Nov. 12.
You can help us reach our goal—$35,000 with 35% participation. If we achieve this goal, President Martin will declare Wednesday, Nov. 24, a full-day campus holiday. Donating takes less than three minutes, and to do so, please refer to the giving instructions found within the email you received from the United Way on Nov. 8 at 1 p.m. For questions, email ryan.arnold@drake.edu.
— Campaign co-chairs, Megan Franklin and Ryan Arnold
The 2021 United Way of Central Iowa campaign will kick off next Monday, Nov. 8, and go through Friday, Nov. 12. Watch your email for more information.
The goal is to raise $35,000 with 35% participation across campus. 100% of your contribution to the United Way campaign stays within central Iowa, enabling local nonprofit organizations to meet the needs of our neighbors. Your donation helps us meet the goal, and more importantly, you are strengthening our community. Please begin considering your 2021 donation.
— Campaign co-chairs, Megan Franklin and Ryan Arnold
Students with unusual circumstances or a recent change in family income can submit a financial aid appeal. Students must be making satisfactory academic progress towards graduation to remain eligible for financial aid. Undergraduate and pharmacy students that want to receive financial aid for the summer semester must complete the Summer Financial Aid Form. More information about these policies (and others!) is available at www.drake.edu/finaid.
The Office of Student Financial Planning is here to serve you (in person, on the phone, or virtually). If you have questions about your financial aid please contact us to schedule an appointment or stop by Carnegie Hall.
Tecnológico de Monterrey, Drake’s global partner in Mexico, is seeking faculty and staff to participate in virtual collaboration projects in Spring 2022.
Tecnológico de Monterrey will host two virtual networking sessions this week to share about their Global Classroom initiative, its relation with the COIL methodology, and how it facilitates the integration of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals in the learning process.
Participants in the networking sessions will connect with professors from Tecnológico de Monterrey and other universities around the world. Before the session, meet participating faculty and share your own introduction video on this Padlet page.
Networking Internacional | Sesión en español Miércoles 3 de noviembre 9 a.m. (Cuidad de México) REGISTER
International Networking | English Session Thursday, Nov. 4 9 a.m. (Mexico City) REGISTER
If you are interested in global virtual learning but unavailable for these networking sessions or if you need further guidance on how to get started with a collaboration project, contact Alanah Mitchell, Global Virtual Learning Fellow.
Now that you have your Direct Travel profile set up, you are ready to book your first flight. When you go out to search flights, it can be overwhelming understanding the different flight options and prices. You might find yourself wanting to compare Direct Travel fares to other travel sites to see if there is a better deal out there. We appreciate you being resourceful with Drake’s funds, however there are some considerations to be made before automatically choosing the lowest fare.
There are two types of economy flight options: Standard economy and basic economy. While each airline carrier is different, in general basic economy is a no-thrills option created for customers who may be more price sensitive. It is offered in addition to standard economy at a cheaper rate. With that reduced price comes a trade-off. These lower priced options often have important restrictions on seating, carry-on baggage, member benefits and other aspects of your travel. Passengers often have to pay additional fees to match a similar experience to the standard economy ticket. Also, all carriers consider Basic Economy non-changeable. If you do need to make any changes, you will be charged.
It is important to remember online travel sites will quote only the cheaper standard economy fares. Direct Travel will default to the standard economy fare due to the benefits available. However, you can still book basic economy through Direct Travel by calling an agent directly and asking the Direct Travel agent to price basic economy fares. While there will be exceptions, Direct Travel should be able to match the prices from online travel sites for basic economy fares. Please note calling the Direct Travel agent will result in a higher agent fee.
Prior to booking any fare, it is important to check with each carrier on their rules as they aren’t standard across airlines. Below is a visual from Delta that shows what is included in basic economy vs. standard economy. Although the price looks good, the tradeoffs might not make it so valuable.
Look for additional travel articles In the coming weeks, as we continue to share information about our travel program. In the meantime, if you have any questions or comments, please feel free to email procurement@drake.edu.
— Erica McGowan and Heather Winslow, Finance and Administration
Please note the following schedule for payment processing through Accounts Payable to accommodate winter break.
Friday, December 17, 2021 – All Payment requests (including wires) are due to Payments @Drake.edu by the end of the business day. Requests received by this deadline will be processed for payment before Winter Break.
Monday, January 3, 2022 – Normal payment processing will resume this week.
The accounts payable office will be closed during both holiday breaks.
Thank you for your help in coordinating to ensure we meet all needs during the upcoming season.
When people feel uneasy and insecure, hackers feel empowered. Throughout the pandemic, criminals have leveraged fear to trick people into giving up sensitive information. Fear and uncertainty associated with the virus, along with millions of people working remotely, have created the perfect storm for criminals looking to cash in. Here are some scams to be aware of:
Vaccine distribution: Scammers send emails or call potential victims posing as representatives of a local distribution agency who can help book vaccine appointments. They then pressure targets for information such as birth dates, Social Security numbers, and medical history. Other scam emails make false claims about the vaccine and then direct recipients to a malicious website with “proof”.
Romance and relationships: Hackers are posing as lonely people in quarantine on social media and dating apps. As they build trust, they request personal information from the victim. In many cases, the hacker claims to be infected with the virus and asks for financial support due to hardship.
Contact tracing cyber scam: State and local governments use contact tracing applications to anticipate COVID-19 hot spots and prepare communities. Cybercriminals are sending text messages claiming to be official contact tracing. The message instructs victims to visit a website for more details. Once there, the site infects their device with malware.
CDC malicious attachment: In this scheme, the user receives an email supposedly from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The email contains an attachment that claims to provide “official advice from the government on how to stay safe during the coronavirus outbreak.” Once opened, the attachment infects the computer with malware.
Scams and phishing attacks related to working from home and COVID-19 continue to be a significant issue. It is important to remain ever vigilant in protecting personal and institutional data from these threats. ITS will continue to simulate phishing and assign training to those most susceptible. If you believe you’ve been targeted by phishing, see Reporting a Phishing Message (How-to).
Multi-factor authentication (MFA) helps ensure that you are the only person who can access your account if your password is compromised. With MFA, you log into campus systems using your Drake email address and password and then confirm your identity with another method. Drake is currently requiring faculty and staff to use Duo MFA when accessing key campus systems.
Strong passwords, even those with significant number of characters and complexity, don’t provide sufficient protection. Educational institutions have increasingly become major targets for attackers, and Drake has to upgrade our protections for individual and campus data.
Starting in January, we will increase the number of systems that require MFA, and change our MFA method to Microsoft Authenticator so that all students, faculty, and staff can use MFA.
Microsoft Authenticator will work much like Duo, but has a few additional benefits.
Duo licensing costs prohibit campus-wide usage while Authenticator is included in our Microsoft Office 365 subscription.
There are additional verification options.
We will provide instructions on using Microsoft Authenticator, a detailed change timeline, a list of systems that will require MFA, and answers to additional questions you might have between now and January. Watch OnCampus and our other communication channels for more information throughout the rest of the semester.
