All students, faculty, and staff are encouraged to register for the 21-Day Equity Challenge, a program launched by United Way of Central Iowa and several partner organizations to help the greater Des Moines community develop a deeper understanding of how inequity and racism affect our lives.
After registering online, participants will receive an email each weekday, from Oct. 5 through Nov. 2, with readings, videos, podcasts, and ways to take action. Each day will feature a different topic, and participants will be challenged to partake in at least one of the four or five pieces of content they receive.
Participation is free and registrants can participate solo or as a part of a group. Topics will include understanding privilege, housing and redlining, justice system inequities, allyship, and many more. The content for each topic has been curated by an advisory committee of local experts and leaders on racism and equity issues in our community. Drake is a supporting organization of the 21-Day Equity Challenge and hopes all campus community members will partake in this shared learning opportunity.
— Erin Lain, Associate Provost, Campus Equity & Inclusion
This Q&A is part of the story series Voices of Drake that highlights the diversity, ambition, and passion of the incredible people who make up our campus community. This week’s story is designed to celebrate and shine light on Latinx Heritage Month, Sept. 15–Oct. 15. It spotlights Marina Verlengia, director of new student and parent programs.
Tell us a little about yourself. I am a first generation American, born and raised in south Florida. My parents came to the U.S. from Venezuela to go to college and always planned to return home after graduation. My dad received a good job opportunity so they kept extending their time here. Eventually they had children and settled down in south Florida. I am the oldest of four. Growing up, we only spoke Spanish in our home and spent our summers in Venezuela visiting our extended family. For a long time, my parents were the only ones living in the U.S. Over time and as things have gotten worse in Venezuela, we have started to have more family members move to Florida.
Tell us about your education. Where did you go to school and what did you study? I went to the University of Central Florida for both undergraduate and graduate school. I got my undergraduate degree in marketing and have two master’s in Business Administration and Sports Business Management.
How long have you been in the Drake campus community? What is your role at Drake? It is hard to believe, but I have been at Drake almost six years. I am the director of new student and parent programs.
You are the organizer for Drake’s Latinx Faculty/Staff Affinity Group. What is that and how has it been important to you in your time at Drake? The Latinx affinity group is a space for Latinx faculty/staff to get to know one another socially and provide support for each other. There aren’t many Latinx faculty or staff on campus so it has been really nice to connect with areas across campus and meet other Latinx faculty and staff. Prior to this group, I didn’t really know many other Latinx staff or faculty.
These aren’t normal times, but in normal times, what kinds of things does the Latinx Affinity Group do? We have created a great partnership with La Fuerza Latina student organization and did a few get togethers with these students in La Casa. It has been a great way for students to also connect to Latinx faculty and staff. One of our gatherings was a potluck in which people brought traditional Latin dishes to share. We enjoyed great food and conversation!
How long have you been at Drake? What is your favorite thing about working at Drake so far? I have been at Drake almost six years. I love working with students and introducing them to our community. We have a really amazing, supportive community. We really do have an “all in this together” spirit. I feel a lot of support from my colleagues, everyone is always willing to lend a helping hand.
What is your favorite thing about the Drake neighborhood? I love walking in the Drake neighborhood. Since my start at Drake, I have always enjoyed walks in the neighborhood. When on campus, I try to go out during the lunch hour a few times a week.
Who has been the biggest influence in your life and what lessons did that person teach you? My parents—they came to this country not knowing anyone or speaking the language for a better education. They created an amazing life for themselves and their children. Our culture and heritage were always a huge part of our lives. They made sure we knew the language, music, food, traditions, and that we were proud of it. They faced a lot of challenges and adversity along the way but always put family first. I appreciate everything they did for us and the opportunities provided to us because they moved to the U.S.
How do you like to spend your free-time? Tell us about your hobbies and interests. During normal times, I love to travel! I love spending time with friends and family, going for bike rides on the local bike trails, going for walks, binge watching a good tv show, and have come to really enjoy puzzles this year.
This year is a year like no other. What advice would you like to give to a first-year student at Drake? During our Welcome to the Team event during Welcome Week, Coach Jennie Baranczyk gave a great speech with a special message that stuck with me. She spoke about being thankful for what we have this year and what we are able to do. It is so easy to focus on everything that has been taken away from us and all the things we can’t do in 2020. It is important to also think about everything we can do and to be thankful to be part of this great community. Things will get better and slowly we will return to normal. We are all in this together!
The 2020 United Way of Central Iowa Campaign will be held next week—mark your calendars and watch your email for more information! There will not be an in-person kick-off event this year, nor will we have campaign captains. However, your philanthropic donations are needed this year more than ever to provide relief to those left most vulnerable by the pandemic. If you are able, please consider making a contribution.
The Office of Equity and Inclusion has decided to postpone the Campus Climate Town Halls, originally set for Oct. 8 and 9, to a later date this fall. The Equity and Inclusion team is expecting to receive comparison data from other colleges and universities in the coming weeks. Therefore, the decision was made to hold the town halls after this information has been received. A new date for the town halls will be shared as soon as possible.
You are invited to participate in a research study about face-to-face courses at Drake University. This study is being conducted by a team of Drake University faculty on behalf of the Center for Teaching Excellence. The purpose of this study is to explore student and faculty perceptions and attitudes of face-to-face learning environments.
We are seeking your participation in an anonymous Qualtrics survey, which should take no more than 5-10 minutes to complete. You are eligible to participate if you are 1) enrolled as a student or faculty member at Drake University, 2) have taken or instructed face-to-face, in-person college courses, and 3) are 18 years of age or older. Participation in the study is completely voluntary, and no identifiable information will be tied to your survey responses.
