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12 drake law discovers big opportunities in small towns
14 senior domenic lamberti leads
drake men for gender equality
fall 2014
60 inmates get back on track in
alumna monica rizzo’s classroom
GLOBAL
Fitting Strategies for Worldwide Challenges
fall 2014
The traffic patterns of Houten, in the Netherlands, were transformed by a bike-first culture. Learn about more examples of sustainable development in “Willpower,”
beginning on page 25. Photo by Danny Akright.
Features
20 world piece
Place-based strategies for global challenges fit
together to build the big picture.
By Jill Brimeyer
25 willpower
Ideas generated in Europe can fuel sustainable
development options here at home.
By Danny Akright, jo’10, as’10
28’ defining global citizenship
Drake is building connections to foster understanding
and skills for a smaller world.
By Alyssa Young
Profiles
8
leslie mamoorian
The associate director of international and graduate
admission is Drake’s connection to Malaysia.
14 domenic lamberti, class of 2016
A law, politics, and society major mobilizes men to
address sexual violence and gender inequality.
56 robert ray, bn’52, lw’54
In 1975 Iowa’s governor made a bold decision,
positioning the state as a global humanitarian leader.
60 monica rizzo, jo’85 This alumna always brings her “A” game to her
classroom in the San Francisco County Jail.
Departments
4 Welcome
From the editor and staff
5 Virtually Speaking
Drake’s Facebook fans share thoughts, experiences,
and observations
6 Blue Notes
The people and stories of the Drake experience
54 Alumni Connections Drake Notes, Career Tips, and the Alumni Calendar
62
The Last Word
Driven by the Global Intercultural Imperative
By Christa Olson, Vice Provost of International Programs
63 Just for Fun COPYRIGHT DRAKE UNIVERSITY 2014
Two words: Bulldog origami!
Welcome
solving has met with setbacks. As UNICEF Senior
Immunization Specialist Maya van den Ent emphasizes,
“Localized solutions are the best solutions.”
ILLUSTRATION BY DREW ALBINSON, AS’13
i journeyed today from the United States to Iraq to
the Ukraine to Italy. All before 8 a.m. Such is the geography of
my morning newspaper. Events across time zones and oceans
make news, and we, in turn, must make sense of them.
Even the most advanced countries in the world have lessons
to learn. Danny Akright returned from a class trip through
parts of Europe that revealed sustainable development
options requiring not only innovation but also determination.
Harnessing the power of ideas within reach, he suggests in
his essay, requires mustering the willpower of U.S. leaders.
While partisanship in America can often overshadow larger
perspectives, international and multicultural awareness is key
to attaining the information and ideas that can help us make
more effective decisions about our space on this planet and
our role in the world.
Which begs the question of tomorrow’s leadership. In
“Defining Global Citizenship,” Alyssa Young shows how
Drake University is establishing itself as a learning community
that develops global citizens prepared to make vital connections,
advance intercultural understanding, meet changing workforce
needs, and address complex issues—issues that may be defined
by but are not confined by borders. Faculty members share
their intercultural experiences in the classroom, students and
alumni bring heightened awareness to worldwide issues, and
global partnerships yield extraordinary opportunities.
A better understanding of people, places, history, culture,
and events is not simply an advantage in the 21st century but
a necessity. Tourism, commerce, contraband, information,
entertainment, disease, financial markets, refugees, and even
violence transcend borders, creating enormous challenges
as well as tremendous opportunities. Our charge is to meet
and seize.
Many of those opportunities have emerged in the last decade
and a half under the leadership of Drake President David
Maxwell. Drake’s strength, stature, and achievement have
grown during Maxwell’s tenure, and in a special section of
Drake Blue presented on the flip side of this issue, we celebrate
mission and milestones as the University’s 12th president
prepares to step down.
Where to start? In “World Piece” Jill Brimeyer highlights
the priorities established by United Nations member states.
Significant progress toward some quality-of-life goals has been
made over the past decade and a half but not consistently.
Failure to adequately factor local culture into global problem
—Beth Wilson, Editor
Drake’s 12th president will step
down next June. Drake Blue
celebrates David Maxwell and
16 years of remarkable leadership.
Catch it on the flip side!
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Virtually Speaking
In six words, how would you distill your thoughts,
experiences, or observations about international
relations? Here’s what some members of our social
media community had to say:
Pursuing common interests through genuine partnership.
Troy Sheets, bn’00
Lifelong learning: a world of possibility.
Lori Jayne Heyob Ancona, gr’13
Studying abroad was about finding home.
International relations require tolerance and transparency.
Heidi (Waldman) Opdyke, jo’01
Robert Dean Brown, bn’63, gr’71
Exploring new perspectives to forge possibilities.
