Employee Appreciation Day is observed on the first Friday of March.  This year it falls on Friday, March 7, and is part of Employee Appreciation Month.  Please take time to reflect and find ways to show gratitude to your team and colleagues for their hard work, dedication, and effort on this day, this month, and throughout the year.

To help show our appreciation, Human Resources and All Staff Council invite you to take a break and join us for this year’s BINGO event.  We also encourage you to try your hand at one or more of the other activities listed below.  Details on these activities and other appreciation month resources can be found on the Employee Appreciation Month webpage.

Build a Bulldog
It’s simple.  Click HERE to print off an outline of Griff II. Decorate the picture using whatever artistic materials you wish and send your completed picture to Linda Feiden, HR, 3^rd floor Old Main, by Monday, March 10. Your kids are welcome to participate too!  Don’t forget to put your name on the back.  Finalists will be on display during the BINGO event on March 12 for faculty and staff to vote on for awards.

Free Ice Cream Sundaes, Popcorn, and BINGO
Join All Staff Council and Human Resources on Wednesday, March 12, from 2-3 p.m. in Parents Hall South, Olmsted Center to enjoy some ice cream sundaes and popcorn, while playing BINGO. Prizes include a pair of tickets to the Varsity Cinema (and popcorn), gift certificates to Lachele’s, Drake Diner, and Café Chai, tickets to the Drake student production of “Legally Blonde”, Bulldog Shop gift baskets, and Drake Relays apparel.

Photo Scavenger Hunt
Recruit a colleague (or group), bring your cell phone, and have fun.  Send an email to linda.feiden@drake.edu to receive a list of locations around Drake’s campus. At each location, take a fun photo.  Once you complete the list, submit your photos for a chance to win a prize.  All photos must be submitted by Thursday, March 27.

Give a shout-out
Shout-Outs are a wonderful way to recognize your fellow Drake faculty and staff. Simply write a sentence or two thanking a colleague or team for going the extra mile or showing support to others. Submit your shout-outs to linda.feiden@drake.edu between now and March 25, and they will be compiled and posted in OnCampus.

Finally, All Staff Council is sending some lucky staff a magnet in March with a picture of Griff II ‘high-fiving’.  If you receive one, keep it for a few days, then pass it along to another colleague who also deserves a high-five.  If you have a magnet from past years, pass it along to another deserving colleague as well.  The magnets can be handed off again and again with the hopes of reaching as many of Drake’s amazing staff members as possible.

Please take some time this month to let others know you appreciate their efforts and know that YOUR efforts are appreciated.

— Linda Feiden, Human Resources

All Drake faculty and staff are invited and encouraged to nominate a colleague for the 2025 Madelyn M. Levitt Distinguished Community Service and Employee Excellence Awards.

The Employee Excellence Award is presented to a staff member who demonstrates exceptional commitment to excellence in the performance of their duties. The Distinguished Community Service Award recognizes the outstanding contributions of Drake faculty and staff to the Drake community. The criteria to be eligible for each of these awards can be found here.

To nominate a colleague, submit a letter of nomination to Human Resources. Nomination letters may be sent through campus mail or electronically to drakehr@drake.edu.  The subject line should read “Madelyn M. Levitt Award Nomination”.  The letter should detail specific examples of how the nominee exemplifies each of the applicable criteria. Additional letters of support are not necessary. Nominations are due to Human Resources by Monday, March 3.

For additional information, please contact Linda Feiden at linda.feiden@drake.edu.

— Linda Feiden, Human Resources

If you would like to make (or continue making) healthy changes in 2025 but find yourself getting easily distracted by everyday responsibilities, this challenge is for you.

From March 3 through March 30, you will be given two challenges per day that cover one or more dimensions of wellbeing.  You select the one you want to complete that day, or if you are feeling ambitious, complete them both.  The goal is to complete at least one challenge on 25 of the 28 days.  If you succeed, turn in your completed form for a chance to win a prize.

This is a challenge you can do on your own, or invite family, friends, or co-workers to join along.  Make it a competition to see who can complete the most challenges!

Send an email to linda.feiden@drake.edu by Friday, Feb. 28 to register.

— Linda Feiden, Human Resources

Last year Human Resources held a “Build a Bulldog” contest as part of employee appreciation month.  We had some fantastic entries, so we are going to do it again!

To participate, simply click HERE to print off an outline of Griff II for the contest. Decorate the picture using whatever artistic materials you wish and send your completed picture to Linda Feiden, HR, 3^rd floor Old Main, by Monday, March 10. You are welcome to submit multiple entries if you have budding artists at home, and don’t forget to put your name on the back of each entry.  All entries will go through a preliminary screening and the finalists will be on display for faculty and staff to vote on at this year’s BINGO event on March 12.  More details on the BINGO event will be shared soon!

If you have any questions, please feel free to send an email to linda.feiden@drake.edu.

