All posts by Jimmy Senteza

Nominations for the Levitt Mentor Award

In 1994, the Madelyn Levitt Mentor Award was created in honor of Madelyn Levitt’s commitment to Drake and her ongoing interest in faculty and staff achievement and academic excellence. Each year this award recognizes commitment to student success on the Drake campus by honoring a member of the Drake University faculty or staff for excellence in advising and mentoring students.  

You are invited this year to nominate a faculty or staff member for this prestigious award.

Process:

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

· an outstanding commitment to student success in and out of the classroom in support of the Drake mission.

· integrity in personal relationships.

· typifying the ideal student mentor by providing for students the support they need to graduate and move forward to live productive, fulfilling lives.

The nominee must be a faculty or staff member in at least her/his fourth year of service at the University.  The nominee cannot have won this award within the past five years. 

The letter is due to Deputy Provost Jimmy Senteza, no later than Feb. 16, 2024. The letter should be sent as an attachment to madison.bemus@drake.edu.

2. The nominated individual is notified by the Provost’s Office of her/his nomination and asked of her/his willingness to be considered.

3.  At the nominee’s acceptance, the nominator is asked to collect the following supporting material and submit it to madison.bemus@drake.edu in the Provost’s Office by March 16, 2024: a curriculum vitae or resume, a minimum of one other letter supporting the nomination, and a description by the nominee of activities which illustrate her/his mentoring/advising involvement.  At least one of the letters must be from a current student and there may be no more than five letters supporting the nomination. Electronic submission of materials is required. Send all documents to madison.bemus@drake.edu

4.  A screening committee, appointed by the Provost, will review all nominations and make appropriate recommendations to the Provost.

5.   Any individual who was initially nominated for the award in 2022 or 2023 may be re-nominated if the nominator resubmits a letter offering the individual for consideration this year. Files of previous nominees are maintained for two years.  In the case of re-nomination, the nominator will be invited to review the file to ensure that the nomination is as current as possible. The limit of five letters of support, including one from a current student, also applies to re-nominations.

The 2024 recipient of the Madelyn Levitt Mentor Award will be announced at one of the spring 2024 commencements.

— Jimmy Senteza, Deputy Provost

Faculty Senate accepting nominations for at-large senator seats

Faculty Senate nominations are now open for the four at-large senator seats. The term is for two years, beginning the Monday after the spring commencement of 2024 and running through the spring commencement of 2026.

Submit nominations here for eligible full-time faculty members who want to serve on the Faculty Senate. Self-nominations are welcome. All eligible faculty members have received an email regarding their eligibility.

Nominations are due by Tuesday, Feb. 6, 2024, by 11:59 p.m.

Click here for Faculty Senate Rules and Regulations regarding Senators and Elections.

Click here to learn more about the Faculty Senate.

— Katherine Coady, On behalf of the Faculty Senate

Faculty Writing Group

Drake faculty members are invited to participate in a faculty writing group (FWG). The group will meet by zoom on Fridays from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. on the following dates:

  • Feb. 9
  • March 8
  • March 29
  • April 12
  • May 10

If you are interested in participating, please fill out this Google form so we know to send you the zoom link.

All Drake faculty are welcome to participate in the FWG. We have funds to provide a small stipend of approximately $150 to ten faculty who attend all group meetings. Should more than 10 individuals express interest, priority shall be given to 1) Those who participated in the previous FWGs, 2) Tenure-track faculty, and 3) Faculty who are members of under-represented groups. This writing group is supported by the Humanities Center and the Deputy Provost. People who can only attend some of the sessions are encouraged to participate if doing so helps their writing.

Our goals will be to help ourselves make progress on our scholarship during the semester, and do so more efficiently and enjoyably. In our meetings we will discuss our goals, plans, and progress on our writing, share how we organize our writing time, and discuss challenges in our writing. Depending on participant interest we will workshop each other’s work and write on site. If there’s interest, we can read a book on organizing an academic writing life such as Joli Jensen’s Write No Matter What. We’re pleased to say the group is in its sixth year and continues to be rewarding.

If you have questions, please contact Gabriel Ford at gabriel.ford@drake.edu and Nate Holdren at nate.holdren@drake.edu.

— Nate Holdren, Law, Politics & Society

Deadline approaching for Summer 2024 Uganda course

The Summer 2024 Uganda travel seminar is a three-week, six-credit course where Drake students visit Uganda to study sustainable development in sub-Saharan Africa. The course will take place in the first three weeks of Summer 2024.

The application for the program is available at drake-sa.terradotta.com and the application deadline is Feb. 1. For questions, contact Professor Heath Henderson at heath.henderson@drake.edu.

— Heath Henderson, Zimpleman College of Business

Question, Persuade, Refer (QPR) training Jan. 25

QPR stands for Question, Persuade, and Refer—three simple steps anyone can learn to help save a life from suicide. Just as people trained in CPR and the Heimlich Maneuver help save thousands of lives each year, people trained in QPR can recognize the warning signs of a suicide crisis and question, persuade, and refer someone to help.