Studying in Italy was so great.
Lauren Phillips, as’13
Marsha Zimmerman, jo’78
Global understanding only through global thinking.
Tom Rossley, bn’82, trustee
Join the current conversation:
visit www.facebook.com/drakeuniversity follow www.twitter.com/drakeuniversity
Ask the staff ...
president
editorial
Your favorite intercultural moment?
Dr. David E. Maxwell
Danny Akright, jo’10, as’10;
Jarad Bernstein; Jill Brimeyer;
Aaron Jaco, jo’07, as’07;
Tim Schmitt, gr’08, ’10;
Theresa Sherwood;
Alyssa Young
Kristin Dunn:
Exploring history with a rugby team
of prison guards in Scotland
Jill Brimeyer:
Introducing a Mexican visitor to Iowa
ice (involuntary doughnuts!)
Beth Wilson:
Sharing sandwiches on a night train
to Romania
Tim Schmitt:
Touring downtown Des Moines with a
group of Lost Boys from Sudan
executive director,
university communications
Debra Lukehart, jo’89
editorial director
Beth Wilson
creative director
Kristin Dunn, jo’92
project manager
Brenda Kay Rodriguez
design
Emma Akerly, as’09; Micki Nelson
web communications
Carl Olsen; Jeremy Sievers
student interns
Haley Austin, Class of 2015;
Nicole Dyar, Class of 2014;
Cameron Johnson, Class of 2015;
Claire Sedovic, Class of 2015
Aaron Jaco:
Watching four Finnish cellists
perform the works of Metallica
To submit news or update your alumni profile,
contact Drake’s Office of Alumni Relations:
t 1-800-44-drake, x3152
e [email protected]
w www.alumni.drake.edu
Views expressed in Drake Blue do not
necessarily reflect opinions of the editors
or the University.
We welcome your comments and story ideas.
Send correspondence to:
Drake Blue
University Communications
Drake University
2507 University Ave.
Des Moines, IA 50311-4505
e [email protected]
follow us
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www.drake.edu/magazine
www.drake.edu/magazine
www.facebook.com/drakeuniversity
www.twitter.com/drakeuniversity
fall 2014
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blue notes
[ on the spot ]
Matching Gifts
Diane Caldbeck, ed’72, associate vice president for alumni
and development, helps University supporters shape major
philanthropic projects as well as raise funds and awareness for
Drake’s academic programs and endowment. After more than
25 years on campus—and with three children and a husband
who are all Drake alumni—she has a deep understanding of
the University. Many would say she’s done it all.
Hope Rowold Johnson, jo’94: What brought you to Drake?
What I’ve found over the years is that Drake and Diane
Caldbeck are a perfect match, but landing that first job was
purely accidental; I wasn’t out applying—I didn’t even have
a current résumé! I originally taught school for five years but
left that job to be a stay-at-home mother, which kept me busy
for 12 years. When the assistant director of alumni and parent
programs position opened up, someone at Drake suggested
I apply. And the rest is history.
Danny Akright, jo’10, as’10: What is your favorite spot on
campus and why?
Up until recently, my favorite area of campus was Helmick
Commons. I was involved in the project from start to finish,
and the space has become so central to student life. It’s special
to me for two reasons: 1) because I remember that area from
my time as a student, what we called “Hubbell Field,” and 2)
because I had the opportunity to work closely with an incredible
trustee, Bob Helmick, la’57, lw’60, who grew up on Drake’s
campus and shared my love for the University. Bob passed away
at the time the area was being dedicated—a bittersweet time but
ultimately a very meaningful project for me.
My new favorite place on campus is the Alumni House.
(The dining room of the 1901 home is shown above.) It’s
something the University has wanted for years, and it’s
exactly what we had been dreaming of—a gathering space
that fosters a family atmosphere and enhances the alumni
experience. A place that everyone can call “home.”
Peg Peterson, ed’81: What was the most fun you had on the recent
alumni cruise to Greece and Turkey, and where are you going next?
The trip surpassed all expectations. Without a doubt, the best part
was traveling with such a large group who all shared the common
bond of Drake. It was also special to me personally because I was
visiting my homeland—my grandparents were born in Greece.
And to host the trip was an absolute pleasure—more fun than
I could have imagined! We plan to host a similar trip to the
Mediterranean next June.
visit www.drake.edu/magazine for a virtual spot in Caldbeck’s famous campus tour, filled with Drake history and personal stories.
