Please note the following schedule for payment processing, through the Finance Self-Service portal, to accommodate the winter break:

• Friday, Dec. 15, 2023 – All Payment requests (including wires) are due, with proper approvals, and need to be received by AP by the end of the business day. Requests received by this deadline will be processed for payment before Winter Break.
• Wednesday, Jan. 3, 2024 – Normal payment processing will resume this week.

The accounts payable office will be closed during winter break.

Thank you for your help coordinating requests to ensure we meet all needs during the upcoming season.

Please contact Jeni at ext. 4509, or jenifer.baugher@drake.edu, with any questions you may have.

— Jeni Baugher, Accounting Supervisor

The Office of Sustainability has discovered there is a demand for an interdepartmental program to extend the life of office supplies at Drake. In response, the office is planning to pilot an OSCAR (Office Supply Collection and Reuse) program.

This will keep supplies out of the landfill and save money by reducing the need to repurchase items.

A survey has been put together to gather feedback prior to the pilot.  Please consider filling it out if you have any ideas or input you would like to add. This should help ensure the pilot goes smoothly and is beneficial to those involved.  This survey is anonymous, so be sure to include your name if you would like me to respond to any comments or questions.

If you have supplies that you need to get rid of before the pilot, reach out to hannah.remke@drake.edu.

—Hannah Remke, Sustainability Coordinator 

The Ray Center and Drake Women’s Basketball Team are excited to again be hosting the CHARACTER COUNTS! Day with Drake Women’s Basketball game! Thousands of K-8 students will join us on Dec. 8 for a morning full of fun, character education, and basketball. The Ray Center is looking for volunteers from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. to help thousands of students on and off buses, find their assigned seats, carry in coolers with sack lunches, assist teachers, help with concessions, etc. If you are interested in volunteering for this fun event, please email Megan Wesselink at Megan.Wesselink@drake.edu. Please RSVP by the end of the day Thursday, Nov. 9, to receive a free game day T-shirt. Go Bulldogs!

— Megan Wesselink, The Robert D. & Billie Ray Center

Welcome back to the Student Success spotlight, an opportunity to recognize the people and resources that make a difference in Drake students’ lives. Each week, we’ll shine a light on the outstanding individuals and initiatives that contribute to the success and growth of our community.

This week features Claire Muselman, assistant professor of practice in leadership, HR, organizational behavior, and The Happiness Wall.

Regarding The Happiness Wall:
The Happiness Wall began as a heartfelt extension of a practice I introduced when I started teaching at Drake in 2019 – the “Tell me three good things since the last time we saw each other.” As an adjunct for a night class, my time with the students was limited. I yearned to create genuine connections and look for mutual connection points to foster a sense of belonging and trust. I continued this and still do in all of my classes. Now that I am full-time faculty, it is time to create something that will make the world awesome and expand the depth of this gratitude practice.

With the Happiness Wall & Three Good Things in the classroom, I aimed to:|
1. Make each student feel seen, heard, and acknowledged. For those moments, time is theirs. 100% undivided attention.
2. Cultivate a positive environment because a positive mindset is always more open to learning.
3. Emphasize the undeniable health benefits of gratitude, supported by numerous studies.
4. Learn about my students – their hobbies, values, and joys – fostering deeper human connections. This is a great way to learn about where they spend their time, talent, and treasures. <- Truly the only things that we have in life.
5. Set each student up for success by creating an optimistic culture wherein they feel encouraged to explore, make mistakes, and grow.
6. Control the classroom environment to ensure it is supportive and conducive to student growth.
7. Facilitate easy ice-breakers to kickstart each session.

When the pandemic hit, the importance of focusing on the good things and expressing gratitude became even more pronounced. The activity not only became a way to keep spirits high but also a beacon of resilience. I still feel this way even post-pandemic because of the mental health crisis we see all around us. Finding even the simplest of joys within a day can be a small sliver of hope someone needs to keep going.

Advice for others who are interested in this initiative:
It is simple and powerful. Start small, be consistent, and always come from a place of genuine interest in the well-being and success of your students or team.

Highlights:
Seeing students’ faces light up, witnessing their growth, and observing deeper bonds forming among peers have been the most heartwarming outcomes. The Happiness Wall has become more than just an activity; it is a testament to the strength and resilience of our community.

Specific wins of note:

– I had my first therapy session today.
– Saturday night in San Diego after the win was one of the best nights I’ve ever had.
– My last-second play made ESPN’s Sports Center Top 10.
– I watched my friend win the MVC Championships.
– I shared a meal of food with my roommates.
– The holiday season is approaching, meaning more time with friends & family.

My favorite things about teaching and advising Drake students:

It is witnessing their transformative journey – from being unsure freshmen to confident individuals ready to take on the world. Their passion, enthusiasm, and dedication inspire me every day.

The Drake Principal Center for Global Citizenship is pleased to announce that it is now accepting nominations from Drake faculty and staff for the 2024 Principal Global Citizenship Award, recognizing outstanding contributions to global engagement and internationalization of the campus and curriculum on the part of faculty or staff.

The selected awardee will receive a plaque and a stipend of up to $3,000. A screening committee, appointed by the Provost, reviews all nominations and makes recommendations to the Provost.

A letter of nomination should be submitted recommending an individual for the award and explaining the context and manner in which the nominator has come to know the faculty or staff member:

Pursuant to the University’s mission to prepare students for “responsible global citizenship,” this letter must also explain how the nominee has made outstanding contributions toward at least one of the following priority areas:

• High impact global learning
• A globally-engaged campus
• Access to global opportunities
• Enhanced global and intercultural competency (students)
• Increased global and intercultural capacity (faculty and staff)

The nominee must be a faculty or staff members in their fourth year of service at the University, at minimum. The nominee cannot have won this award within the past five years. Faculty and staff members who work directly for Global Engagement are ineligible.

