The University Bookstore is extending its hours this week (May 14-20) to accommodate for finals. Spring rental books are due by Friday, May 18.

Monday – Tuesday, 8 a.m. – 6 p.m.
Wednesday – Thursday, 8 a.m. – 7 p.m.
Friday, 8 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.
Saturday, 9 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.
Sunday, 11 a.m. – 4 p.m.

Your Drake ID is required for book buyback.

— Katie Wilz, University Bookstore

Two planned power outages will affect Harmon Fine Arts Center, Howard Hall, and the Dial Computer Center in the coming weeks.

The outages will occur on Thursday, May 24, from approximately 6 to 11 a.m. and Saturday, June 2, from approximately 7 a.m. to 1 p.m.

The power outages are necessary to complete work to strengthen Drake’s electrical infrastructure.

— Jolene Schmidt, Facilities Planning and Management

As the semester ends, Facilities Planning and Management begins another season of construction, renovation, and maintenance. The department plans to work on multiple projects this summer to improve campus. One of the largest is the completion of The Robert D. and Billie Ray Promenade, which is scheduled to open to students, faculty, and staff by July 1.

Other key summer projects include:

• Adding a private study or meeting space known as a zip space near Aliber Hall, Room 101.
• Beginning construction of the Gregory & Suzie Glazer Burt Club—scheduled to begin May 21.
• Renovating Cartwright Hall, which includes adding windows on the south side of the building.
• Renovating the main floor of Cowles Library.
• Arranging furniture in the Dial Computer Center and moving team members to other spaces.
• Completing a ventilation project in the Quads—slated to begin May 21.
• Installing new floor in The Knapp Center in early July.
• Replacing The Knapp Center gym lighting with LED fixtures.
• Upgrading the lettering and lighting of the Drake entrance signs.
• Installing fire sprinklers in Harvey Ingham, Olin, and Fitch halls.
• Finishing the basement in the University Communications office.
• Upgrading the basement in Meredith Hall.
• Installing sand volleyball courts.
• Upgrading the south entrance of Harvey Ingham Hall.

Construction updates and further details will be provided throughout the summer. For more information, contact Jolene Schmidt, director of capital projects, at jolene.schmidt@drake.edu.

— Jolene Schmidt, Facilities Planning and Management

Drake Volleyball is teaming up with The Sports Bra Project, which works to provide sports bras to women and girls who face a lack of access to sports bras whether to logistical, cultural, or financial factors, in hopes to break down the barrier of females participating in sports. The volleyball team will be traveling to Costa Rica in June where they will distribute the sports bras.

If you’d like to contribute to the cause, pick up a supportive sports bra in any size on your next run to a department or super store. Email leslie.flores@drake.edu to have the sports bra picked up from your office.

— Leslie Flores-Cloud, Athletics

For the remainder of the semester and through the summer months, Postal Operations will make only one delivery per day to each mail location on campus due to limited staffing. Each building will have either a morning or afternoon mail delivery time. The department will re-evaluate this delivery schedule once it is fully staffed to see if this is a practice that will continue going forward.

If you miss your pickup time and have an urgent package or letter, Postal Operations can work with you to try to accommodate your needs. Urgent mail can either be dropped off or picked up in the Olmsted Center, lower level. Mail must arrive by 2:45 p.m. to be processed that day. Postal Operations can be contacted at 515-271-3162 or campusmailoperations@drake.edu to make arrangements for additional assistance.

Thank you for your patience as we implement this new schedule. It is a small change that will have a big impact on our day.

— Drake Postal Operations

Cowles Library is giving away a $25 Amazon gift card to the person who takes the most creative photo of its bulldog statue, Virginia Woof. To be in the running, take a picture that includes Virginia Woof. Post it to Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram by 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, May 13. Use #VirginiaWoofBulldog in your post and tag Cowles Library (facebook.com/CowlesLibrary, twitter.com/cowleslib, and instagram.com/cowleslib). Be creative! The winning photo will be posted on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram on Monday, May 14. By entering the contest, you give Cowles Library permission to share your photo.

