Tag Archives: climate assessment

Strategic Updates Archive

From the President

Welcome back from spring break! I wanted to take this opportunity to update you on a few initiatives on campus.

As you are aware, the University has undergone a comprehensive Campus Climate Assessment, including a survey and forums, during the past year. Before break, Provost Lenz sent an email to campus with an update on next steps. In it, he shared the Strategic Diversity Action Team’s recommendations on how to make Drake a more inclusive and welcoming campus. I am eager to see us turn these recommendations into initiatives that will have a positive impact on our community. Your first opportunity to get involved in these efforts will be a meeting on April 13, 3–4:30 p.m., in Parents Hall, where faculty, staff, and students will discuss a statement of diversity and inclusion to be adopted by the University in May. Your participation and feedback will be invaluable in the development of this statement.

On another note, I’m excited to announce an organizational change that will streamline and enhance the student experience and strategically integrate two important units on campus. With the impending departure in May of Tom Delahunt, vice president for admission and student financial planning, we have taken the opportunity to step back and analyze the enrollment management process at Drake. To that end, effective in the middle of July, the Office of Admission will move under the Provost’s Office. This move allows our admission efforts to more closely align with our academic programs and will create better integration of the prospective student experience with our enrollment management activities for matriculated students.

Along with this move, Keith Summerville, interim dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, has agreed to serve as deputy provost (a position that is funded, but unfilled) and take on the responsibility of providing strategic leadership and oversight for all of our enrollment management activities, including the Office of Admission and our goals of improving retention, persistence, and graduation performance. Keith’s deep understanding of the opportunities and challenges facing the University and his leadership and passionate dedication to creating the best possible student experience will be crucial in guiding this transition and in helping the institution achieve continuous improvement in enrollment management.

As part of this reorganization we are converting our current director of admission position into a new dean of admission. This position will provide day-to-day oversight to the Office of Admission and will report to Keith. Additionally, the Office of Student Financial Planning will move under the supervision of our CFO, Teresa Krejci. One side-benefit of the reorganization is that the University will realize a net savings in compensation expense.

I hope you will join me in congratulating and thanking Keith, and also in supporting this transition. I am confident that this change will benefit our students by enabling us to improve on our already stellar enrollment management services and outcomes.

Best,

Marty

Strategic Updates Archive

Climate Assessment update

The members of the Strategic Diversity Action Team are deeply grateful to the more than 300 faculty, staff, and students who took the time to participate in one of 22 next steps forums throughout the fall semester. Your thoughtful participation provided rich insights for our team to review and use to develop a set of recommendations for future action. We will analyze the information in January, and plan to share a set of action steps with the campus community in the early part of spring semester. Thank you for your continued engagement in the work to achieve meaningful diversity, equity, and inclusion on campus and to create a welcoming and inclusive community.

—Submitted by Melissa Sturm-Smith, Renee Cramer, and Michael Couvillon

Strategic Updates Archive

From President Martin

Thank you to everyone who attended one of the open forums regarding the Campus Climate Assessment earlier this week. While we have room for improvement in order to ensure Drake is an inclusive and welcoming environment, I’m confident this community can rise to the challenge. One step in that direction is that a commitment to inclusivity and diversity is now part of every senior leader’s essential job functions. Also, as mentioned at the forums, members of the Strategic Diversity Action Team will lead small group discussions to determine actionable next steps based on the survey results. I strongly encourage each of you to attend a session—sign up here.

Another topic important to all of us is campus safety. In light of recent serious crimes taking place near campus, I want to emphasize that the safety of students, faculty, and staff is a top priority for the University. Part of fulfilling that responsibility is ensuring the University is engaged in the Drake neighborhood. We have a number of formal commitments to the surrounding community and are working on ways we can continue to enhance the relationship we have with our neighbors.

As to safety on campus, you may have read in Public Safety Director Scott Law’s message in the weekly OnCampus newsletter that we are implementing additional safety measures beyond the resources already available to the campus community. One feature I want to reiterate from Scott’s message is the difference between Bulldog Alerts and Timely Warnings.

  • Bulldog Alerts are issued for situations involving an immediate threat to the health or safety of Drake students or employees. These range from natural disasters to gas leaks to criminal activity.
  • Timely Warnings are issued when a crime is reported that does not involve an immediate threat. There is also a connection between these warnings and those events for which we report statistics to the government, such as homicides, sex offenses, or robberies. The crime can occur on campus, on immediately accessible public property, or at a non-campus location, such as a remote classroom.

There are several exceptions to these general guidelines for both Bulldog Alerts and Timely Warnings. I have every confidence in Scott and his team to expertly address each case quickly, with the safety of the campus community as their top priority.

Finally, please be sure to utilize and engage with our internal newsletter, OnCampus, which goes out to all students, faculty, and staff every Monday. This newsletter serves as a centralized source of relevant information and contributes to an environment of timely, relevant, and transparent communication on campus.

Regards,

Marty