The All In campaign is this week, May 10-11, noon to noon. The challenges have been posted, so see what hilarious tasks some familiar faces will be completing: www.drake.edu/all-in/. All In is an all-online fundraising campaign for The Drake Fund that includes both on- and off-campus solicitations. There are several “challenges” throughout the 24 hours, and when goals are met, faculty and staff from across campus will take part in video-recorded entertaining activities, such as performing an interpretive dance.

Remember to wear jeans and your Drake Blue both days to show off your school spirit. Join your colleagues for the last Drake Social of the academic year on May 10 in the Shivers Hospitality Suite from 4 to 6 p.m. Griff will make special appearance from 5 to 6 p.m. at the social.

You can participate in the following ways:

• Start by going All In and giving to The Drake Fund on May 10–11, noon to noon.
• Tell your friends why you’ve given to The Drake Fund using #DrakeALLIN on Twitter and Instagram.
• Get a new cover photo and profile picture from the All In Facebook page to show everyone you’re All In.
• Encourage your friends to give (via Facebook, Twitter, email, courier pigeon) so you can see your favorite people on campus complete the hilarious tasks we’ve set up for them.

—Niki Smith, Digital Media Strategist

Information Technology Services staff has recently completed classroom technology updates in Harvey Ingham 004 and Medbury 116. They are currently working on Olin 343 and will be starting work in Howard 111 at the end of May.

ITS will also be updating the audio and video systems in Sheslow Auditorium in July. Because of scheduling, these upgrades will be made in two phases, from July 5 to 12 and then again from July 14 to 29. Updates to these projects will be regularly posted on its.drake.edu/major-projects.

—Carla Herling, IT Communications Manager

The Graduation Rate Report is online now! Want information on the graduation rate?  You can find it on the OIRA website. This includes information about the four- and six-year graduation rate, how we compare to our peers, and retention rates. As always, if you need anything from OIRA, please fill out the Request for Information form on our site.

—Sandra Harris, Administrative Assistant 2

May Commencement Ceremonies

The commencement ceremonies for those students graduating at the end of this semester will be held in the Knapp Center on Saturday, May 15 (law) and Sunday, May 15 (undergraduate and graduate), at the times listed below.   Out of respect for the students who have earned their degrees, I strongly encourage you to attend the appropriate event. 

Law:  Saturday, May 14, 7 p.m.

Undergraduate, Sunday, May 15, 10 a.m.

Graduate:  Sunday, May 15, 2 p.m.

If you are planning on attending the undergraduate and/or graduate ceremonies, please RSVP—no later than noon, Tuesday, May 10—to http://2016springcommencementregistration.eventbrite.com

Because the Law School has a separate ceremony, Law faculty should notify your dean’s office directly. 

Learning Symposium

I am pleased to invite you to register for the 2016 Drake University Learning Symposium. There is an exciting array of sessions—from creating inclusive working and learning environments to language across the curriculum, intercultural development inventory, and examining the lived experiences of students of color at Drake, among several others.  The hardest part of registration will be limiting yourself to just two sessions. If you are needing a break from the end of the semester activities, please take 5-10 minutes to register. The Learning Symposium is sponsored through a partnership with the Sheraton West Des Moines and hosted by the Office of the Provost.  

2016 Learning Symposium: “Inclusive Excellence ”
August 19 , 8 a.m.–3 p.m.
Sheraton West Des Moines—1800 50th Street, West Des Moines

Register and select the sessions you would like to attend—space is limited by the size of the rooms: https://2016drakelearningsymposium.eventbrite.com

 We hope you join us at the Symposium to welcome our new provost into the learning community that is Drake University. 

Provost Mobile Office Hour 

Due to the number of events next week, I will be unable to hold my roaming office hour.  My next scheduled mobile office hour is Tuesday, May 3, 10:30 a.m.–noon, Cowles Cafe.

—Joe Lenz, Interim Provost

Director of Sponsored Programs
As you will remember, last fall Jayne Smith resigned her position as director of sponsored programs. Since that time we have conducted a national search for a new director. I am delighted to announce that Mary Wohlford will be the new director of the Office of Sponsored Programs. She has 31 years of experience in higher education administration, and comes to Drake from The Registry, the nation’s premier interim higher education executive search firm. Her most recent assignment for them was as associate vice provost at Suffolk University where, among other things, she worked to rapidly develop extramural funding plans in each of the university’s three colleges and across the institution, dramatically increasing proposal development from $2 million per year to $35 million per year.

