The Drake Constitutional Law Center will host the 2025 Constitutional Law Symposium on Saturday, March 29, from 8:30 a.m. – 1 p.m. The program will be delivered in Cartwright Hall, room 213, or virtually via Zoom. The annual Constitutional Law Symposium invites scholars, judges, and lawyers from across the country to discuss a timely constitutional issue. Speakers include:

Penelope Andrews, John Marshall Harlan Professor of Law and director, Racial Justice Project, New York Law School

Carlos Bernal, professor of law, University of Dayton School of Law and former Justice of the Columbia Constitutional Court

Stephen Vladeck, professor of law, Georgetown University Law Center

Kieran Williams, associate professor and co-chair, Department of Political Science, Drake University

“This Symposium seeks to examine the question of Presidential immunity in democracies globally,” said Professor Mark Kende, the Director of the Drake Constitutional Law Center. “There are certain countries, for example like Brazil, where a losing incumbent is often prosecuted by the winner. This is chaotic and not very democratic. In other countries, like France, Presidents are untouchable, based on supposed democratic necessity. The goal of comparing these different countries and approaches is to see what can be learned about the best frameworks for Presidential immunity.”

Iowa Continuing Legal Education credit applied for and pending. This event is open to the public and free for Drake Law students, faculty/staff, alumni, and all Drake undergrad students. Register online here.

The proceedings are published in an upcoming issue of the Drake Law Review. Registrants may pre-order a copy for $15.

— Taylor Johnson, Law School

Let’s work together to bring attention to what makes Iowa great—our people! Our Character Awards highlight Iowa’s role models, and you can help make sure the deserving individuals/organizations in your life are recognized.

Your nomination makes a big impact! By submitting our quick and easy nomination form, you’re helping deserving Iowans receive meaningful recognition.

Nominate a deserving person or group for a 2025 Iowa Character Award by May 2, 2025.

Get started on your nomination at IowaCharacterAwards.org.

— Amy Smit, Robert D. & Billie Ray Center

The 2025 Harkin On Wellness Symposium will take place April 16, 2025, focusing on the Future of Clean Water. This year’s theme was chosen to highlight and synthesize the progress being made around the country in protecting and improving water quality through community engagement, environmental education, watershed protection, water conservation initiatives, and innovative water quality monitoring programs.

Clean water is fundamental to public health and environmental sustainability and is increasingly under threat from climate change and other human-caused risks. Community-based initiatives that protect and improve water quality have been shown to have lasting, positive impacts on both human and environmental health. Furthermore, programs that engage communities in hands-on water quality improvement and conservation can foster environmental stewardship that benefits current and future generations.

This year’s event will recognize groups working to preserve clean water, including nonprofit organizations, environmental groups, and community organizations, for the tremendous role they play in protecting this vital resource.

Learn more and register here!

This spring, Drake Dining Services wants to hear from you! Fill out our survey, and you’ll automatically be entered to win one of three $100 Dining Dollar Prizes!

Our goal at Drake Dining Services is to create exceptional experiences every day. Your feedback is vital as we continue to evolve the dining program, and we invite you to take just a few short minutes to share your experience. The Customer Satisfaction Survey allows us to capture feedback on critical areas, such as food quality, variety, availability of healthy items, and customer service. In return, you will be entered to win one of three $100 Dining Dollar Prizes. The survey will be open from March 3rd to March 15th.

Get started by clicking: https://imo.cx/1S1bHVqE

We look forward to hearing from you. Thank you for helping us build a better dining program!

— Nicholas Mussman, Dining Services

Registration for the Drake Road Races and Grand Blue Mile, presented by Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield, is open, and you can save by using these exclusive discount codes! But don’t wait—these codes expire on April 1, so make sure to register before then to secure the lower prices.

• 5k – Use code 2025Drake5k
• 10k – Use code 2025Drake10k
• Half Marathon – Use code 2025DrakeHalf

Also, prices for the Grand Blue Mile, presented by Wellmark, will increase on April 1, so now’s the time to sign up and lock in the current rates before they go up!

Whether you’re running the 5k, 10k, Half Marathon or the mile, don’t miss your chance to be part of America’s Athletic Classic!

— Ben Huftalin, Drake Relays

Cowles Library is proud to partner with the American Heart Association as part of the Libraries with Heart initiative.

Thanks to generous funding from the Helmsley Foundation, students, staff, faculty, and community members can now check out self-measure blood pressure devices, access educational resources, and take proactive steps toward heart health. Need additional support? Broadlawns Community Clinic at Drake University is available for follow-up care.

Cowles Library is more than a place for books—we’re a hub for access. From blood pressure monitors to our sensory collection and other non-traditional items in our Library of Things, we offer a variety of resources to support your learning, wellness, and exploration. Stop by and see what you can discover.

— Joanna Stankiewicz, Cowles Library

Underground Fitness
March 17–20: 10 am – 6 pm
March 21: 10 am – 4 pm
March 22–23: CLOSED

Bell Center
March 17–23: CLOSED

Tennis Center
March 17–23: CLOSED

ITS staff will be performing maintenance on our Oracle databases on Sunday, March 23, between 7–9 a.m. During this time, Drake systems including Self Service, Banner, ProcessMaker, eTranscripts, and Touchnet may be unavailable. This work is necessary to maintain the security of University data.

If you experience issues after the maintenance is complete, contact the ITS Support Center for help by visiting service.drake.edu/its, calling 515-271-3001, or visiting the lower level of Carnegie Hall.

To see the full 2025 maintenance schedule, visit drake.edu/its/maintenanceschedule.

— Becky Klein, ITS

The Summer and Fall 2025 schedule of classes and related registration information is available online. Registration begins Monday, April 7.

View registration information, including the registration time table that shows when you become eligible to register. View the schedule of classes.

Some courses will be temporarily reserved for students who have declared a certain field-of-study (major, minor, concentration, or endorsement). On Monday, April 21^st, those reservations will be removed. Note that some courses have restrictions that are permanent.

If you are an undergraduate or pharmacy student intending to make any changes to your field-of-study and have those changes take effect before registration begins, file your changes via the change of record request no later than 4:30 p.m. on Monday, March 31^st. Requests submitted after this date may be delayed.

The change of record request can be found by navigating to myDrake, selecting Self-Service under commonly used apps, and clicking on the link for the change of record request under Student Records.

— Ryan Trump, Registrar

Drake Law School is pleased to welcome Todd Pettys as this year’s Judge James Grant Constitution Lecture Series speaker on Thursday, April 10, from 3-4 p.m. in Cartwright Hall, Room 213.

Todd Pettys serves as Interim Dean and Professor of Law at the University of Iowa College of Law where he teaches courses in constitutional law, federal courts, and a seminar on pending supreme court cases. Before joining the faculty at Iowa, he was an attorney with Perkins Coie, LLP, in Seattle, Washington. Prior to that, he served as a law clerk for Judge Francis Murnaghan, Jr., of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. Pettys’ recent publications include “Serious Value, Prurient Interest, and ‘Obscene’ Books in the Hands of Children,” in the William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal (2023), “Constructing Students’ Speech Rights, from College Admissions to Professional Schools” in the San Diego Law Review (2022), and “Hostile Learning Environments, the First Amendment, and Public Higher Education” in the Connecticut Law Review (2022). He has appeared on Iowa Public Radio, Bloomberg Law, and local media outlets, discussing Supreme Court cases and other legal developments.

For more information and to register, visit
drake.edu/conlaw/events. This program is free and open to the public. Iowa Continuing Legal Education Credit pending approval.

— Taylor Johnson, Law School