Join the Provost for a conversation on the political climate on Drake’s campus on Friday, Feb. 26, from 1–2 p.m. via Zoom. Visit the Campus Calendar for the link.
This session will provide some preliminary statistics on how faculty, staff, and students are perceiving the climate on campus, followed by a time to discuss challenges and brainstorm solutions.
The forum is open to all faculty and staff.
— Drinda Williams, Office of the Provost
As we kick off the second semester, I am pleased to provide an update on the Big Ideas as well as Drake’s emerging University-wide fundraising campaign.
As a reminder, and for those new to the University, the Big Ideas initiative solicited more than 50 bold, transformational ideas from the campus community designed to elevate and define Drake’s future. Through a detailed and year-long evaluation process, the University narrowed down the Big Ideas into six themes, which will become the cornerstones of the upcoming fundraising campaign:
In March, we were forced to put the Big Ideas and campaign planning on pause due to the pandemic. While supporting our students’ and community’s most immediate needs remains paramount, I’m happy to announce that the Drake University Board of Trustees has agreed to move forward with planning for Drake’s comprehensive fundraising campaign. Key next steps as we resume this exciting process include:
This campaign is a reason for all of us to look to the future with great optimism. It is an opportunity to accelerate and sustain the Big Ideas that will shape Drake University for years to come. Please watch OnCampus for more updates as the campaign progresses.
— John Smith, Vice President, University Advancement
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. In honor of Black History Month, we will be sharing a collection of interviews to spotlight Black voices in our community. This week’s story introduces Layana Sariah, junior at Drake and president of the Coalition of Black Students.
What is the Coalition of Black Students (CBS)?
The Coalition of Black Students is an inclusive multicultural organization that seeks to unite, empower, and educate the Black/African American Student Community through top quality social, cultural, and academic programming initiatives.
How did you get involved with CBS?
I got involved with CBS my first year at Drake within the first few weeks of school. I began attending events and most if not all of their events were something, I enjoyed so I just continued to attend events. With this most of my friends were apart of CBS as well.
What has it meant to you during your time at Drake?
CBS has been very influential in my Drake experience. Majority of my favorite memories are from CBS events or with CBS members. This organization has always made me feel comfortable with being myself and has provided the familiarity and home aspect that I was looking for on campus. This organization was essential in my adjustment to the Drake community and assisting with my comfortability on campus.
What does a robust and active CBS mean to the Drake community?
A robust and active CBS means that all of Drake’s Black students are being taken care of. They have a regular space that they can be themselves and feel like they are getting support. Having an active CBS ensures that Black students on campus feel more comfortable in the Drake Community. Being Black in the world today especially at a predominately white institution it is vital that these students feel supported but also a place where they can get away from the stressors the world or campus can provide.
How, if at all, does your role as President of CBS connect with your studies at Drake or your future career plans?
I am studying psychology in hopes that I can have a private practice as a psychologist. Along with that I want to start a nonprofit that offers patient catered therapy. I especially would like to focus on improving and changing the stigma surrounding mental health in the Black community. Mental health issues are ignored in our community, and in my career, I would like to bring more awareness to it and normalize it. I will do that by becoming a mental health professional which add to the amount of people that look like us in the mental health field. As the CBS president, I am able to host events that can contribute to improving the mental health of Black students on campus. I do this through my role as president by checking in and connecting with my members but also through our events. We host events where our members can have the space to participate in various forms of self-care. We also have events that bring attention to mental health problems specifically in our community. One way we have done this is through a mental health panel. At this panel, we had all Black individuals with various backgrounds in mental health come together and talk about mental health and self-care in our community and this aided in bringing awareness to it but also normalizing it.
What are you excited about for the future of CBS or the Drake community more broadly?
I am very excited for CBS to grow. With how vital CBS is on Drake’s campus I am excited to hopefully spread the same influential experience that CBS has had on me to other students. Since my first year, I noticed a small increase to the number of Black students on Drake’s campus and so with that growing I am really excited to how that can impact CBS.
Who have been some of your important mentors during your time at Drake?
One of my mentors on campus is Debra DeLaet. She has been my mentor since my first year and it was through the Crew Scholars program that we got connected. She has been very supportive of me and my Drake experience.
What would you like the broader Drake community to know about CBS?
I would like the broader Drake community to know that CBS is very important to Drake’s campus. We may not be big in numbers like other organizations but that does not make us any less important. We are vital to the Drake community and we should not go overlooked or unnoticed. Along with that I would like people to know that although we contribute to helping our members feel supported and welcomed on Drake’s campus, we are not the only ones who should be doing the work. Our goal is to unite, empower, and educate Black and African American students on this campus, but membership in our organization is open to anyone. Anyone is able to come to our events and learn how to be an advocate for the Black community.
