Drake public relations students finalists for national PR News honors
Public relations major Madison McConnell has been named a finalist for PR News‘ Student of the Year. Tom Scearce is a finalist for Intern of the Year.

Drake advertising senior on winning ad challenge team
Advertising senior Jeff Hersheway was on the winning team at the recent GRIT student conference sponsored by the American Advertising Federation of Des Moines (AAFDSM). The teams, comprising students from Drake, Iowa State, Buena Vista, Upper Iowa, and Grand View, tackled a challenge posed by the Iowa Cubs. The students also participated in agency visits and career talks.

—Kathleen Richardson, Dean, SJMC

Glow-in-the-dark Group X Hip Hop
On Nov. 29, from 8 to 8:45 p.m., ramp up your usual Group X Hip Hop routine with our special glow-in-the-dark event! Grab a group of friends and head to the Bell Center Gym where you will spend your time dancing with the beat of the music. Make sure to register using the Rec*it Fitness app or www.imleagues.com. Questions? Email wellness@drake.edu.

Bulldog Bootcamp registration
REGISTRATION for Bulldog Bootcamp opens Nov. 28. Email wellness@drake.edu to sign up. Classes will be held Mondays and Wednesdays from 5:30 to 6:15 p.m.

Bulldog Bootcamp is for those who wish to develop a wholesome, healthy lifestyle over the course of six weeks. The program will be focused around diverse workouts, nutritional plans, and an online support group. Reach your highest potential by participating in this bootcamp!

—Drake Wellness

Renner gives invited seminar in the United Kingdom
Michael Renner, professor of biology and psychology, gave an invited seminar at Oxford Brookes University in the United Kingdom as part of the institution’s Primate Conservation Seminar Series. His seminar, “A multiple-fronts approach to restoring a rain forest remnant: Tales from Gishwati National Park, Rwanda,” presented his work to make the Gishwati Forest Reserve in Rwanda sustainable. He has worked with the Great Ape Trust and a Rwandan NGO, Forest of Hope Association, to protect the national park, which was nearly destroyed by deforestation in the post-genocide era of Rwanda. Projects, many of which have involved Drake students and professors—most notably Keith Summerville—have included:

• Testing methods of reforestation to provide food sources for the native wildlife
• The development of plans to create a wildlife corridor between Gishwati and Mukura, another forest remnant a few miles away
• Developing methods to prevent and mitigate crop-raiding, in which wildlife from the forest—primarily chimpanzees—come out onto adjacent agricultural lands for food. Crop-raiding causes great resentment of the reserve among local populations
• Several community development projects, including supporting the development of a beekeeping industry, craft cooperatives, creating community libraries, creating opportunities for local folks to share their indigenous cultural practices with visitors, and others.

Radostina Purvanova co-authors paper on work relationships
Positive work relationships are key to flourishing at your job, according to a new paper co-authored by Radostina Purvanova, associate professor of management and international business.
The paper, published in the Academy of Management Journal in August—and featured last week by the London School of Economics—is based on interviews with more than 200 employees across a variety of industries. Read more about Radostina’s work in the Drake Newsroom.

Drake students participated in the National Association of Teachers of Singing competition on Oct. 29-30 at the University of Iowa. Drake had 25 finalists (all of whom are eligible to compete in the National Competition), and 22 semi-finalists.

—Kayla Jenkins, College of Arts & Sciences

Top marketing students at Drake and Creighton University will compete this month to tee up exciting promotional ideas for a major Midwest golf event.

The marketing competition sponsored by Drake’s College of Business and Public Administration is called the Murphy Cup, and each year it brings teams of students from Drake and Creighton together in a contest to solve a real-world problem for a major organization. Previous clients include Yahoo!, Better Homes and Gardens, and Nike.

This year, from Nov. 17 to 19, the young minds will take a swing at increasing awareness and attendance for the 2017 Solheim Cup. The most prestigious tournament in women’s professional golf is a global, match-play event akin to the Ryder Cup. It will be held at  Des Moines Golf and Country Club Aug. 14-20, 2017. Read more about the project here.

Sign up for Bulldog Bootcamp today! Email wellness@drake.edu to reserve your spot. Classes will be held Mondays and Wednesdays from 5:30 to 6:15 p.m.

Bulldog Bootcamp is for those who wish to develop a wholesome, healthy lifestyle over the course of six weeks. The program will be focused around diverse workouts, nutritional plans, and an online support group. Reach your highest potential by participating in this bootcamp!

On Oct. 24, the Embassy of Japan sponsored a dinner for invited Drake students at Haiku. It was hosted by Mr. Yukito Ono, second secretary of the political section at the Embassy of Japan in Washington, D.C., with the intent of learning about student perspectives on U.S.-Japan relations and the U.S. presidential campaign. The dinner was attended by five Drake students: Kerstin Donat, Sam Logterman, Kamryn Ryan, Brittany Spears, and Colin Timmerman. Professor Mary M. McCarthy, who teaches the Asian politics courses in the Department of Political Science, composed the guest list upon receiving the invitation from Mr. Ono, and attended the dinner with the students and Mr. Ono.

—Mary McCarthy, Department of Political Science

Professors of librarianship present at the Iowa Library Association 2016 Conference
Claudia Frazer, professor of librarianship and coordinator of digital initiatives library, presented “21st Century Archives @ Drake: Linking Collections with the Curriculum & Strategic Plan” on Oct. 13 at the Iowa Library Association 2016 Conference in Dubuque, Iowa. Librarians and archivists from three Iowa institutions discussed initiatives they are executing to innovatively connect with their constituents. Claudia focused on how Archives and Special Collections at Cowles Library is strategically striving to connect its unique content with the curriculum.

On Oct. 14, Bruce Gilbert, professor of librarianship and director of library operations and technology, was one of three presenters of a session titled, “Open Educational Resources (OER) and Libraries: Promotion and Support” at the same conference. He concentrated on the theoretical and historical background of OER, and how OER can be an effective tactic in encouraging faculty to explore alternatives to traditional (and expensive) textbooks. His slides are available: http://bit.ly/bg-ila-2016

Adjunct instructor begins second stint with Mannheim Streamroller
Anna Lackaff, adjunct instructor of music at Drake, will tour the country this holiday season as a keyboardist for Mannheim Steamroller. This will be Anna’s second year with the group, which has sold millions of albums worldwide. Mannheim Steamroller is best known for its Christmas albums that blend classical music with new age and rock stylings. Learn more about Anna in the Drake Newsroom.

Drake student work was honored with 10 Pinnacle awards, including six first-place honors, at the recent College Media Association contest in Atlanta.

Two of the top three student magazines in the country were produced by Drake students: Drake Magazine won first place for magazine of the year, and The Annual won third place. Drake students also won the top two awards for general news story and first-place awards for podcast, photo portrait, and profile story. Drake Magazine and The Annual are extracurricular activities published by the University’s Board of Student Communications; Urban Plains is a multimedia website produced by the SJMC news, magazine, and electronic media majors as their senior capstone.

The awards:

• Best four-year magazine, first place—Drake Magazine
• Best four-year magazine, third place—The Annual
• Best magazine cover, first place—Drake Magazine
• Best podcast, first place—Urban Plains
• Best photo portrait, first place—Drake Magazine
• Best profile, first place—Urban Plains
• Best general news story, first place—Drake Magazine
• Best general news story, second place—Urban Plains
• Best, multimedia news story, second place—Urban Plains
• Best online main page, third place—Urban Plains

—Kathleen Richardson, Dean, SJMC