Last Thursday and Friday, more than 1,200 Bulldogs went All In for Drake, resulting in our most successful 24-hour challenge yet!

Thank you to all of the faculty, staff, and students who came together for All In. Whether you generously contributed, attended an event, of helped spread the word, your involvement helped to raise more than $267,000 in just 24 hours. This includes a $50,000 challenge gift awarded by a generous group of alumni. It’s amazing to see what we can accomplish when we come together to support our Drake family.

Gifts made during All In benefit all areas of campus and will be put to work to strengthen the University. Thank you, again, to all who contributed to this achievement. Your support makes a difference in the lives of our students, faculty, and staff today and for years to come.

If you missed any of the memorable and inspiring videos posted on the All In Facebook page, be sure to take a look.

 2018 All In videos

Thanks for going All In
853 donors
500 donors
400 donors
All In Trivia
Bulldog Friends Forever
Go All In for Drake!

— Becca Widmer, University Advancement

Beginning fiscal year 2019, faculty, staff, and students will see a three-year graduated rate increase for on-campus parking.

Parking permit rate increases for faculty, staff, and students has remained flat over the past 10 years, while expenses for the maintenance and operation of parking facilities has continued to rise. The increase is designed to help realign Drake’s parking rate structure with the cost to properly maintain, repair, and provision its parking operations.

The new annual and semester pricing structure is as follows. Annual rates are listed first with semester rates in parentheses.

These rates were carefully developed by the University Parking Committee along with the President’s Council. Drake continuously strives to manage cost structure, while maintaining a thoughtful plan for improving the safety and aesthetics of its parking lots and transportation services.

Faculty, staff, and students can purchase permits by logging into blueView, clicking the My Drake Account Tab, and then selecting Register for Drake Parking Tag.

As a reminder, Drake offers faculty, staff, and students a wide variety of alternative transportation options, including free DART bus rides all over Des Moines with presentation of a Drake ID Card. For up-to-date bus times, download the RideTime Transit App. In addition, faculty, staff, and students receive a discounted rate to ride BCycle bicycles. There are four BCycle stations close to campus; bikes are $3 per trip or $20 per year with unlimited 60-minute rides.

For evening and weekend transit near campus, Drake operates its own evening bus system that runs throughout the fall and spring semesters. Safe Ride is free of charge to students, faculty, and staff. Coming this fall, Drake, in partnership with Enterprise, is bringing WeCar to campus. WeCar is a car-sharing program that allows members to rent and use a vehicle 24/7. Cars will be parked at dedicated spots near campus, and members can rent a vehicle anytime and then return it to where they picked it up.

Public Safety continues to review and improve alternative transportation options to better serve the Drake community. For questions regarding parking rates or transportation options, contact Scott Law, executive director of campus public safety and operational services, at scott.law@drake.edu.

— Scott Law, Campus Public Safety & Operational Services

Today is National Service Recognition Day, and Community Engaged Learning & Service would like to recognize and thank the national service members serving on Drake’s campus. The following first-year Drake students are serving as Iowa College AmeriCorps Program members in the Engaged Citizen Corps, in which they are each doing a service internship with a local non-profit organization: Ashlie Bunten, Katie Carlton, Tate Clemen, Danielle Dircks, Brittany Freeman, Jamie Rusan, Hannah Smith, and Sabrina Uddin. In addition, Zachary Mecham is serving as a full-time AmeriCorps VISTA member with the Harkin Institute. We also thank the dozens of Drake alumni who have served or are currently serving.

Through partnerships with schools, faith-based groups, non-profits, and local agencies, national service members are embedded within the communities they serve, using their ingenuity and training to make a tangible, lasting impact. If you would like to learn more about national service opportunities, visit https://www.nationalservice.gov/ or check out the Post-Graduate Service Opportunity Panel on Wednesday, April 18, from 7 to 8 p.m. on the Pomerantz Stage.

—Amanda Martin, Community Engaged Learning & Service

Join the continued ascent of Drake men’s basketball under new head coach Darian DeVries by placing your season ticket deposits for the 2018–2019 season now. Current and/or prospective season ticket holders, make your $50 per seat non-refundable deposit now to secure your place at The Knapp Center next season. All fans who place a deposit prior to April 20 will receive a 1968–1969 Drake basketball vintage T-shirt in honor of the team’s 50th anniversary Final Four appearance.

To secure your season tickets, a deposit of $50 per seat is required and will be applied to your season ticket balance. At the time of seat selection, you will have the option to pay for your tickets in full or enroll in a payment plan. Drake faculty and staff also qualify for discounted season tickets.

Deposits can be made at The Knapp Center Ticket Office, by calling 515-271-3647 or visiting www.draketix.com.

— Ryan Harris, Athletics

1 Million Cups Des Moines is taking a field trip to Drake. The Entrepreneurship Centers are hosting the startup and entrepreneurial community at Patty’s Place in the Turner Jazz Center at 8 a.m. on Wednesday, April 4. There will be fresh coffee, networking, and presentations by Adjunct Instructor Tobi Parks of Station 1 Records and McKenna Haase of Team Haase Racing. For questions, email jpec@drake.edu.

—Stephanie Cardwell, Entrepreneurship Centers

Cowles Library is hosting a contest to name its beloved bulldog statue. Submit a name idea by 11:59 p.m. on Wednesday, April 11. Public voting for the winning name will take place the week of April 16. The winner will be unveiled on Friday, April 27. The person who submits the chosen name will win a $25 Amazon gift card.

— Carrie Dunham-LaGree, Cowles Library

During the 2017–2018 academic year, the Office of Institutional Research & Assessment held two Data to Action Workshops aimed at turning data into more meaningful action steps and inviting the campus to think about ways that they can use the data. Please see our website for additional information and notes from the workshops that focused on the first year experience and diversity and inclusion.

— Kevin Saunders, Office of Institutional Research & Assessment

Two current policies entitled, Contract and Legal Service Authority and Executive Purchasing are under review to be revised and combined. A new draft policy, Approval Authority Policy, is posted on the University Policy Library website for review and comment. The revised policy includes both contracts and transactions. Budget managers are now included and will be able to sign contracts and transactions under a certain threshold. Many of the other revisions expound on current practices. This policy is subject to approval by the Drake University Board of Trustees and will be presented at their April meeting.

In compliance with Drake’s Policy Development, Approval and Communication policy, the two-week review period will be through April 17. Please take a moment to review the revised Approval Authority policy. Any comments or concerns regarding the policy may be forwarded to dupolicies@drake.edu for consideration.

— Teresa Krejci, Finance and Administration

The 109th Drake Relays presented by Hy-Vee is right around the corner and we need you to help make it a success. Register to volunteer and invite your friends and family to join. Volunteers receive a free T-shirt, a free meal (if working over lunch), and free entry to the action. Volunteer opportunities begin Saturday, April 21, and run all week long. We hope to see you on the Blue Oval!

— Shannon Saunders, Athletics

As part of Drake’s Commitment to the Campus Compact Civic Action Plan, the University created a centralized website for Drake’s Community Engagement efforts. The site, drake.edu/community, will serve as a landing page for the Office of Community Engaged Learning and Office of Neighborhood and Community Relations. The campus community can find volunteer opportunities on the website.

— Renee Sedlacek, Community Engaged Learning & Service