Tag Archives: community

News & Achievements Archive

Drake among top producers of Peace Corps volunteers

Drake University has made its debut on the Peace Corps’ annual Top Volunteer-Producing Colleges and Universities list, ranking No. 23 among small universities, the agency announced this week. Currently, there are eight Drake alumni serving overseas as Peace Corps volunteers.

This is the first year that the university has made Peace Corps’ Top Colleges list, which categorizes small universities as those with fewer than 5,000 undergraduate students. Since the agency was created in 1961, 269 Drake alums have served overseas. To learn more, visit the Drake Newsroom.

News & Achievements Archive

CBPA news: Week of Feb. 22

Junior marketing and accounting double major receives AMA Scholarship
Eunice Chang, a junior marketing and accounting major, has been awarded the 2015 Iowa American Marketing Association Scholarship. The $1,500 scholarship is awarded annually in partnership with Casey’s General Store to an undergraduate member of AMA Iowa in recognition of outstanding leadership, high academic achievement, and active participation in the marketing profession. Learn more about Eunice in the Drake Newsroom.

M.P.A. cohort to be offered in Ames
Drake will hold information sessions this summer for students who are interested in taking courses in Ames toward a Master of Public Administration (M.P.A.) degree. Classes for the two-year Ames M.P.A. cohort program are held on weekends, and courses are taken one at a time to allow in-depth exploration of each topic.
Applications for the Fall 2016 cohort, which has an emphasis in executive leadership development, will be accepted through Aug. 1. Information sessions will take place at the Ames Chamber of Commerce and Mary Greeley Medical Center. Classes are held in Mary Greeley Medical Center. Click here for more information.

Campus Announcements Archive, For Staff Archive

Nominations for All Staff Council now open

Nominations are open for All Staff Council. Please take a few minutes to nominate yourself or others to serve on the All Staff Council. The nomination process will close on Friday, March 4, at 8 a.m.

The following committees and number of positions are open for election:
Communications: 2
Governance: 2
Recognition: 3
Special Event/Community Service: 2
Member at Large: 1

All nominated individuals will be contacted for confirmation that they wish to run and asked to provide a brief statement about why they wish to serve on the committee.

Click here to submit your nomination. (Link may be used multiple times for multiple nominations.)

—Chrystal Stanley, Academic Achievement Coordinator, Professional and Career Development Services

Strategic Updates Archive

Painting the town blue

During the next five weeks, Drake will be on display with several billboard advertisements in the downtown area. This is part of the University’s admission efforts and the ads will be prominently displayed during the many high school athletic tournaments taking place in the metro, including state wrestling and girls’ and boys’ basketball state tournaments. These new advertisements declare our Bulldog pride and share with prospective students the outcomes they can expect by attending Drake. See example below:

15-16.7724 Undergrad Billboard Advertising_1400400

News & Achievements Archive

Drake news: Week of Feb. 15

Bill! Bill! Bill!

Bill Nye, renowned scientist, inventor, and host of Bill Nye the Science Guy, will deliver the 36th installment of the Martin Bucksbaum Distinguished Lecture Series at Drake University. “An Evening with Bill Nye the Science Guy” is scheduled for 7 p.m. Thursday, April 14, in Drake’s Knapp Center. The lecture is free and open to the public. All seating is general admission and no tickets are required. For more information, click here.


Drake to host Mandela Washington Fellowship Institute for Young African Leaders

Drake University will host 25 of Africa’s brightest emerging leaders this summer for a six-week academic and leadership institute sponsored by the U.S. Department of State. Beginning in June, Drake will host young professionals between the ages 25 to 35 who were selected to participate in the Mandela Washington Fellowship for Young African Leaders, the flagship program of President Obama’s Young African Leaders Initiative. Learn more about this exciting opportunity in the Drake Newsroom.


National Alumni Association announces 2016 Alumni Award winners

The Drake University National Alumni Association Board of Directors will recognize seven alumni with an award reception Thursday, April 28. The 2016 Alumni Award recipients represent six graduating classes and four colleges. The reception begins at 4:30 p.m., and program begins at 5:30 p.m., in the Cowles Library Reading Room.