She has extensive experience in grants management and sponsored programs in a variety of universities, including Suffolk, Albany State University, Kansas City University, and Des Moines University. She has been a faculty member in health science related fields at Kansas City University; Des Moines University, where she was a tenured associate professor in health administration and public health; and Indian Hills Community College. She has a B.S. in health information management from Stephens College, an M.S. in health care administration from Des Moines University, an M.A. in industrial design and technology from the University of Iowa, and a Ph.D. in educational leadership and policy studies from Iowa State University. Mary will assume her responsibilities at Drake on July 1. I want to thank Art Sanders and the members of the search committee for their good work in concluding a successful search.

Provost Mobile Office Hour
You can find me this week on Tuesday, April 19, 9:30-10:30 a.m., in the Cowles coffee shop. No appointments needed.

—Joe Lenz, Interim Provost

The Harmon Fine Arts Center building hours will be limited to all faculty, staff, and students April 22-24. The south entrance doors will not be accessible to anyone during the hours listed below:

• Friday, April 22, 5–10 p.m.
• Saturday, April 23, 8 a.m.–6:30 p.m.
• Sunday, April 24, 8 a.m.–6:30 p.m.

The north doors will only be accessible to faculty, students, and staff who have Fine Arts Late Hours Access. If you have any questions, please contact Drake Public Safety at 271-2222. The Fine Arts Box Office will be closed during this weekend. To purchase tickets to The Wild Party, please go to www.drake.edu/theatre/productions/fineartsboxoffice.

—Alina Grimm, Fine Arts Coordinator

US Bank has maintained an ATM in the outer lobby of the Olmsted Center for several years. The activity level has been significantly declining, to the point that a $300 monthly fee will be assessed to Drake to keep the ATM. The bank has agreed to keep the ATM in Olmsted for free if the deposit function is disabled; this means that we can use the machine to withdraw money, but they won’t be stopping by to pick up deposits from the machine.  As an alternative, there is an ATM that does accept deposits from US Bank customers at the US Bank location on 25th Street right next to Drake Public Safety. We are interested in your opinion about this potential change in ATM services. Please email nancy.crittenden@drake.edu with your comments by April 27.

—Nancy Crittenden, Associate Treasurer

If you are interested in helping with this historic event April 28–30, please go online to check out our available opportunities. Questions? Contact Shannon Saunders at shannon.saunders@drake.edu. With your help, this will be another successful year for the Drake Relays!

—Shannon Saunders, Special Assistant to Athletic Director

Due to multiple events on campus and increased community presence for the Drake Relays, it is necessary to establish the following parking restrictions for Drake parking lots from April 24 to May 2. Please review the restrictions listed below—your cooperation is greatly appreciated.

Please note: All residential parking lots are still under 24-hour residential permit only restrictions.

Sunday, April 24– Monday, May 2: Reserved—No Parking: Lot #17 (Facilities, 27/Clark)— Reserved for placement and use as Relays athlete warm-up area.

Tuesday, April 26, 10 p.m.–Monday, May 2, 4 p.m.: Reserved—No Parking: Lot 18 South (Studio Arts) and Lot 18 North (West Stadium)

Wednesday, April 27, 8 a.m.–Sunday, May 1, 8 a.m.: Limited Parking—North half of Olmsted Lot #16

Thursday, April 28, 11 a.m.–Saturday, April 30, 6 p.m.: Parking Lots 1 and 2 will be pay lots (Drake Permits valid at no charge until 4 p.m. on Friday in Lot 1).

In addition, on Thursday, April 28, we will be reserving and monitoring lot 2 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. for the president’s inauguration.

City Street Closures
Thursday, April 28–Saturday, April 30: 27th Street will be shut down for bus traffic from Forest Avenue to Clark Street.

Saturday, April 30: Meek Street will be shut down for the Hammer Throw.

—Scott Law, Director, Drake Public Safety