Category Archives: For Staff Archive

February True Blue awards

True Blue: Terri Howard
Terri Howard, administrative assistant in the Drake Law School dean’s office, was recognized in February with a Called to be True Blue award from All Staff Council. Her nominator, Law School Dean Jerry Anderson, described her as the “go-to” person for everything that needs to be done:

“Terri gets involved in any event that any of our professors or centers are planning (which happens pretty much weekly). She could tell people it’s not her job. But instead she stays late, comes in early, (and) does whatever it takes to bring off the event and make the Law School and the University look good. Every alum, every visitor, every faculty or staff member who has ever come in contact with Terri comes away with a good impression because she is not only efficient, intelligent, and capable; she is also unfailingly friendly and kind.”

True Blue: Kevin Saunders
On March 2, Kevin Saunders, director of institutional research and academic assessment, was surprised with a True Blue award for his work leading the Office of Institutional Research. He was nominated by Chief of Staff Nate Reagen, who stated in his nomination:

“Kevin is the backbone to so much of what happens at Drake University. His knowledge, history, and understanding of University operations is critical to our collective success. He has a willingness to dive into many situations, and the institutional data he supports is extremely helpful in many ways.”

Added Associate Provost Art Sanders: “The push toward data-driven decision-making and continuous improvement has made the unit Kevin runs central to all that we do. He is gracious and kind to all who approach him or his unit for guidance or for information.”

Make your own nomination!
The Called to be True Blue Award recognizes Drake staff members and teams who epitomize the values of leadership, teamwork, integrity, and commitment to the University. If this sound like someone you know, please nominate them at www.drake.edu/asc/recognition. Recipients are automatically in the running to win a year-end Sapphire Award, the highest staff recognition at Drake.

—All Staff Council Recognition Committee

Scholarship of Teaching and Learning lunch

The second of our spring semester Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) lunches is Friday, March 10, at noon in TMR 133 (lower level of Olmsted). These discussions are opportunities for those engaged in SoTL projects at any level—from just thinking about starting one, to almost complete—or those simply curious about SoTL to share ideas, seek advice, or ask questions of colleagues engaged in this process. If you would like us to provide lunch for you, please register by Wednesday, March 8, at 10 a.m. at: http://tinyurl.com/SoTLLunchMarch  For more information, contact arthur.sanders@drake.edu.

—Art Sanders, Associate Provost

Staff drawing winners

Congratulations to the winners of our staff member drawing, which took place following the Feb. 14 $5 Sodexo Faculty/Staff Appreciation Lunch:

  • Octavio Alvarado, Facilities Planning & Management
  • Umihana Omerhodzic, Facilities Planning & Management
  • Mitchell Stearns, Institutional Research
  • Shannon Saunders, Athletics

Recipients received selected Drake-branded items including a stainless-steel water bottle, T-shirt, plush bulldog, and playing cards. Join us for the next appreciation lunch on March 21, and find the All Staff Council table to put your name in for more prizes donated by campus partners.

—All Staff Council Recognition Committee

Global service-learning grant available

Three grants are available for global service-learning program development. Funding is awarded on a rolling basis until  June 30.

  1. Fellow Grant to develop global service-learning (GSL) programming. Funding to develop GSL partnerships or develop innovative GSL experiences. Faculty and staff can apply. Up to $9,000 for travel and $750 for release time.
  2. Match Grant for GSL project/course. Faculty, staff, and students can apply. Up to $500 toward project implementation resource needs.
  3. Mini Grants for GSL courses and cocurricular experiences. Faculty, staff, and students can apply. Up to $200 toward GSL resource needs.

Please visit this site for more information on each opportunity and how to apply.

—Amanda Martin, Community Engagement and Service-Learning

Instructors: Submit course materials requests for summer

It’s time to submit your course material requests for summer. The deadline for submitting your materials is March 15. Receiving your list of materials as soon as possible allows us to source the most affordable books for your students and provide top dollar for students selling books back at the end of this term. With our Online Adoption Tool, selecting your course materials is fast and easy.

Access the Online Adoption Tool

  1. Visit www.drake.bkstr.com
  2. Go to Books in the top navigation, and under the Information heading, click Online Adoptions.
  3. If you need additional training to use the Online Adoption Tool, please contact me.

Are You a New User?

  1. Follow the steps listed above.
  2. Click on New? Register Here and complete the required fields.
  3. Enter 1623 in the Bookstore Supplied Password field.

Download the 6 Ways to Help Students Save on Textbooks to learn about Follett’s different types of course material purchasing options. If you have any questions about the Online Adoption Tool or how to save students money, please contact me anytime.

—Donna Hallstrom, Drake Bookstore

Stand Up, Speak Up: Drake Women & Leadership

Stand Up, Speak Up: Drake Women & Leadership is a symposium designed to engage female faculty and staff across campus and help them develop their leadership skills. Held on March 10, there are two workshop sessions as well as lunch and post-event networking. Participants are encouraged to stay for all or part of the day as schedules permit but pre-registration is required. Complimentary lunch is provided to registered participants.

Schedule

10 a.m.–Registration
10:15–Welcome
10:30–Session: Owning and Claiming the Powerful You with Sarah Noll Wilson
12 p.m.–Lunch: Conversity!
1:30–Session: Five Factors of Strength: Personality, Leadership, and Capitalizing on “You” with Cris Wildermuth
3–4 p.m.–Ice Cream Social & Networking

As an added bonus, attendees will receive credit toward the BUILD certificate. Seating is limited, so register today!

Detailed session information and registration link: https://drakewomenlead2017.eventbrite.com

—Stephanie Cardwell, Symposium Co-chair

Contracts reminder

The Office of Finance and Administration wants to remind faculty and staff of the resources available for contracts and legal services. There is an informational contracting link on the Office of Finance and Administration website. The site provides the following resources:

  • Contracting policy
  • Contract Overview
  • Contract Process – Approval and Retention
  • Checklists
  • Independent Contractor Determination
  • Templates

If you are entering into a new contract and are unsure of what to look for, refer to the checklist. If you are still unsure on some terms and/or language, you can email ducontracts@drake.edu, and we can help you through the process.

Please send all fully executed contracts to ducontracts@drake.edu so we can enter them in our contracting database. Those that can be kept at the department level are the following: independent contractor agreements, speakers, entertainers, artists, transportation, and hotels. These will need to be kept in your respected offices for a minimum of three years. They can be scanned copies.

If you have any questions you can email ducontracts@drake.edu or call Kelly Foster at 271-2804.

—Kelly Foster, Finance and Administration

Looking for photography resources?

The Office of University Communications offers a variety of photography resources, including a new online photo-sharing platform. The new platform includes general Drake photography, Des Moines imagery, and Drake-issued headshots. Visit www.drake.edu/communications/resources/photo/ to learn more about and access the platform. Each department or college has an appointed photography contact to access specific archived photography and current photo requests. This resource is for faculty and staff use only.

Faculty and staff can also request photography services at this website.

Please contact Digital Content Specialist Justice Simpson ( justice.simpson@drake.edu ) for any questions or for more information.

—Justice Simpson, University Communications