Category Archives: Archive

For Students Archive

December commencement ceremonies

Beginning in the Fall 2025 semester, Drake University will no longer hold a December commencement ceremony. Instead, the University will return to its prior tradition of celebrating all graduates at its spring commencement ceremonies in May. 

Drake’s December 2024 commencement will be its last December commencement.  

This decision was not made lightly and was based on several factors including participation, logistical considerations, fiscal responsibility, and our commitment to providing an exceptional experience for our graduates.  

We understand this change may impact some of our students and families who were planning to participate in a December commencement ceremony in 2025 and beyond. Our hope is that this decision will bring all students of the same graduating class together—whether graduating in December, May, or August—for one culminating celebration of their accomplishments and time at Drake. 

If you have questions about this decision or commencement in general, please contact the Registrar’s Office at registrar@drake.edu. 

— Jenny Tran-Johnson, Registrar

For Students Archive

Study Abroad Fall 2024 on Drake’s cohort program, DU England at Harlaxton

Apply for the DU England: Harlaxton program through Terra Dotta.  Priority deadline and scholarship deadline: Friday, March 15.

Drake is currently accepting applications for DU England: Harlaxton, where you can study abroad fall 2024 at a Victorian Manor set in the English countryside, just an hour outside of London.

This upcoming fall, a cohort of Drake students will study at Harlaxton with Drake Professor of Politics and International Studies, Mary McCarthy. Students enroll in one or two Drake courses and round out their semester credits taking a variety of courses taught by British and visiting faculty.  Harlaxton courses can be pre-approved to count toward your major(s), minor(s), concentration, and/or AOIs.

Drake courses offered:
POLS 149: Sites of Memory (AOIs: Historical Foundations or Global & Cultural Understanding; Approved for Honors credit and as an elective for the following majors, minors, and concentrations: Politics, International Relations, Human Rights, Women & Gender Studies, Black Diaspora Studies)
POLS 178: International Law (AOI: Engaged Citizen; Required course for International Relations; Elective for Politics)

Studying abroad on DU England: Harlaxton, students are charged Drake tuition and keep their scholarship package, making your experience abroad comparable in cost to staying right here in Des Moines.  In addition, we award over $100,000 in study abroad scholarships every year!

To learn more, attend an information session offered later today and tomorrow.

INFORMATION SESSIONS:
Tuesday, February 20th at 5 pm
Wednesday, February 21st at 12 pm
Pomerantz Conference Room, Olmsted Student Center, main-level

If you have questions or want to schedule an advising appointment, reach out to studyabroad@drake.edu.

— Maria Rohach, Director, Education Abroad

For Faculty Archive

Student feedback via the Starfish Progress Survey

The Spring 2024 Progress Survey is live in Starfish. Faculty with high enrollment of first-year, second-year, and transfer students were invited via email to provide positive and constructive feedback to students.

There are five tracking items and instructors have the ability to make comments that are visible to students:

·       You Are Off to a Strong Start Kudos

·       Attendance Concern Flag

·       Low Test Grade Flag

·       Missing/Late Assignments Flag

·       Tutoring Referral

The Progress Survey will be open until Friday, March 8. Instructors can manually raise flags at any point in the semester.

For assistance with Starfish, please email starfish@drake.edu.

— Laura Shell, Academic Excellence and Student Success

Campus Announcements Archive

Fresh Check Day Feb. 29, 12–2 p.m., Olmsted

Wellness isn’t just mental (emotional) health—it’s also about the physical, intellectual, occupational (financial), spiritual, and social dimensions.

Fresh Check Day is a campus-wide mental health fair held Feb. 29 from 12–2 p.m. in Olmsted. Fresh Check Day is unique from more traditional programs around mental health in that it combines a fun, fair-like atmosphere with constructive conversation around mental health and wellness and suicide prevention. It also helps students get connected with important campus resources. There will be interactive booths hosted by campus offices and student organizations combined with music, games, prizes, giveaways, and tacos. Some of the main goals are to help students understand that they are not alone in what they may be struggling with, that Drake cares about campus-wide mental health, and that there are resources available to help.

One staple booth at Fresh Check Day events is Nine out of Ten. The Jordan Porco Foundation (who coordinates Fresh Check Day nationally) explains, “One in ten college students contemplates suicide. That means that at any given time, nine out of ten students have the opportunity to help that one who is struggling (if they are aware of the warning signs and resources).

We’d love to see you in Olmsted on Feb. 29 (Leap Day) from 12 – 2 p.m. at Fresh Check Day, where you can find resources to support your own wellness and learn more about helping your fellow Bulldogs.

— Laura Shell, Academic Excellence and Student Success

Campus Announcements Archive

Drake Rec: Glow up the Night and Judo classes

Judo
Have you ever wanted to master a martial art? Now’s your chance! Scott Law will be teaching a four-week session of Judo starting Feb. 21 and ending March 20.

Glow Up the Night HIIT and yoga party
Do you want to glow up the night? We’ve got you covered. We’re breaking out the blacklights, glow paint, and glow sticks on March 1 for a Glow Up the Night HIIT and yoga party. You will also receive a Drake Wellness T-shirt. Sign up for these events and our regularly scheduled classes using the Drake Rec app and don’t forget to invite your friends.

