This summer, Hubbell Dining Hall is undergoing some changes, including new furniture and lighting, to spruce up this high-use space. This change is made possible by Sodexo Dining Services, which provided the funding for the improvements. In addition to Dining Services staff, students provided input on furniture and color selections. The improvements will be completed and ready for the beginning of the academic year.
—Venessa Macro, Chief Administration Officer
With assistance from several campus focus groups, ITS has made the decision to adopt Microsoft OneDrive as the campus cloud storage solution.
The decision to use OneDrive was based on its integration with Office365, Microsoft’s ongoing commitment to the development of new features, and the financial resources invested in the solution.
Starting this summer, ITS staff will work with departments across campus to assist with moving individual storage and to explain the benefits of the new system. Once all areas have moved their individual storage, we’ll begin the process of working with departments to migrate shared storage and begin transitioning off current campus storage solutions like blueSpace.
We are starting the process with administrative units this summer, and then will work with academic units starting during the fall semester. We will be sending additional communications to campus as we move forward. We’ll also be reaching out individually to unit leaders to plan timing and to coordinate efforts.
The transition of Drake’s storage into the cloud offers significant opportunities to improve how our faculty, staff, and students work and collaborate. We’re excited for this change and hope others will be as well.
—Carla Herling, Information Technology Services
Drake, in conjunction with the City of Des Moines, will be replacing several sections of concrete sidewalk around the exterior of the campus. The work will begin on June 12 and should be completed by June 16. This project will enhance the campus compliance with ADA concerns on the exterior of the main campus. Please look at the campus map below to see which repairs may cause issues with your normal walking path; the concrete replacement is marked in red.
The repairs include areas at 27th Street & Clark, 2700 block of Forest Avenue, 2804 Forest Ave., 29th Street and Forest Avenue, 30th Street and Forest Avenue, 30th Street and Carpenter Avenue, 27th Street and University Avenue, 28th Street and University Avenue, and 2800 University Ave.
—Jolene Schmidt, Facilities Planning & Management
Drake has a special contractual discount relationship with Enterprise/National Car rental. They have competitive rates along with a zero deductible for accidents that occur while renting for business. Drake also receives an end-of-year, volume-based rebate which goes back into our general fund. We would like you to use Enterprise or National as Drake’s preferred vendor. Please use your P-Card whenever possible for business car rental and provide Drakes tax exempt number shown on the card.
Special Note: You will also receive the same discount for your personal use, when paying on your own. It is a good idea to sign up for the Emerald Club (no additional charge) and use it whenever renting. To learn more, read the Enterprise/National Rental Program Summary. If you scroll down to the end, you will see the per vehicle pricing for Drake.
Drake University Business Use Account Number for Enterprise and National Car Rental-XZ62113
Drake University Personal Use Account Number for Enterprise and National Car Rental-XZ6299F
—Caron Findlay, Finance and Administration
All Staff Council had record attendance at several of its events this year, including the 2nd annual Kickball Tournament with more than 90 attendees and players combined. To see photos from the tournament visit our Flickr page. Congratulations also to Niki Smith from University Communications whose name was drawn for a free parking pass for the 2017–2018 academic year!
For more information about All Staff Council or to see a list of events from this year, please visit www.drake.edu/asc.
—Renee Sedlacek, All Staff Council
The phishing simulation sent to 500 faculty and staff in April once again had great results: 98 percent of those who received the email either didn’t click the link or enter any information.
On Friday, May 12, a massive ransomware attack hit more than 74 countries, taking advantage of computers that hadn’t applied software updates available several months ago. Investigators are still putting all of the pieces together, however as more information is discovered, two main points remain clear:
This week we will be sending out another simulation email to 500 random faculty and staff members. If you receive the email and click the link within, you’ll be sent to an informational page. If you receive an email you suspect is phishing, simulated or not, please forward it as an attachment to informationsecurity@drake.edu.
Participating in training like this is an effective and risk-free way to learn about the dangers of phishing and help protect individual and campus data. If you have questions or concerns, please contact informationsecurity@drake.edu.
—Peter Lundstedt, Information Security Manager
The Summer Group Fitness schedule is now available online! All classes are free to attend for Drake students, faculty, and staff. Register for classes by downloading the REC*IT FITNESS app or log in at www.imleagues.com. Classes run until June 29 in the Fitness Studio at the Bell Center.
