Drake’s Harkin Institute for Public Policy and Citizen Engagement recently added Rutgers University political science professor David Redlawsk as its Drake Mabry Fellow. Plus, the University played host to the John Pappajohn Entrepreneurial Venture Competition Awards Luncheon.
Category Archives: News & Achievements Archive
SJMC news, Oct. 5
Iowa caucus season is always a lively time on the Drake campus, and this year is turning out to provide an unusually rich number of opportunities for students. A group of 20 journalists from around the world were on campus Sept. 24, hosted by the Iowa International Center. The group met with SJMC Dean Kathleen Richardson to discuss journalism education and open government issues and with political science professor Dennis Goldford, the Harkin Institute’s Flansburg Fellow, to learn about the caucuses. They also attended SJMC professor Lee Jolliffe’s first year seminar, Grassroots Politics on a Global Stage.
—Submitted by Kathleen Richardson, Dean, School of Journalism and Mass Communication
Win a GoPro HERO4
Be a part of the dining program at Drake University. Your voice matters! By completing the Drake Dining Survey you help us direct and enhance dining services throughout campus. All Drake students, staff, and faculty are invited to complete the survey—one entry per person. All participants will automatically be entered into a drawing for a GoPro HERO4!
Utilizing an independent online research questionnaire, the Drake Dining Survey provides insight into your wants and needs. We analyze performance, spending patterns, purchase drivers, retail brand preferences, meal plans, and campus mapping to develop future solutions that will better serve the Drake community.
Now is the chance for your voice to be heard. We will make positive enhancements to the dining services provided based on your feedback and input.
—Submitted by Jennifer Bowersox, Unit Marketing Coordinator, Drake University Dining
Help make Drake’s campus more bike-friendly
First-year students from Erin Hurley’s FYS, Cycling and Social Change, wrote and and submitted a proposal to Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield’s Community Kickstarter Grant Program to make the Drake campus and the surrounding neighborhood more bike friendly. If selected, the project will receive up to $10,000 to launch a bike rental program and add more bike storage options on campus.
In order to show Wellmark this project is worth investing in, please visit the Community Kickstarter page and vote for the “Make Drake a more Bike-Friendly Community”. You can vote once a day until Oct. 7. The more votes we get the better our chances of winning!
—Submitted by Renee Sedlacek, Interim Director of Community Engagement and Service-Learning
College of Arts & Sciences news
Dan Woodman, vice president of the Australian Sociological Society and faculty at University of Melbourne, recently made his first visit to a private college—our own Drake University. Woodman delivered a lecture on Millennials and the sociology of generations to students in Kevin Lam, Natalie Adkins, and Darcie Vandegrift’s classes. He taught a session of Vandegrift’s class, Global Youth Studies, and was hosted at breakfast by Drake students Heather Richmond, Elle Dietz, and Ben Weinberg. Drake students impressed Woodman with their engagement, knowledge of sociology, and thoughtful questions. The visit was sponsored by the Principal Financial Group Center for Global Citizenship and the Sociology program.
—Submitted by Darcie Vandegrift, Associate Professor of Sociology, Department Chair
SJMC news: Sept. 21
Twenty journalists from 20 countries will join Drake students to talk Iowa caucus politics this Thursday, Sept. 24.
The journalists will first meet with Drake politics professor Dennis Goldford to learn more about caucuses and Iowa’s role in the presidential selection process, then meet with 19 students for presentations and discussion in Lee Jolliffe’s First Year Seminar, The Iowa Caucuses: Grassroots Politics on a Global Stage.
Students in the Iowa Caucus FYS will give a presentation for the visitors about how social media has changed young people’s experiences of presidential selection politics. The participants will also meet in small groups to talk about young adults’ experience of free press, democracy, and political participation—key issues identified by the U.S. State Department, sponsor of the visit.
Janet Norton, of the Iowa International Center, is working with Drake to make the Iowa segment of the visitors’ trip as informative and smooth-running as possible. The larger visit, encompassing other cities and learning experiences, is hosted by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and U.S. Department of State, and is part of the International Visitor Leadership Program. This particular study trip is called The U.S. Political System: Background for Journalists, and the journalists selected are from many continents and countries.