At the end of the survey,you will be invited to enter a drawing for one of ten $20 Amazon gift cards, five for students and five for faculty members. All surveys must be completed by Monday, Oct. 19.
For questions regarding the survey or this research project, contact Eliza Dy-Boarman at eliza.dy@drake.edu.
Thank you,
Eliza Dy-Boarman Rachel Allen-McHugh Chinatsu Bachman Kevin Carlson Cris Wildermuth
Generally, Oct. 15 is our target date to transition campus buildings from cooling to heating season. However, with variable temperatures in the forecast, we are closely monitoring temperature predictions to determine the best date to initiate the switchover. Changing from air conditioning to heat takes about one week to complete with student housing starting first. Once the process is complete, air conditioning will no longer be available. If you have any specific questions or concerns, please email Brett Lovelady at brett.lovelady@drake.edu.
Cybersecurity starts with you and is everyone’s responsibility. There are currently an estimated 4.8 billion Internet users—over 62% of the world’s population! As this number continues to grow, protecting personal and institutional information and devices becomes even more important.
To bring focus to this important topic, and make sure Drake students, faculty, and staff know how to stay safe online and keep their devices safe, ITS is holding a cybersecurity awareness contest.
Follow @ITServices on Twitter and retweet a #DrakeCyberSmart tip between Oct. 12 and 23 to learn how to stay safe online and be entered in a prize drawing!
Open to all current Drake students, faculty, and staff members. Full contest rules can be found at drake.edu/its/cybersecure.
Drake Law School is offering a free community clinic to help individuals prepare powers of attorney and/or living will documents as part of Cady Day of Public Service, Friday., Oct. 23. Participants may choose from three convenient sessions: 10–11 a.m., 2–3 p.m, or 5–6 p.m.
Each session will consist of a 30-minute overview about powers of attorney and living wills followed by a one-on-one appointment with a Drake Law student to complete the required documents. Attorneys will be available to answer additional questions. Participants will have the opportunity to obtain signed and notarized documents for their files.
The clinic will be held at the Neal and Bea Smith Law Center, 2400 University Ave. This is an in-person clinic. Social distancing guidelines will be observed. Face masks are required.
Drake is partnering with the University of KwaZulu-Natal (South Africa) to host a virtual conference on equity and inclusion in higher education March 3–5, 2021.
The 2021 Global Citizen Forum will bring together educators, students, policy makers and citizens from around the world to explore the struggles, strategies, and solutions for creating a more equitable and inclusive higher education field.
Call for proposals We invite proposals for practitioner and paper presentations; workshops and interactive sessions; posters; and roundtable or panel discussions. Students, faculty, staff, and community members are encouraged to apply to present. Submissions will be considered on a rolling basis with final decisions made by Nov. 30, 2020.
To submit your proposal, please fill out this Google Form that asks for:
Presenter(s) information
Title and description of presentation or workshop
Methods for participant involvement (i.e. discussion, effective practice sharing, case study analysis)
Audience: faculty, staff, students, community members
Ideal session length
Copy of relevant files (if applicable)
Website (if applicable)
Visit our webpage to learn more about the conference, submit a proposal or register as an attendee.
— Hannah Sappenfield, Global Partnerships Coordinator
Drake University Law School earned an A+ ranking for family and child law in preLaw magazine, placing Drake among the top four law schools in the nation for this field. This is the third year in a row that Drake Law received recognition for excellence in family law.
The publication based the rankings on law schools’ offerings in family law, including clinical programs, certificates, externships, and courses. The results are reported in preLaw’s Back to School 2020 issue.
The issue highlights an effort led by 2020 alumna Kerrigan Owens and Drake Law’s Director of Clinics and Experiential Education Suzie Pritchett, which established a pop-up clinic for young mothers at the Young Women’s Resource Center in Des Moines. The nonprofit organization supports, educates, and advocates for girls and young women ages 10 to 21. The clinic, staffed entirely by Drake Law students, performed intake services which included issues such as custody and domestic violence, and then forwarded the cases to the Polk County Bar Association Volunteer Lawyers Project.
The Law School’s curricular and clinical programs are the foundation for projects like the pop-up clinic. “Students perform practical exercises in their substantive classes, and our close connections with the bar, the courts, the legislature, and non-profit groups enrich the student experience and enable them to connect the classroom with the real world,” said Professor Andrea Charlow. Charlow teaches courses in family law and alternative dispute resolution at Drake Law.
The Joan and Lyle Middleton Center for Children’s Rights works to advance children’s rights and improve the child welfare system. Students can work in the Children’s Rights Clinic providing legal services to children and families in child abuse and juvenile delinquency cases under the supervision of experienced faculty. Students can also get involved in local, state, and national efforts to improve representation for children and the systems that serve them through lobbying, research, and educational programming.
In addition to the Middleton Center, Drake Law students have opportunities to gain real-world experience in family law through the Law School’s Refugee Clinic, General Civil Practice Clinic, and Juvenile Delinquency Clinic.
Drake Law School offers internships for credit in areas including children’s rights, juvenile law, and disabilities rights. In addition, students can gain experience in competition teams such as the ABA Law Student Division Negotiations Team and on-campus organizations such as the Drake Association for Child Advocacy.
“I’m proud that Drake Law School offers many opportunities for students to make a difference in the important area of family law,” said Jerry Anderson, dean of Drake Law School. “This ranking by preLaw is further evidence of our mission to graduate complete professionals who are ready to serve their communities.”