A QPR training will be held Jan. 25 from 11–12 p.m. in the Olmsted Center, Rooms 310–311. Register to attend.

— Kayla Bell-Consolver, Student Health Center

Try a BUILD class this spring

Bulldogs United in Learning & Development (BUILD) provides faculty and staff learning opportunities throughout the academic year that address technical, soft, philosophical, and very practical skills.  BUILD is a great platform for learning new ideas as well as an opportunity to collaborate with others from across campus.

The Spring 2024 schedule is available for viewing and registration is open.  Please take a moment to check out the classes on the Drake HR website under Learning & Development.  Click on BUILD – Upcoming Sessions for the full list, including detailed descriptions.  There is an online registration link to a Qualtrics survey that makes signing up easy.

Most classes are only an hour in length, and many are facilitated by our own faculty and staff.  This is a great way to invest in yourself, support your colleagues, and take in the culture that Drake has to offer.

— Linda Feiden, Human Resources

True Blue: Nominations due March 1

Time is running out to submit a nomination for a True Blue Award. Submit your nomination by Friday, March 1, to make sure the individual or group you want to honor will be in the running for a coveted Sapphire Award in April. Nominations of any length are meaningful, and there aren’t any requirements about a specific number of paragraphs.

Read more about the award criteria and submit your nomination. Cheers to starting the New Year by reminding folks that they are appreciated.

— Betsy Wilson, On behalf of All Staff Council

Azure virtual desktop transition Jan. 29

As announced in the Dec. 5 edition of OnCampus, ITS has been preparing a successor to Citrix for remote access to desktops and applications called Azure Virtual Desktops (AVD). This solution provides a more modern client and desktop experience. The desktop is the latest version of Windows 11, and all applications are the most up-to-date versions.  

If you currently use Citrix to access applications or desktops, please transition to AVD by next Monday, Jan. 29. Below are instructions for installing the Remote Desktop client used to access AVD on Drake and personally owned computers. 

Installing Remote Desktop on a Drake-Owned Windows Computer (How-to) 

Installing Remote Desktop on a Personally-Owned Windows Computer (How-to) 

Installing Remote Desktop on a Drake-Owned Mac (How-to) 

Installing Remote Desktop on a Personally-Owned Mac (How-to) 

For additional guidance on using the Remote Desktop client, including ways to adjust display settings, please see the following article. 

Using Azure Virtual Desktops (How-to) 

Some resources will remain available in Citrix after Jan. 29. However, everyone is strongly encouraged to begin using Azure Virtual Desktops immediately. Citrix will soon be retired.  

If you have any issues using or would like assistance setting up AVD, please contact the Support Center online at service.drake.edu/its by phone at 515-271-3001.  

— Chris Mielke, ITS

New Drake Mobile ID coming Jan. 29. Here’s what you need to know.

The new Drake Mobile ID will be available to campus next week on Jan. 29.

The Drake Mobile ID is a new, secure way for you to use Drake services from the convenience of your phone or watch. In order to use the mobile ID, you must have a picture on file with Student Services. Next, you will download the Transact eAccounts application and add your Drake Mobile ID to your Apple or Samsung wallet. Then, simply hold your phone or watch to a card reader to scan your ID. No need to turn your device on or search for your card. 

In preparation for the launch on January 29, you can download the eAccounts app and set up Multifactor Authentication on your phone.

  1. Use this link from your mobile device to download the eAccounts Mobile App or search your phone’s app store for “Transact eAccounts.”
  2. Select “Drake University” and log in with your Drake credentials. Multifactor Authentication is required to log in to eAccounts. 

On Jan. 29 after the launch, you will be able to add your Drake Mobile ID to your Google, Samsung, or Apple wallet from the eAccounts app.

The Drake Mobile ID is subject to the same terms and conditions as a physical ID card. Any misuse, including sharing your credential with any other individual, is in violation of Drake University Student Conduct Code and will result in disciplinary action. The Drake Mobile ID uses the native NFC technology within each device that is also utilized for any other ID or payment function. Additionally, the ID credential stored within the Drake Mobile ID is encrypted and can only be read by readers deployed by Drake with the proper decryption. Participation in the Drake Mobile ID is not required but encouraged. You are not required to dispose of your physical ID card if you choose to participate in the Drake Mobile ID.

As with all major ITS projects, we have performed extensive testing through various testing groups and a successful soft launch in December. The testing groups included faculty, staff, and students using a variety of devices. We have successfully tested every card reader on campus with the Drake Mobile ID and anticipate a smooth transition.

Please contact the Student Services Center with questions or concerns by emailing studentservices@drake.edu, visiting the office located in Olmsted, or calling 515-271-2000. If you have technical issues or questions, please submit a Drake ID Issue ticket, call 515-271-3001, or visit the lower level of Carnegie Hall. 

— Scott Law, Public Safety & Operational Services