Among the guests are prominent journalists from Algeria, Argentina, Armenia, Croatia, Ecuador, El Salvador, Italy, Nigeria, Paraguay, People’s Republic of China, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Taiwan, Tunisia, and Turkey.
—Submitted by Lee Joliffe, Associate Professor of Journalism
Faculty join new OTD program
New faculty members joined the Doctor of Occupational Therapy program in the College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences on July 1. They are preparing for the program’s inaugural class in May 2016. Read more about Ann Burkhardt, Cassity Gutierrez, Beth Diehl, Lynn Kassel, and Nihal Mulla.
Drake recognized for outstanding fundraising efforts
The Council for the Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) presented Drake University and the Office of Alumni and Development with a 2015 Educational Fundraising Award for overall performance. The award honors exemplary fundraising programs and activities at CASE member institutions across the country. CASE recognized Drake for demonstrating the highest levels of professionalism and best practice in fundraising efforts as well as performance over the last three years.
—Submitted by Elizabeth Kozor, Senior Foundation Relations Coordinator
Assistant Professor Kevin Lam publishes book
Kevin Lam, assistant professor of urban and diversity education in the Department of Teaching and Learning, published Youth Gangs, Racism, and Schooling: Vietnamese American Youth in a Postcolonial Context (Palgrave Macmillan). The book examines Vietnamese American youth gang formation in Southern California, with an emphasis on the experiences of those heavily involved in the 1990s. Lam traces the genealogy of the Vietnamese American youth gang phenomenon as part of the conflict in Southeast Asia. He describes the consequences of war and migration for youth as well as their racialization as “Asian American” subjects.
Grounded in the critical narratives of three gang members, Lam addresses themes of racism, violence, class struggle, style, and schooling in an era of anti-youth legislation in the state and nationally. In this dehumanizing context, Lam frames Vietnamese and Southeast Asian American gang members as post-colonial subjects, offering an alternative analysis toward humanization and decolonization.
Lam received his B.A. in Sociology and specialization in Asian American Studies from UCLA, M.A. in Social Foundations of Education from CSU-Los Angeles, and Ph.D. in Educational Policy Studies (Social and Cultural Studies) from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. He is the director of the Social Justice in Urban Education program in the School of Education.
More information on the book can be found here.
—Submitted by Kevin Lam
Seeking volunteers for Sussman Leadership Conference
The annual Richard & Lila Sussman Fall Leadership Conference will take place Sunday, Oct. 25, from 1 to 6 p.m. in the Olmsted Center. The Sussman Fall Leadership Conference is designed for students who are interested in or are currently involved with leadership on campus.
The conference theme this semester is “Do Less, Achieve More” and the keynote speaker, James Robilotta, will speak on “More Action, Less Title: Empowering Student Leaders To Do More”.
I am looking for students, faculty, and staff to facilitate breakout sessions on a range of topics that will encourage attendees to be intentional with their involvement on campus and to explore leadership in the following areas:
- Personal/Professional Development: Sessions will inform students’ understanding of their leadership identity as it relates to their activities on campus and beyond. Potential topics: time management, effective communication, avoiding burnout
- Strategic and Organizational Leadership: Workshops will provide effective tips and training that student leaders can use in their organizations and on campus. Potential topics: event planning, navigating Drake policies, motivating members
- Community Building: Workshops will build students’ understanding of effective community partnerships at Drake and in the Des Moines area. Potential topics: creating Des Moines partnerships, intentional philanthropy, collaborating with other organizations
Each session will reach 20–30 students and should last up to 50 minutes.
If you are interested in presenting at the conference, please complete this form by Monday, Sept. 28. Selected presenters will be notified by Friday, Oct. 2.
Questions? Contact Meghan Blancas, director for student leadership programs, at meghan.blancas@drake.edu
—Submitted by Meghan Blancas