Don’t forget to nominate a staff member who would like to make an impact to strengthen the staff experience on campus. All Staff Council (ASC) nominations are due by 5 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 16. Submit a nomination.
—Leslie Noble, On behalf of the ASC Governance Committee
Due to the campus-wide change to Teams calling for individual office extensions, we no longer need to use our old handsets.
Please be sure to recycle your phone handset before Feb. 26. Look for a cardboard box near your building’s mailboxes marked “phone e-waste.”
If you’re not going to be on campus before then, please work with your building manager or a colleague to ensure your phone handset is recycled properly.
—Chris Mielke, ITS
It’s been my practice to share some thoughts with you at the start of each term typically focused on what ITS is working on, or projects that will be visible to the campus community. I’d like to take a slightly different approach for this message and focus on the actions and strategies of others outside the University and how they affect us, rather than on the activities of ITS.
Enterprise software is changing. We’ve all heard about “the cloud” and possibly even Software as a Service (SaaS), but what do these terms mean for Drake? Even five years ago, when I arrived on campus, new enterprise software was installed on physical servers in the Drake data center in Dial. Drake ITS was responsible for the physical computers, storage, power, cooling, emergency response, software updates, security, and everything else needed to ensure that the software was available to our users.
Today, we are more likely to license enterprise software that runs “in the cloud”. For cloud-based enterprise services, we no longer purchase or manage the physical devices, facilities, utilities, emergency response, or the software itself, but instead purchase a service that can be turned on or off as needed and is managed somewhere else.
Integrated, multi-purpose systems are giving way to purpose-built SaaS applications that are designed to meet the needs of a specific function or operation on campus, but that have no relationship or integration with other enterprise systems. Today, Drake ITS manages or supports more than 30 cloud-based enterprise applications including Blackboard Learn, Slate, Zoom, StarRez, Raiser’s Edge, Starfish, Microsoft Outlook, Microsoft Teams, HireTouch, Principal eBenefits, and many others. We also manage complex data exchanges with more than 50 applications to ensure that the right data is available and current wherever it is needed. This rapid and massive shift from local to cloud-based enterprise systems forces ITS to change itself rapidly and we are working hard to ensure that the University is well-prepared.
You may only notice some of these changes if you regularly use one of these cloud systems, but in some ways the rapid shift to Software as a Service is affecting us all, in particular the move to continuous delivery.
Continuous delivery simply means that vendors update their software on a regular basis in a way that is beyond the control of the end user. You may have noticed that the Microsoft Teams and Zoom clients update automatically, or prompt you to download and install the latest version of their application. Even Microsoft Office is moving to a continuous delivery model to resolve issues and make changes rather than releasing major updates every year or two. Going forward, I expect to see even more vendors moving to continuous delivery models for updates and automatically installing updates on their schedule rather than at the convenience of the end user.
So, bottom line, what does this mean for all of us? In a word – change. Our applications will continue to evolve with smaller changes happening more frequently and without warning. In many ways this trend will benefit us, but it will also require us to adapt to ongoing changes in the systems we use. Continuous change is coming to nearly every software application we rely on and the pace of that change will keep increasing.
I am focusing on continuous delivery because I believe that recognizing and understanding what is happening in enterprise information systems as a whole, and on our campus, will prepare Drake to more effectively adapt to these changes. ITS will continue to play a leadership role in navigating and charting a course through change for our faculty, students, and staff. Please feel free to reach out to me or any member of the ITS team and let us know how we can help.
— Chris Gill, ITS
You are invited to nominate a colleague for the Madelyn M. Levitt Employee Excellence and Distinguished Community Service Awards. Nominations are due to Human Resources by Friday, March 5.
Madelyn M. Levitt established the Distinguished Community Service Award to recognize the outstanding contributions of Drake faculty and staff to the Drake community. Recipients are chosen on the following criteria:
The Employee Excellence Award is presented to a staff member who demonstrates exceptional commitment to excellence in the performance of their duties. Criteria for the award include:
To nominate a colleague, submit a letter of nomination to Human Resources. Nomination letters may be sent through campus mail or electronically to drakehr@drake.edu. The letter should detail specific examples of how the nominee exemplifies each of the applicable criteria. Additional letters of support are not necessary.
