Welcome back to the Spring semester, students! Stop by the Olmsted breezeway on Monday, Jan. 23, between 7:30 and 9:15 a.m. to grab coffee, juice, or donuts to kick off your day.

—Tony Tyler, Student Engagement, Equity, and Inclusion

The student editorial board of the Drake University Social Science Journal (DUSSJ) is now accepting submissions for its 17th edition, to be published in the spring. Submissions may be short(er) analytical essays or long(er) research papers, but the board particularly welcomes submissions that display strong analytical and writing skills and offer interesting, original analysis of the author’s chosen topic/field. Any paper that gestures to ideas, claims, and questions of interest and importance to the social sciences (very inclusively understood!) are welcome. Contributions will be blind peer reviewed by a six-member student editorial board.

Submissions are due Feb. 15, 2017, and should be submitted electronically in Word format to advisor.dussj@gmail.com. All questions should be directed to this address, as well. When submitting a paper, please indicate if it is a research paper or short analytic essay. Also, please indicate the primary discipline and any secondary discipline(s). Only one submission per person will be accepted.

Past editions of DUSJJ are available for viewing at http://www.drake.edu/dussj/

—Denise Ganpat, Drake International

With final exams approaching, the Math Lab is extending its hours to provide peer assistance to students with questions. The Math Lab is located on the ground floor (west) of Cowles Library.

Hours:
Sunday, Dec. 4: 5–8 p.m.
Monday–Thursday, Dec. 5–8: 10 a.m.–8 p.m.
Friday, Dec. 9 (Dead Day): 12–8 p.m.

Sunday, Dec. 11: 5–8 p.m.
Monday–Thursday, Dec. 12–15: 10 a.m.–8 p.m.

—Milan Sherman, Department of Mathematics and Computer Science

• Do you have an idea for an innovative healthcare solution?
• Are you looking to grow as an entrepreneurial leader?
• Share your idea and win CASH prizes!
• New this year: top performers will be considered for a spot in the Lorentzen Student Hatchery!
• Click here to learn more!

ABOUT: 
DELTA Rx’s Next Top Entrepreneur Competition is taking place in February 2017, and you don’t want to miss out on this unique opportunity! The competition is open to all students, regardless of major, with a health care innovation. During three rounds of competition, you will develop creativity and presentation skills through business plan presentations, problem solving, and receiving feedback from innovators. The competition judges will represent the pharmacy, health care, and business sectors. Participants can register as an individual or in a team. This is a great opportunity to build your résumé; gain leadership skills; and network in a welcoming, constructive environment! Top prizes include $1,200 (1st place), $800 (2nd place), and $400 (3rd place), plus consideration for the Lorentzen Student Hatchery summer program which provides $10,000 and professional assistance to help students with a start-up business during summer 2017!

LEARN MORE: 
Information sessions to provide competition guidelines and recommendations will be held 4–4:30 p.m. in Harvey Ingham, Room 112, on Jan. 30 and 31.

SIGN UP:
To register yourself or your team, email deltarx@drake.edu.

—Sarah Dean

Are you a first-year who is passionate about social justice? If so, the Social Justice Living Learning Community (SJLLC) is now recruiting for the 2017–2018 academic year! The SJLLC offers the opportunity to live with others who are passionate about social justice, participate in fun community activities, have guaranteed housing in Goodwin-Kirk, and take an awesome one-credit class focusing on social justice activism!

For more information and the application, you can follow this link: http://tinyurl.com/DrakeSJLLC2017

—Jackie Heymann

Do you have ideas on how Drake students can create change and prevent violence? Do you enjoy presenting? Are you a leader? Join the Mentors in Violence Prevention (MVP) team!

MVP facilitators receive 15 hours of training, serve on our full MVP team and present the curriculum on campus. Applications are available online and are due by Dec. 21. Priority in scheduling interviews is given to applications turned in prior to the end of the semester.

—Tess Cody, Office of Dean of Students

Instructors are able to enter final grades online anytime between now and then. Instructions on how to view grades are online. Note that final grades for the Law School are due on Tuesday, Jan. 10. Best wishes to you in the final few weeks of the fall semester.

—Kevin Moenkhaus, Student Records and Academic Information