The Adams Leadership Convocation is an annual, campus-wide event that celebrates the achievements of student leaders and organizations at Drake University. As part of this special ceremony, please consider nominating Drake students and student organizations who’ve exhibited strong leadership and excellence throughout the 2019–2020 academic year. Nominations can be submitted by any Drake student, faculty, or staff member. View a full list of awards and the nomination form here. Nominations are due April 9, 2020, at 11:59 p.m.

In addition to submitting your nominations, please save the date for this year’s Adams Leadership Convocation on Friday, May 1, at 1 p.m. in Sheslow Auditorium (appetizer reception following). If you have any questions, please contact Kristin Economos, director of student leadership programs, at kristin.economos@drake.edu.

— Kristin Economos, Office of Student Involvement and Leadership

Please note the following hours of operation for the University Bookstore during spring break:

Friday, March 13: 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.
Saturday, March 14: CLOSED
Monday–Friday, March 16–20: 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.
Saturday, March 21: 11 a.m. – 4 p.m.

— Katie Wilz, University Bookstore

ITS is upgrading the Oracle Database environment on Sunday, March 22, from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. During this time, Ethos Single Sign-On, myDrake, Banner 9 Admin Pages, MyDUSIS, eTranscripts, and many other Drake applications will be unavailable. The upgrade is necessary as the current version of our Oracle Database environment is nearing its end of life for support.

If you experience issues outside of this window, please call the Support Center at 515-271-3001 or visit https://service.drake.edu to report your issue. Thank you for your patience as we continue to strive to provide superior service.

— Carla Herling, IT Communications Manager

Attention: The Olmsted lot will be closed Friday, March 6, from 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. for an Admissions visit. Zone 1 pass holders are welcome to park in any other commuter lot except for the Red, Zone 3 lot. We apologize for the inconvenience.

— Scott Law, Public Safety

The Drake Men’s Basketball team plays Illinois State on Thursday, March 5, at 6 p.m. in the first round of the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament. If (when) they win, they’ll advance to take on UNI at 12 p.m. on Friday, March 6. Plan to attend a watch party to cheer on the Bulldogs on Friday at noon in the Shiver’s Courtside Club. Feel free to bring your lunch and enjoy the game. Popcorn will be provided by Drake Athletics. Go Bulldogs!

— Shannon Saunders, Athletics

The J-Term Fair is Tuesday, March 10, from 4–6:15 p.m. This is an opportunity to learn everything about J-Term 2021.  When Griff heard about it, he said he would come at the beginning (4–4:30 p.m.) to find out about all the opportunities that will be available next J-Term.  For more information go to: drake.edu/dc/j-termexperience/.

— Arthur Sanders, Associate Provost

The National Weather Service will conduct a statewide tornado drill on Wednesday, March 25. A test tornado watch will be issued around 10 a.m. followed by a test tornado warning around 10:15 a.m., in which sirens will sound. In the event of actual severe weather during the drill, backup days are scheduled for March 26 and 27.

The statewide drill allows us to test our planning and readiness and practice seeking appropriate shelter in case of a real tornado. Faculty, staff, and students should participate in the drill by following campus severe weather plans and going to the lowest level of their building away from doorways and windows. View a list of designated severe weather shelters.

Learn what actions to take when a tornado hits, whether you are outside in a manufactured home or in a building.

Wherever you are, remember that most injuries associated with high winds are from flying debris, so protect your head.

Tornado facts:

• Tornadoes may strike quickly, with little or no warning.
• Funnel clouds usually last less than 10 minutes before dissipating, and many only last several seconds. On rare occasion, cyclones can last for over an hour.
• Tornadoes may appear nearly transparent until dust and debris are picked up or a cloud forms in the funnel.
• The average tornado moves southwest to northeast, but tornadoes have been known to move in any direction.
• The average forward speed of a tornado is 30 mph, but may vary from stationary to 70 mph.
• Damage paths of tornadoes can be in excess of one mile wide and 50 miles long.
• Tornadoes are most likely to occur between 3 p.m. and 9 p.m., but can occur at any time.

Tornado watch: Tornadoes are possible. Remain alert for approaching storms. Watch the sky and stay tuned to the NOAA Weather Radio, commercial radio, or television for information.

Tornado Warning: A tornado has been sighted or indicated by weather radar. Seek shelter immediately.

— Chris Nickell, Environmental Health and Safety

Some significant changes are in the works for Drake Dining.  Beginning in April, improvements to Hubbell Dining Hall will begin, impacting the kitchen and serving areas for both Hubbell South and Quad Creek. The project will be complete by the start of the 2020–2021 academic year. The refresh of Hubbell will complement a meal plan redesign, including the introduction of an unlimited dining meal plans. The unlimited plan options allow for unlimited trips to Hubbell to accommodate busy student schedules and a variety of food preferences.

The unlimited meal plan option, as well as new plan options with increased flex dollars, were developed after two years of study and gathering feedback from students. Several focus groups during the 2018–2019 academic year were instrumental in bringing a fully licensed Starbucks to campus. Follow up meetings with students in 2019 helped inform the new meal plan options.

Watch for more information about the Hubbell Dining Hall update and schedule.

— Kelly Foster, Finance and Administration

The Summer 2020, Fall 2020, and J-Term 2021 schedule of classes and related registration information is available online. Registration for all three terms begins Monday, April 6.

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 20, those reservations will be removed. Note that some coursed 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, you must file your changes at your dean’s office no later than 4:30 p.m. on Monday, March 30. Requests submitted after this date may not be accommodated until Wednesday, April 22.

For specific questions, including how to change your field of study, please contact your dean’s office.

— Kevin Moenkhaus, Office of the Registrar