During the week of Jan. 12, there will be construction related activity in the 2900 block of University Avenue between 29^th Street and Walgreens. This activity is related to planned relocations of three homes to the Sherman Hill neighborhood, currently planned for Feb. 11 starting at 9 p.m. (weather postponement date is Feb. 18). We are pleased that there is continuing interest in the purchase of endowment-held houses for the purpose of relocation and continued use. As we plan for future University and neighborhood uses and evaluate the feasibility of continuing to maintain and operate rental properties, a key part of our strategy is to seek opportunities to encourage home relocation. Over the past few years, four homes have been relocated from Drake property.

Not all of the vacant homes on this block are able to be moved due to structural damage or other conditions that prevent relocation. Some of those homes need to be removed in order to facilitate the process of relocating the other homes. That process will begin this week, with contractors scheduled to be on site on Wednesday, Jan. 15.  Drake has worked closely with Habitat for Humanity to facilitate the reclamation of items from within these homes. Steps have also been taken to abate any environmental conditions in the homes.

If you have any questions or concerns please contact Kelly Foster at Kelly.foster@drake.edu.

Additional work is underway on plans for this area going forward. We look forward to sharing more on plans for the future in the coming weeks.

— Venessa Macro, Chief Administration Officer 

Facilities, Planning & Management ( FP&M) has seen a significant increase in requests for capital planning and management services since the addition of the Design and Planning manager position (Michelle Huggins). Currently, there are over 20 projects in various stages of planning being managed within FP&M, including construction of the Harkin Institute, University streetscape improvements and updates to Hubbell Dining Hall. With increased demand for these services, has come the need to develop a process to manage the approval, scheduling, and managing of projects.
In the coming months, FP&M will redesign its process for requesting capital and project planning services. Much like the Portfolio Project Management Process in ITS, the process will assess and gain executive approval for facilities related project requests, allowing for a more systematic planning and execution cycle. 

As this new process is being developed (between now and April 15th), there will be a moratorium on new planning/design and capital project requests. If you currently have a request for design or planning services, you will be contacted with what to expect on your project during this moratorium phase. If you have a critical need during this period, please contact me directly and we can discuss the best approach for evaluation of your capital planning needs. 

Watch for more updates on the new process in future editions of OnCampus.

— Venessa Macro, Chief Administration Officer 

The next Provost’s Drake Social will be Wednesday, Dec. 18, in the Shiver’s Hospitality Suite. The Provost is happy to make this year’s Socials family friendly. Therefore, if you have child care duties after work, please know you are welcome to bring children along. Partners are also welcome.

The December social will be preceded by a Town Hall at 3:30 p.m., in which President Martin will provide an update on the budget. The social will follow at 4 p.m.

— Drinda Williams, Office of the Provost

President Martin sent the the following video to faculty and staff in an email on Monday, Dec. 2. For questions on the Big Ideas initiative, please reach out to a member of the steering committee.

Big Ideas Steering Committee Members:
President Martin
Provost Mattison
John Smith, Vice President of Advancement
Venessa Macro, Chief Administrative Officer
Adam Voigts, Chief Financial Officer
Brian Hardin, Director of Athletics
Chris Gill, Chief Information Technology Officer
All Academic Deans
Professor Carrie Dunham-LaGree, Faculty Senate President
Scott Law, All Staff Council President
Peggy Fisher, Chair of the Board of Trustees
Alejandro Hernandez, Board of Trustees Member
Jerry Parker, Dean of Students
Professor Renée Cramer
John Miller, Chair of the National Alumni Board
Nick Johnston, Student Body President

Please plan to attend a town hall meeting on Wednesday, Dec. 18, at Shivers Hospitality Suite. President Martin will share an update on the budget. The town hall will begin at 3:30 p.m. and be followed by the Provost’s Drake Social.

The Drake Social is family friendly, and faculty or staff may include children and/or partners. Snacks will be provided, as well as soda, water, beer, and wine.

— Drinda Williams, Office of the Provost

Drake welcomes Jessica Morgan-Tate as its new Title IX Coordinator. Jessica’s experience includes work as the compliance officer for Independence Community College in Independence, Kansas, where she also served as interim director of online & continuing education. Before entering higher education, Jessica was an attorney for Lewis Brisbois, LLP in Wichita, Kansas and served as a staff attorney for the Kansas Court of Appeals. Jessica graduated from the University of Kansas School of Law in 2008 where she served on the Kansas Law Review and received the CALI Award in Criminal Procedure. She has a B.B.A. in Accounting/Business Administration from Friends University. 

Jessica’s office is located in Old Main, Room 208. She can be reached at jessica.morgan-tate@drake.edu. Welcome, Jessica!

— Venessa Macro, Chief Administration Officer

Please take the Campus Climate Survey to help us better understand the current climate at Drake University. The survey is open through Nov. 26 and should take about 20–30 minutes to complete. Your participation is an opportunity to DU What Matters.

Watch the video above as Bengu Erguner-Tekinalp, associate professor of education, shares, in her perspective, one of most significant advancements in terms of diversity, equity, and inclusion since the 2015 Campus Climate Assessment.

— Erin Lain, Associate Provost for Campus Equity and Inclusion