“We are proud to honor these alumni for their loyalty, service and achievement” said Blake Campbell, director of alumni relations. “Their dedicated commitment of their time, talents and resources to Drake University and its students ensures the continued success of this great institution. See the full list of recipients here.


Forty Under 40
Thirteen Drake University degree-holders were named to the Des Moines Business Record’s “Forty Under 40” class for 2016.

The Business Record issues its annual list to honor Greater Des Moines area professionals under the age of 40 who have “demonstrated impressive career achievements and unparalleled community involvement,” according to the publication.

“We are tremendously proud of the accomplishments of these young professionals,” said John Smith, vice president of alumni and development. “Drake alumni have a meaningful impact across the globe, but perhaps nowhere more so than in our hometown. The accomplishments of this year’s Forty Under 40 class speaks volumes about Drake’s contribution to Des Moines.”

To see the full list of alumni, visit the Drake Newsroom.

Featured Events Archive

Drake to host Tracy Martin, father of Trayvon Martin, for lecture

On Saturday, Feb. 13, Tracy Martin, father of Trayvon Martin, will visit Drake as part of Black History Month programming. Mr. Martin will speak in Sheslow Auditorium from 5 to 7 pm. The event, which is free and open to the public and sponsored by the Coalition of Black Students (CBS), will include a brief lecture, a moderated conversation, and a Q&A session with the audience. CBS is designing the programming in a manner that respects and honors Mr. Martin’s grief while joining him in discussing the difficult questions that follow in the wake of his son’s death.

Attendees may submit questions online that they would like the moderator to ask Mr. Martin.

Following the lecture, CBS will host the Black on Black Banquet in Levitt Hall. The dress code for the banquet is black tie and will be ticketed. Mr. Martin will be the guest of honor. Click here to get your free ticket.

Mr. Martin’s visit is taking place due to generous co-sponsorship from the Slay Fund, the Office of the Provost, the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, the Medbury Fund, the Women and Gender Studies program, and the Center for the Humanities.

—Submitted by Melisa Klimaszewski, Associate Professor of English, Faculty Adviser, Coalition of Black Students; and Jacques Goavec, President, Coalition of Black Students

Strategic Updates Archive

Volunteer at tonight’s Brown and Black Forum!

Tonight is your chance to get up close and personal with political movers and shakers at the Brown and Black Forum! Although Drake’s entire ticket allotment has been distributed, a few volunteers are still needed for positions following the event. Volunteers would need to arrive to Olmsted Center by 8:30 p.m., so anyone attending the forum is not able to participate in this opportunity. If interested, please contact Rachel Paine Caufield at rachel.caufield@drake.edu.

—Submitted by Jarad Bernstein, Director of Public Relations and Media Management

News & Achievements Archive

University Book Club

There is still time to participate in the pilot run of the University Book Club! Copies of the book, The Kind Worth Killing, are available for checkout at Cowles Library, and a book discussion is planned for Jan. 19.

Additional Book Club information

Please contact Sara Heijerman (sara.heijerman@drake.edu) if you are interested in participating in the book discussion. Specifics on the meeting time and place will be sent to you via email.

—Submitted by Sara Heijerman, Manager, Campus Card Office

News & Achievements Archive

Make a difference with the Adult Literacy Center

The Adult Literacy Center at Drake University is seeking volunteers eager to change the lives of local adults by helping them achieve basic literacy (reading, writing, and/or speaking) skills. A tutor training will be held Friday, Jan. 22, 5–8 p.m., and Saturday, Jan. 23, 9 a.m.–4 p.m., at the Drake University School of Education, 3206 University Ave. To register, contact Anne Murr, anne.murr@drake.edu, 515-271-3982. Click here to learn more.

News & Achievements Archive

Faculty accomplishments

Yasmina Madden, visiting instructor of English, published an essay “Why I Write” in Fictionsoutheast.org, an online literary journal dedicated to short fiction.

Olga Lazareva, associate professor of psychology, begins her term as the elected president of Comparative Cognition Society (CSS) in April 2016. The CCS is an international society representing researchers in the fields of comparative psychology and animal cognition. She previously served as a secretary.