Reimbursement claims for expenses incurred from Jan. 1, 2015, through Dec. 31, 2015, must be submitted to Advantage Administrators by March 30. Participants may access a reimbursement claim form in the Forms Library on the Employee Tab in blueView. They may also contact Advantage Administrators at 800-383-1623, or visit the website to obtain account balance information.
—Marlene Heuertz, Assistant Director, Benefits
Changes have been incorporated from the comment period and the University Closings, Delays and Class Cancellations policy is now final and posted.
The most significant change to the policy is compensation for most staff when classes are cancelled and campus is open. Based on history, this situation is a rare and infrequent occurrence.
President Martin said it best in his Feb. 12 email: “My firm belief is that everyone is committed to our students and our mission, and to moving toward a culture of joyful accountability where we trust each other, enjoy our work, and are committed to doing our best.” The changes to this policy foster trust and inclusion by providing employees the ability to make decisions about personal safety, without having to unduly worry about taking a vacation or personal day, in the rare instances where classes are cancelled and campus is open.
Please familiarize yourself with the updated policy. Questions? Review the FAQ, discuss with your manager, and/or contact Cindy Adams at cindy.adams@drake.edu or x3676.
—HR Team
Full-time employee anniversaries in March:
Qalbi Abdi
Craig Blaker
Steven Blaylock
Kathryn Coleson Horner
Leslee Cran
Susan Dittmer
Kristi Fuller
Raymond Giacoletti
Sarah Grady
Douglas Graham
Aaron Harpold
Renee Hennessy
Patsy Johnson
Heidi Kramer
Douglas Lampe
Eric Lindstrom
Peter Lundstedt
Sharon Moran
Eric Murphy
Lori Richman
Mary Sanders
Bartholomew Schmidt
Donald Severs
Lucas Shelton
John Smith
Pamela Smith
Gareth Smith
Allen Smith
Thad Smull
Michael Spoerl
James Wu
Nominations are now being accepted for the Madelyn M. Levitt Distinguished Community Service Award and the Madelyn M. Levitt Employee Excellence Awards. These awards will be presented at the Faculty / Staff Recognition Event on Tuesday, May 3, in Parent’s Hall, Olmsted Center. The deadline to submit nominations has been extended to April 7 at 4:30 p.m.
Madelyn M. Levitt Distinguished Community Service Award
Madelyn M. Levitt established the Distinguished Community Service Award to recognize outstanding contributions of Drake faculty and staff to the Drake community. Criteria for the award include:
The nominee must be a current faculty or staff member with at least five years of service at Drake.
Madelyn M. Levitt Employee Excellence Awards
The Employee Excellence Award is presented to up to two staff employees who demonstrate exceptional commitment to excellence in the performance of their duties. Criteria for the award include:
Nominees must be a current staff member with at least one year of service at Drake.
NOMINATION PROCESS
Submit a letter of nomination to the Levitt Award Committee c/o Human Resources. Nomination letters may be sent via campus mail or to laura.schwarz@drake.edu.
A nomination letter detailing specific examples of how the nominee exemplifies each of the applicable criteria is desirable. Additional letters of support are not necessary. A review committee will make award recommendations to the President’s Council. Nominations must be received by 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, April 7.
—Submitted by Laura Schwarz, Human Resources
During the last several months, many areas on campus have been reworking their strategic plans. Instead of operating through habit (we’ve always done it this way, so let’s continue doing so), leaders are examining their areas’ practices and processes through the Balanced Scorecard. The Balanced Scorecard provides an approach for reviewing progress against strategic goals. Join Matthew Mitchell, assistant professor of international business and strategy and Nate Reagen, balanced scorecard consultant as they discuss the steps that Drake has accomplished thus far, and how it positions us for continued strategic success. This two-hour session will be held on Tuesday, Feb. 23, 9 a.m. – 11 a.m. in Olmsted Rooms 310–311.
The complete Excellence in Learning & Development Program is available online on blueView’s Employee tab, in the Learning & Development Channel.