— Gail Witte, Rec Services

Campus Announcements Archive

Spring 2024 Sussman Lecture: Pain and Politics in the Heart of America with Dr. Jennifer Silva

The Harkin Institute is excited to announce this Spring’s Sussman Lecture, “Pain and Politics in the Heart of America” with Dr. Jennifer Silva. Dr. Silva will discuss the economic, social, and cultural challenges currently facing America’s working class and how those challenges have impacted the ability of the working class to achieve the American Dream. Dr. Silva has written two books surrounding these topics, Coming Up Short: Working-Class Adulthood in an Age of Uncertainty and We’re Still Here: Pain and Politics in the Heart of America. In Coming Up Short, Dr. Silva conducted one hundred interviews with working class residents in two towns-Lowell, Massachusetts, and Richmond, Virginia, and shed light on their experience of heightened economic insecurity, deepening inequality, and uncertainty about marriage and family. In We’re Still Here, Dr. Silva conducted more than a hundred interviews of Black, white, and Latino working-class residents of a declining coal town in Pennsylvania to examine the civic and political disengagement of working-class people.

Date: March 6, 2024

Time: 7:00-8:00 p.m. CT

Location: Tom and Ruth Harkin Center (2800 University Ave., Des Moines, IA 50311)

YouTube Live Stream on The Harkin Institute’s YouTube Channel

Registration: This event is free and open to the public but registration via Eventbrite is required.

Accomodations: American Sign Language (ASL) and Live Captioning (CART) will be provided for both in person and virtual attendees. Additional accomodation requests can be made by emailing harkininstitute@drake.edu.

Click here to register

— Kathryn Kuckelman, Harkin Institute

Campus Announcements Archive

Constitutional Law event: Distinguished Lecture Series

The Constitutional Law Center’s Distinguished Lecture Series brings to campus the nation’s leading constitutional scholars to engage students and faculty on the important issues of the day. Speakers deliver a formal lecture, teach a class, and meet with students in informal settings.

Thursday, March 21, 2024
3 p.m.
Cartwright Hall, Room 213 (in-person)
Cartwright Hall, Room 206 (live stream)

Ronald Krotoszynski, John S. Stone Chairholder of Law and Director of Faculty Research, University of Alabama School of Law. Read his bio here.

Title: “Free Speech as Civic Structure: A Comparative Analysis of How Courts and Culture Shape the Freedom of Speech”

Free to attend but you must register: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/2024-distinguished-lecture-series-drake-constitutional-law-center-tickets-790499714927

— Dawn Brown, Law School

For Students Archive

The Harkin Institute D.C. Experience Scholarship applications now open

Applications are now open for The Harkin Institute D.C. Experience Scholarship and the Robert J. Waters and Patricia J. Beneke Endowed Washington, D.C. Experience Scholarship.

Our scholarships help cover the costs of housing and travel expenses for those completing an internship in Washington, D.C.

Haven’t secured an internship yet? No problem. You can still apply for our scholarship while searching.

Click here to learn more and apply!

— Kathryn Kuckelman, Harkin Institute

For Students Archive

Introducing the new Green Grad Program

Sign up to be a part of Drake’s new Green Grad program. The program aims to incentivize and provide recognition to students who advocate for sustainability on campus. It involves students tracking sustainable actions and reporting them, with the goal of achieving 10 sustainability points. The point scale can be found on the sustainability website, with instructions on how to report points. Participating in this program will promote engagement in sustainability research, education, service learning, and events.

Green graduates will receive a certificate and have their names displayed on the sustainability website. If you are interested in being a Spring 2024 Green Grad, please fill out the intent form and submit all points by May 3. More information and all forms can be found here.

Email hannah.remke@drake.edu with any questions and follow drakeu.sustainability on Instagram to stay updated on new initiatives.

—Hannah Remke, Sustainability Coordinator 

Campus Announcements Archive

The Writing Center is open and ready to assist students

WHAT WE DO: The Writing Center’s trained peer tutors advise and assist students at any stage of the writing process:

  • Understanding instructions/prompts
  • Generating ideas and ways to develop ideas
  • Outlining and organizing
  • Writing, expanding, revising, and/or copyediting a draft

We are a free service for all Drake students, including graduate students and those in professional programs.

HOW TO SIGN UP TO VISIT: Please go to https://library.drake.edu/writing-center/ to book an appointment with a tutor—instructions for booking and visiting are available on the site as well. Appointments are approximately 30 minutes, and students can sign up for more than one session if they wish. They may also request that a tutor keep a regular time slot available for them if they would like to come in each week.

WHERE WE ARE: Reminder: the Writing Center has moved! We are still on the lower level of Cowles Library—please follow signs to find our new, larger, more comfortable space. We offer hours daily, from mornings to late afternoon/evening (including weekends). Students with health concerns can request an appointment on Zoom.

FOR FACULTY AND STAFF: If you refer a student to the workshop or require all students to visit, please let us know via email (megan.brown@drake.edu). Ask students to bring their assignment prompt/instructions to the Writing Center, as well as any writing they have done so far. When students are referred, or required, to visit, the tutor will email you to let you know that your student has attended and briefly describe what work was done. When students attend on their own, we do not inform professors unless they specifically ask us to do so.

IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS please contact Prof. Megan Brown, Director of Writing (megan.brown@drake.edu).