For additional information, please contact Linda Feiden at linda.feiden@drake.edu.
— Linda Feiden, Human Resources
Human Resources and All Staff Council are putting together a Smile Slideshow and we need your help. We need a picture of you smiling! It can be a picture of you alone, or with your family, friends, co-workers, or pets. The only requirement is that the picture must include you and you must be smiling in the photo.
The smiling photos will be compiled into a slideshow and posted on myDrake for easy access when you need a break to see some smiles.
If you would like to help us out, please email a copy of your smiling digital image, by Friday, Feb. 19, to linda.feiden@drake.edu.
— Linda Feiden, Human Resources
Sign up for an in-person GroupX class or attend a virtual on-demand class. In-person fitness classes began Monday, Feb. 15, but virtual on-demand classes are still accessible throughout the semester. Sign up on the Drake Rec App or imleagues.com/drake.
Don’t forget, when you attend 15 classes this semester you will earn a free T-shirt. Both in-person and virtual classes count toward your total.
Space is limited for in-person formats, so make sure you sign up early and remove yourself if you are no longer able to attend.
Intramural registration deadlines:
Indoor Volleyball – Feb. 17
Madden – Feb. 17
3-Point Contest – Feb. 28
Sign up on the Drake Rec App or imleagues.com/drake.
Social media:
Follow @DrakeRec on Tiktok, Instagram, and Twitter and @DrakeRecServices on Facebook for tips, contests, and more.
— Emily Madsen, Rec Services
There is still time to submit your research for the Nelson Student Research Symposium!
The symposium will take place March 5 during the 2021 Global Citizen Forum, giving Drake students the opportunity to share their research related to international and global topics.
This year’s theme is “International Perspectives on Racial Justice.” While research presentations that support the theme are encouraged, all global topics from any academic discipline are welcome.
Submission details:
— Hannah Sappenfield, Global Partnerships Coordinator
Drake is partnering with the University of KwaZulu-Natal (South Africa) to host the Global Citizen Forum March 3–5. This virtual conference will bring together educators, students, policy makers, and citizens from around the world to explore the struggles, strategies, and solutions for creating a more equitable and inclusive higher education field.
Registration is open! Faculty and staff are eligible to attend all three days of the conference free of charge by using the access code DUFACSTAFF at registration. Register now.
Undergraduate and graduate students may also attend free of charge by selecting the “student” ticket type. Register now.
Drake student opportunity
We are still accepting submissions for the Nelson Student Research Symposium, taking place on the final day of the conference. This will be an opportunity for Drake students to share their research related to international and global topics. The submission deadline is Feb. 18.
— Hannah Sappenfield, Global Partnerships Coordinator
As departments and academic programs start to plan for possible summer youth programs, including camps, we are providing some tools to facilitate review of your planned activity in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. All programs and campus must complete this process. The first step is to complete an online program description form aimed at collecting key information about the program and planned health and safety protocols.
This will prompt a review by appropriate individuals, including the Department of Environmental Health & Safety. This review will also help ensure that things like custodial and food service support are available, as these services require additional planning in light of COVID-19 protocols. Program sponsors can begin publicizing the program after this review is complete.
As with all things related to the pandemic, it is important to keep in mind that all youth programs and events are subject to change or cancellation if conditions change.
— Venessa Macro, Chief Administration Officer
Join the Provost for a conversation on the political climate on Drake’s campus on Friday, Feb. 26, from 1–2 p.m. via Zoom. Visit the Campus Calendar for the link.
This session will provide some preliminary statistics on how faculty, staff, and students are perceiving the climate on campus, followed by a time to discuss challenges and brainstorm solutions.
The forum is open to all faculty and staff.
— Drinda Williams, Office of the Provost