Avoid the tax season blues! As part of your Employee Assistance Program (EAP), Employee and Family Resources offers financial counseling. Drake’s EAP provides you and your family members with one 30-minute financial consultation per issue at no cost. Just call 800-327-4692 to schedule a consultation at locations around the metro. Click here for more information on this service. Questions? Contact Marlene Huertz, assistant director benefits, at x1901.
—Marlene Huertz
Thank you to everyone who participated in last year’s Wellness Incentive Program. It was a great success and we will be offering the same program again in 2016 (to receive the incentive in 2017).
What is the Wellness Incentive Program? Those on Drake’s health plan can save approximately $300 in 2017 by simply completing a biometrics screening and online wellness assessment.
There are three options for completing your biometric screening:
Dates for the Hy-Vee and on campus screenings will be announced in the coming months but you can complete your screening with your physician now. If you have a physical in 2016—with bloodwork—by Aug. 31, the results can be submitted as your biometric screening.
After the completion of your screening, you will also need to take the online wellness assessment. Assessments will be available for access on www.wellmark.com Feb. 15–Nov. 15, 2016.
Questions may be directed to Linda Feiden, assistant director, wellness & engagement, at linda.feiden@drake.edu or 271-1880.
—Submitted by Linda Feiden
Please join the Human Resources Department in welcoming the following new full-time Drake employees:
Giovanna Brookhart, Head Start
Derma Rivera-Aguirre, Head Start
Linda Feiden, Human Resources
Meghan Settje, Finance & Administration
Tracy Warren, Finance & Administration
Keren Fiorenza, ITS
Kyle Smith, Athletics
Hannah Bildstein, International Center
Ana (Lorena) Sagastume Dahl, Law School
Luis Fernandez-Menchero, Arts & Sciences
Bankers Trust Company and Neighborhood Finance Corporation have partnered with Drake to provide eligible employees access to various mortgage products and services. Additionally, per the program enhancement, Drake can now provide up to $3500 in down payment and/or closing costs for homes purchased adjacent to campus.
To learn more about the benefits available to you, visit the HR website.
Congratulations to the following full-time faculty and staff celebrating service anniversaries this month!
Mawuenya Amegan, Head Start
Linda Anderzhon, Alumni and Development
Heidi Ball, Head Start
Danny Beaty, Facility Services
Amy Beller, Harkin Institute for Public Policy and Citizen Engagement
Donna Blunck, Finance and Administration
Kelsey Bolton, Psychology
Doris Brunnette, Vocational Rehabilitation
Rosa Castro, Facility Services
Stephen Flynn, Athletics
Ricky Fox, Athletics
Alice Fynaardt, Biology
Bruce Gilbert, Library Systems
Mark Harrington, Facility Services
Sara Heijerman, Student Services Center
LaRhee Henderson, Chemistry
Carla Herling, DTS
Laura Juarez, Head Start
Marcia Keyser, Public Service
Kerry King, Student Life
Teresa Koch, Cowles Library
Kimberly Lammers, Dean of Students
Tonia Land, School of Education
Pramod Mahajan, Pharmaceutical, Biomedical, and Administrative Sciences
JoBeth Malone-Schoneberg, Chemistry
Carlyn Marron, International Programs
Davee Matlock, International Programs
Ismeta Mehanovic, Facility Services
Claudia Murphy, Head Start
Kristine Plagman, Controller’s Office
John Pole, Athletics
Lucia Ramirez, Facility Services
Jennifer Rhoads, Head Start
Beth Schoening-Hudson, Dean’s Office, Pharmacy
Kathryn Schott, Experiential Programs
Rachelle Setsodi, Undergraduate Admission
Amy Smit, Ray Center
Robert Stensrud, Vocational Rehabilitation
Denise Stowman, Student Financial Planning
Austin Strawhacker, Athletics
Deborah Sulzbach, Law Library
Terrence Thames, Athletics
Bradley Toussaint, DTS
Nicholas Valdez, Public Safety
Thomas Westbrook, Arts and Sciences
Alyssa Young, University Communications
—Submitted by Laura Schwarz, Human Resources