Many start the year out by getting their annual physical. If that sounds like you and you are on Drake’s health plan, don’t forget to take a copy of the Premium Discount-Annual Physical Form to your appointment.This form can be found on the Drake HR Internal website. Just look for Wellness Premium Discount under the DU Well – Wellness and Wellbeing tab.

Those on Drake’s health plan who complete a physical with an in-network provider between Dec. 1, 2024, and Nov. 30, 2025, and submit a completed form by Dec. 1, 2025, will qualify for the wellness health insurance premium discount in 2026, which is a savings of over $30 per month.

If you already had your physical since Dec. 1, 2024, please fill out the form and turn it in now. If you turned in your form last year—great! But don’t forget, this is an annual event.

— Linda Feiden, Human Resources

Bulldogs United in Learning & Development (BUILD) provides faculty and staff learning opportunities throughout the academic year to enhance professional skills, improve wellbeing, and create conversation.  BUILD is a great platform for learning new ideas as well as an opportunity to collaborate with others from across campus.

The Spring 2025 schedule is available online and registration is open.  Please take a moment to check out the classes on the Drake HR website under Learning & Development.  Click on BUILD – Upcoming Sessions for the full list, including detailed descriptions.  There is an online registration link to a Qualtrics survey that makes signing up easy.

This semester’s class list includes everything from safe space training and mental health first aid for higher education to vehicle and lawn equipment basics. Find out why sitting too long is bad for your health, create a vision board, or join one of a couple tours.

Most classes are only an hour in length, and many are facilitated by our own faculty and staff.  This is a great way to invest in yourself, support your colleagues, and take in the culture that Drake has to offer.

— Linda Feiden, Human Resources

With the start of the new year, it is wise to review your Pay Information through the Employee Dashboard.

For your quick reference, we have highlighted a few of these important sections.

Within the Pay Information section on the Employee Dashboard, you can access current and previous paystubs and direct deposit information.  As the new year begins, you may see slight variations in your pay.  This could be due to a multitude of factors including: a new tax year which causes payroll deductions to “restart” with the calendar year; a change in compensation; and newly elected benefit deductions for the upcoming year, as well as taxes related to any graduate level courses that you or your dependents may be taking.

The Benefits section navigates you to the Benefits Portal for easy access to review your benefits information.  A separate link for Retirement Plans is available to provide information about your TIAA retirement payroll deductions.

Within the Taxes section, the online W-2s will be available during the last week in January.  The online 1095-C forms will be available in March.

Please email drakehr@drake.edu if you have any questions.  We are happy to assist you.

Teresa Downs, Human Resources

If you are on Drake’s health plan and have not turned in your Premium Discount-Annual Physical Form – time is running out!  This is an annual requirement to receive the discount.

Employees on Drake’s health plan need to complete a physical with an in-network provider between Dec. 1, 2023, and Nov. 30, 2024, and submit a Premium Discount-Annual Physical Form by Monday, Dec. 2, 2024, to receive the wellness health insurance premium discount in 2025.

If you had your physical since Dec. 1, 2023, please fill out the form and turn it in now. If you haven’t scheduled your annual physical yet with in-network provider, you are running out of time.  If you cannot get into your provider before the deadline, please contact Broadlawns Medical Center on University – across the street from the Drake campus – to inquire about their availability.  Be sure to let them know you are from Drake and bring a copy of the physician form with you.

Please email linda.feiden@drake.edu with questions.

—Linda Feiden, Human Resources

Time is running out.  Employees on Drake’s health plan, who want to receive the wellness health insurance premium discount in 2025 need to complete a physical with an in-network provider between Dec. 1, 2023, and Nov. 30, 2024, and submit a Premium Discount-Annual Physical Form by Monday, Dec. 2, 2024, to receive the wellness health insurance premium discount in 2025.

If you had your physical since Dec. 1, 2023, please fill out the form and turn it in now. If you haven’t scheduled your annual physical yet with an in-network provider, you need to do it now.  If you cannot get into your provider, you may contact Broadlawns Medical Center on University – across the street from the Drake campus – to inquire about their availability prior to the deadline.  Be sure to let them know you are from Drake and bring a copy of the physical form with you.

You can read more about the wellness premium discount program on the Wellness Premium Discount webpage.

Please email linda.feiden@drake.edu with questions.

—Linda Feiden, Human Resources

The holiday season can be a challenge when it comes to taking care of ourselves, so we have brought back a holiday challenge to help ‘Stop’ the potential holiday weight gain, ‘Drop’ some bad habits, while picking up a few good ones, and ‘Roll’ into the New Year on a healthier path.

This program started Monday, Nov. 25 and runs through Sunday, Dec. 29.  Each week participants focus on different topics from healthier eating and physical activity to sleep, self-compassion, and making social connections. This is a program you can do on your own or with family members over the holiday season.  And even if weight gain isn’t a problem or priority for you, this program covers wellbeing topics pertinent to everyone.

Send an email to linda.feiden@drake.edu today to register.

—Linda Feiden, Human Resources