Happy Black History Month! Throughout this month we will be highlighting Black faculty, staff, and students and their contributions to our community. Additionally, here are a series of Black History Month virtual activities that you can participate in.
— Erin Lain, Office of the Provost
Campus operations will gradually increase over the next few weeks as students return to campus and spring semester classes begin. As the semester begins, the University will use the same guidelines in place at the beginning of the fall semester.
For questions or concerns about these guidelines, please contact your manager. Thank you for all you do to make Drake University strong and resilient every day.
— Human Resources
University Advancement is pleased to welcome Leslie Maynes as the new executive director of University Communications and Marketing. Leslie will begin her position Jan. 19 and report to John Smith, vice president of University Advancement.
Leslie has more than 15 years of experience in public relations and marketing. Most recently, she has been managing director at Two Rivers Marketing where she leads a team of 25 communications professionals to support and provide strategic marketing direction to a global client base.
She holds degrees from the University of Iowa in English and Journalism. Recent professional honors earned by Leslie’s marketing team include an American Marketing Association of Iowa’s People’s Choice Award and a National Content Marketing World Finalist designation.
Leslie succeeds Dave Remund and will continue to build off the momentum and success University Communications and Marketing has achieved under his leadership. Leslie’s professional, industry, and agency experience will be an incredible asset to the University. Her strong knowledge of brand development, creative vision, and passion for team member development will no doubt drive Drake forward.
Please help me welcome Leslie, her husband, John, and 12-year-old identical twin boys, Will and Sully, to the Bulldog family.
— John Smith, University Advancement
As previously communicated in OnCampus, ITS is upgrading the campus phone system and moving faculty and staff to using Microsoft Teams. On Thursday, Jan. 14, the Microsoft Teams client will replace traditional handsets and allow faculty and staff to make and receive telephone calls using their office extension from anywhere they are connected to the Internet. This change won’t affect physical phones in conference rooms, classrooms, or public areas.
ITS staff will be moving groups of phone extensions throughout the day, so you may not be on Teams calling until the evening. We will post progress updates several times during the day to our communication channels including our news feed at drake.edu/its and on the IT Service Portal at service.drake.edu/its.
We distributed headsets to all full-time employees last year. If you experience any headset issues, please consult the user guides linked from ITS Recommended Phone Headsets (FAQ). If you need further assistance, please submit a Telephone Issue request.
On Jan. 14, you’ll receive an email outlining how to get started along with the first steps you’ll need to take to set up your voicemail and begin using Teams to make calls.
There are links to ITS-curated resources at Using Microsoft Teams for Phone Calls and Voicemail (How-to) and Using Advanced Calling Features in Microsoft Teams (How-to).
We’ve also created a FAQ page that we’ll keep up into the beginning of the spring semester at drake.edu/its/teamscalling/. If you don’t see your question there, please share it with us at drake.edu/its/giveitsfeedback/.
— Chris Mielke, ITS
Don’t miss this week’s episode of Front Row at Drake featuring Drake head basketball coaches Darian DeVries and Jennie Baranczyk. Tune in at 7 p.m. on Drake’s Facebook page to hear how both the men’s and women’s basketball teams are embracing and finding success in this unusual season.
If you didn’t catch last week’s episode, you can still watch it on Facebook. Front Row at Drake will pause for winter break and return on Thursday, Jan. 7.
On Nov. 3, for Election Day, the University held a meeting-free day, and it was a welcomed break. It enhanced the mental and emotional well-being of students, staff, and faculty. As a result of its resounding success, beginning in January, one day each month will be designated as a meeting-free day. Note: Only three meeting-free days are scheduled to occur during the spring academic semester. Faculty are encouraged to lighten the load for students on these days, and may choose to cancel class as appropriate within accreditation requirements, and at their discretion.
Upcoming meeting-free days:
— Drinda Williams, Office of the Provost
Don’t miss this week’s episode of Front Row at Drake featuring a conversation with two of Drake’s most prominent and successful alums Jonathan Azu and Louis Carr. Tune in at 7 p.m. on Drake’s Facebook page to hear how these Drake graduates rose to become top leaders in the music and entertainment industry.
If you didn’t catch last week’s episode showcasing a unique recording project by Drake’s Jazz Ensemble One, you can still watch it on Facebook. The episode reached more than 2,000 views in just four days.