—Ellen Lowe, Recreational Services
Drake is excited to announce its new master’s program in applied behavior analysis. This program will deliver a curriculum, including practicum experience, that prepares its graduates to sit for the Behavior Analyst Certification Board’s® (BACB®) exam so that they may become Board Certified Behavior Analysts® (BCBAs®). In addition to its master’s program, Drake will also have a certificate program for individuals who currently possess at least a master’s degree in psychology or education to complete in preparation for a career as a certified behavior analyst.
The master’s program will launch Fall 2017 and is a five-semester or two-year program (nine credit hours per semester or 45 hours total). Coursework will be offered nights to accommodate various work schedules. The certificate program is three semesters (nine credit hours per semester or 27 hours total).
The program’s vision and mission is to grow the number of behavior analysts within Iowa to meet the increasing demands for professionals within schools and clinical settings who can:
For more information, please see http://www.drake.edu/aba/ or contact Maria Valdovinos (maria.valdovinos@drake.edu).
—Maria Valdovinos, Department of Psychology
The #BringDraketoDrake campaign won the American Marketing Association’s statewide category for Best Public Relations Campaign. Additionally, the initiative earned, by vote of members and attendees, the People’s Choice Award.
The summary of the award nomination read:
Last fall, a mid-sized private university in the heart of the Midwest brought the world’s hottest rapper to campus—and made international headlines in the process. Drake University’s “Bring Drake to Drake” campaign leveraged media relations, social media, real-time marketing, and word-of-mouth tactics to engage target audiences and increase brand awareness and affinity. By the time Aubrey “Drake” Graham shared a photo of himself perched atop Drake University’s welcome sign—decked out in a University letterman’s jacket—with his more than 30 million Instagram followers, it was a pleasant bonus for a viral campaign that had already received international attention and created lifelong memories. Associating the Drake brand with a world-famous and occasionally controversial rapper was a calculated risk—but one the communications staff would do again, not only because it brought unprecedented visibility to the University, but also because (as the rapper would say), #YOLO. You only live once.
—Niki Smith, University Communications
Six actuarial science students participated in the Traveler’s Case Competition with four other universities. The students were given a property and casualty insurance problem to research and model. At the end of the day, each university’s team presented their recommendations to a panel of actuaries from Traveler’s. Drake’s team won first place this year; each student won a $250 cash award and the Department of Actuarial Science received a trophy. The competition benefits the students by giving them a hands-on experience solving actuarial problems and helps faculty by allowing them to learn about contemporary topics in the field.
The winning team included Praneeth Singh, John Richards, Ty Albrecht, Colin Piscitello, Hannah Hamilton, and YiFan Zhou.
Drake actuarial science and finance majors competed in the annual Brooks Case Competition for an opportunity to practice their academic skills in a real-world scenario. This year’s case study focused on the pending merger of Verizon and Yahoo. Drake students competed in teams of three or four over the course of one weekend. The Brooks Competition experience gave students insight into the real-life pressures and skills associated with their future actuarial science and finance careers. Drake faculty judges included Richard Long, Jimmy Senteza, Inchul Suh, and Toby White.
Drake finance students finished 2nd in the 2017 Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) Institute Research Challenge. Local CFA societies select a publicly listed company in their geographical region to be analyzed by teams from competing universities and colleges. This year’s company was Rockwell Collins. The teams prepared a written report and a presentation recommending either a buy, sell, or hold on the selected company. The reports and presentations were judged by local investment professionals with their CFA designation. Drake’s team consisted of students Daniel Finn, Sam Klann, Jamie Zaine, Tyler Kern, and Neil Usry.
A group of Marketing Club students worked on a project for Coca-Cola this semester for their Dasani Sparkling product. Called Project Bulldog, the students developed a comprehensive integrated marketing communication plan based on research conducted by the team. Their recommendations were presented to executives in Atlanta via phone interview and elicited very positive comments from channel managers and national product managers alike. The new ideas for point-of-purchase and sales promotion were praised and are expected to be put into play by the company in the near future. Professors Mary Edrington and Chip Miller co-advised the team, which was led by Marketing Student of the Year, Kaylynn Noethlich. Project Bulldog Team included the following Drake CBPA students: Kaylynn Noethlich, Margot Stevens, Rebecca Crepeau, Madelyn Vogt, Courtney Smith, Megan Richards, Tierney Sereika, Karter Smith, Matthew Lavery, Kyla Inderski, Lauren Riley, Jack Kennedy, Caroline West, Matthew Helmericks, David Pioske, and Max Zaug.
—Dianna Gray, College of Business and Public Administration