Congratulations to Angela Cornett, a first-year student majoring in Environmental Sustainability and Resilience, who submitted the chosen name for the statue, Virginia Woof.

— Carrie Dunham-LaGree, Cowles Library

Do you have extra non-perishable food items or personal items, such as toothbrushes, deodorant, or shampoo, lying around your dorm or house? Now is a great time to donate them to the Little Free Pantries. There are several drop off locations on campus:

• Students, drop off items in your residence hall.
• Faculty and staff, drop off items at your office mail location.
• Anyone is welcome to drop off items at the Law Library or at the pantries themselves.

On-campus pantries are located in the Olmsted Parking Lot and at the corner of 24th Street and Forest Avenue in front of the Sprout Garden. The pantry previously located at the Aliber Bus Stop on University Avenue has been relocated across the street to St. Kate’s, as that bus stop has been removed. Thank you for your contributions.

— Amanda Martin, Community Engaged Learning & Service

Drake’s All Staff Council Recognition Committee celebrated the Student Financial Planning team with a surprise cookie delivery (compliments of Drake Dining). Read the spotlight below to learn how the Office of Student Financial Planning makes Drake a better place.

Primary Function: The Office of Student Financial Planning  provides counseling and services designed to help students and their families meet the costs of financing an education at Drake University. Their office plays an integral role in the recruiting process. As part of the Office of Finance and Office of Student Financial Planning division, they continue to work toward their shared service standard goals:

Knowledgeable & Collaborative Spirit
Provide Solutions Not Excuses
Take Ownership
Foster an Innovative Environment

Professional & Ethical Behavior
Be Accountable as Team Members and Individuals
Value and Trust Others
Uphold Professional, Ethical, and Confidential Standards

Respectful & Responsive Interactions
Exceed Expectations
Be an Ambassador for Drake University
Recognize Contributions

Staff: There are 14 members of the Student Financial Planning team. Combined, these members total over 198 years of experience at Drake.

Longest serving team member: Denise Stowman, assistant director-grants, scholarships, and verification; 31 years at Drake.

Newest team member: Kayli Burnside, administrative assistant 1, is the information desk receptionist. Kayli started in February of 2016.

What are some recent challenges and accomplishments of note that others in the University might not know about?
Within the past two years, the financial aid processing timeline has changed drastically. The Free Application for Federal Student AID (FAFSA) is now available for families to complete beginning on Oct. 1 each year versus the prior date of Jan. 1. This has pushed our financial aid processing timeline up by three months, which requires earlier coordination of information with other offices on campus as well as software updates from Ellucian. Although this has been challenging, our office has been able to get financial aid packages to students in a very timely fashion. For 2018-2019, we already have close to 400 more financial aid award packages sent out to students than this time last year.

What else would you like to share with the Drake campus?
At the recent 50th Anniversary Celebration of our state professional organization, the Iowa Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (IASFAA), the Drake Office of Student Financial Planning was recognized in a very special way. While there are over 60 colleges and universities in our state, in the 50 years of IASFAA’s existence, three schools have provided 17 of IASFAA’s forty-six presidents. Drake was one of the recognized schools with five individuals serving as IASFAA president. Three of those five, Chris Ditter, Kristi Fuller, and Susan Ladd are members of the current Office of Student Financial Planning staff.

— Terri Howard, Drake Law School/All Staff Council

The City of Des Moines is planning on reconstructing 31^st Street between I-235 and Brattleboro Avenue this summer. The work is anticipated to start May 30 and be completed no later than Aug. 17. Detour signage will direct traffic off I-235 to the Martin Luther King, Jr. Parkway exit.  Additional local road traffic will be detoured around the road construction during this period.  More information about the project and schedule will be posted a couple weeks prior to the closure on the City of Des Moines Road and Trail Closures map.

— Kevin Moran, Facilities Planning and Management