Nominees who indicate a willingness to be considered will be invited to submit a CV and a statement discussing their contributions to the above goals. One or two additional letters of support from faculty, staff or students will be accepted; this is optional.

Any individual who was nominated for the award in the preceding year may be re-nominated if the nominator resubmits a letter offering the individual for consideration this year. A record of previous nominees is maintained for two years. If a faculty or staff member is re-nominated, the nominator will be invited to review the file from the previous year to ensure that the nomination details are current.

The window to submit nominations for this academic year is November 3, 2023, through February 11, 2024. Nomination letters should be submitted via this online form.

Questions may be directed to Annique Kiel, Executive Director for Global Engagement and International Programs.

— Hannah Sappenfield, Global Engagement

Drake Women’s Basketball takes on Iowa State University on Sunday, Nov. 12. This is also Faculty and Staff Appreciation Day for Drake Women’s Basketball. Drake Faculty and Staff can receive up to two complimentary general admission tickets to the game on Nov. 12.  You can also purchase additional general admission tickets at our group rate of $7 per ticket. Reserve your tickets.

— Ryan Severson, Athletics

A reminder to those teaching J-Term and Spring 2024 courses to indicate your textbook and course material adoptions in the FAST adoption tool by November 7, 2023. If you will not require students to purchase a textbook for a course, mark those courses as “No Text Required” in FAST so students don’t see a “To Be Determined” message when they purchase course materials. 

If you have questions about course material adoptions, contact the Drake University Bookstore Team at drake@ecampus.com.

— Andrew Welch, Cowles Library

Welcome back to the Student Success spotlight, an opportunity to recognize the people and resources that make a difference in Drake students’ lives. Each week, we’ll shine a light on the outstanding individuals and initiatives that contribute to the success and growth of our community.

This week features Dr. Natalie Adkins, Associate Professor of Marketing, and “Coffee Talks with Dr. A.”

A New Spin on Office Hours

Over the summer I read many articles about faculty development and one article contained a little nugget of inspiration. The author wrote that if a faculty member wants to increase the number of students stopping by during office hours, then they shouldn’t call them “office hours” and they shouldn’t be held in the faculty member’s office.  So, I created “Coffee Talks with Dr. A” on Wednesday mornings in the Starbucks’ area of Olmsted. I made a sign inviting students to come over and chat. Anyone can pull up a chair to chat—current, former, and potential students, a colleague from across campus, or anyone who wants to talk with me.

I still do reserve time in my actual office for anyone who needs to speak with me in confidence, prefers to come in either before or after class or is interested in seeing the various “marketing” related items on my shelves.

Differences in Students’ Levels of Participation and Engagement

So far, students’ reactions to the “Coffee Talks” have been positive. Several students drop by to say, “Hi,” update me on things going on in their lives, ask me questions about material covered in class, seek advice on course registrations or share news on career opportunities. Once, a First-Gen student, who I will most likely never have in class, asked if he could come talk with me. Absolutely! We talked about networking, our own definitions of success, things we both overcame to get here, and what motivates him to pursue excellence at Drake.

In the Marketing Principles classes I teach in the Zimpleman College of Business, I explain to students the “product” needs to be available where it is wanted or needed. When I hold “Coffee Talks with Dr. A” in Olmsted, my hope is students will see me as approachable, relatable, and offering something of value.

My Favorite Thing about Drake Students

Seeing the proverbial “light bulb” go off in students’ eyes brings me joy. I am passionate about learning; I want students to be passionate about learning, too (admittedly some are not there yet). My favorite thing about Drake students is they aspire to do well AND to do good in the world. This semester a former student spoke in one of my classes. He quoted the American rapper Tupac Shakur who is widely considered one of the most influential and successful rappers of all time. Tupac said,

 I’m not saying I’m gonna’ rule the world or I’m gonna’ change the world, but I guarantee you that I will spark the brain that will change the world.

I’m not a rapper but, I’m confident Drake graduates will change the world…part of my job is to help them get there.

Thank you, Natalie for your creativity!  Let’s celebrate all the ways our community supports student succcess.  Please share your student success spotlight ideas!  Email Melissa Sturm-Smith, Associate Provost for Student Success.

— Melissa Sturm-Smith, Academic Excellence and Student Success

Today is the last day to complete this year’s Survey of Administrative Services. It is completely anonymous and often takes less than five minutes to complete. You will only be asked to provide feedback on the areas you work with regularly. We need some more responses to match last years total, so please take the time today to provide input. If you have already, thank you!

— Nate Reagen, Office of the President

If you own a car–put this on your calendar.  Human Resources has added the class Auto Basics 101: How to Winterize Your Car and Change a Tire to the Fall BUILD schedule.

Iowa winters can be especially hard on your automobile.  One of your best defenses is to make sure your car is winterized for the season.  Attend this session to learn what you need to know to make sure your car is ready for winter AND what to do if you get a flat tire.

Join us on Wednesday, Nov. 15, from 11 a.m. to noon in the garage behind Facilities, Planning, and Management.  Terry Janssen, FPM mechanic, and Jessica Lang, director enrollment services, will be your guide.

Use the BUILD online registration form to sign up for this, and any other remaining Fall 2023 BUILD sessions.

— Linda Feiden, Human Resources