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Navigating an Industry in Flux
The answer was simple, at least for Drake’s School of
Journalism and Mass Communication: Get ahead of it. The
question was more complex: How do you prepare effective
and competitive students for an industry that’s shifting
faster than the clouds in a roiling summer thunderstorm?
short-form journalism, still photography, digital magazines—
This fall, the SJMC introduced the most sweeping overhaul
the new major was created in less than a year and serves as
of the school’s programming in decades. The changes, which
an example of SJMC’s agility.
will be fully realized next year, include shifts in the core
“We’re people who work on deadline; we know the importance
curriculum and the individual majors, plus a new, innovative
capstone experience for SJMC’s seniors. Collaboration
underpins the transformation.
from all SJMC classes.
Last spring, SJMC introduced the new, interdisciplinary
strategic political communication major. Combining aspects
of journalism, public relations, political science, and rhetoric,
of moving forward and changing as we go.” says Jennifer
Glover Konfrst, assistant professor of journalism and the
faculty member who spearheaded the strategic political
“The bright lines that used to define the various disciplines
communication major.
are increasingly blurred,” says Kathleen Richardson, director
“We train people to be flexible, so who would we be if we
of the SJMC. “Journalists have to know how to market,
produce, and find an audience for their work. There’s definitely
an increased need for collaboration within the disciplines that
we have here.”
The new capstone will bring all SJMC majors together to
create and manage a news website that’s live throughout the
school year. The site, currently scheduled to launch 2015-2016,
will feature the best multimedia journalism—video, long- and
weren’t demonstrating this as a school?”
Faculty members are dynamic in leading the SJMC’s curricular
changes, according to Richardson.
“Most of the time I’m chasing them; they’re out ahead of me
and in many cases out ahead of the industry in their energy
and their eagerness to innovate,” says Richardson. “That comes
from their relationship with their students; they’ll do whatever
it takes to give our students an advantage.”
Megan Bannister, as’13, jo’13, joined the White House press pool in covering a 2012 campaign rally in Des Moines.
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Profile
Open Arms
office of admission’s leslie mamoorian
connects students and reconnects
alumni in malaysia.
For many high school seniors, the college search
process begins with a series of campus visits. But
9,000 miles is a long distance to travel for a tour.
Nicholas Raj Jayamany, bn’09, gr’11, knew he’d have
to choose an American university from afar.
The Malaysia native’s decision centered on careful
consideration of factors like academic reputation,
financial aid, and student life—and was secured by a
conversation with Leslie Mamoorian, Drake’s associate
director of international and graduate admission.
“Leslie was one of only a few counselors who made the
trip to talk to us, and it really did help us understand
Drake better,” says Jayamany, who now lives in Malaysia
and works for the business valuation department at
Deloitte, the world’s largest professional services
network. “Given the time it took to get here, we really
did appreciate it and knew we’d be welcomed with
open arms at Drake.”
Jayamany’s story will be familiar to many international
students, particularly fellow alumni from Malaysia.
The Southeast Asian country has steadily developed
into Drake’s most consistent pipeline for international
students. Much of that growth can be attributed to
Mamoorian, who calls Malaysia her second home
after decades of annual visits.
“Leslie has been the connection to Malaysia for 25
years,” says Tom Delahunt, vice president for admission
and student financial planning. “She has helped solidify
Drake’s commitment to an area of the world that has
sent many, many students to our campus.”
Mamoorian usually spends one week a year in Malaysia
as a stop in a lengthier tour of Asia. This fall, she will
stay for two months in a focused effort to broaden
admission efforts and reconnect regional alumni with
their alma mater.
“I’ll have a chance to visit more high schools, create
more meaningful relationships with counselors and
prospective students, and connect with alumni,”
says Mamoorian.
“And if I need to fly to Singapore, Indonesia, India, or
China, it’ll be more cost-effective for Drake. There are
so many opportunities.”
Last year Drake’s student body included 339
international students from 46 countries. Nearly
half of those students hailed from Malaysia. Drake’s
distinction as a Society of Actuaries Center of Actuarial
Excellence—a designation held by only a small handful
of U.S. colleges and universities—has traditionally
been a primary attraction for Malaysian students.
Mamoorian hopes Drake can leverage the University’s
existing reputation to enhance awareness of other
fields of study, a need to which alumni can attest.
“I have come across a few people who have heard
of Drake, but our reputation is not well known unless
you are an actuarial science major in an insurance
company,” says Jayamany. “It would be great to expand
our presence here in Malaysia and get alumni involved
in local recruitment.”
International alumni stay connected with Drake
through social media, email correspondence, and
electronic newsletters. Many use Facebook to connect
with classmates, and some circles of friends make a
point of meeting in person.
“I am still in contact with close Malaysian friends and
meet some of them at least every two months,” says
Sivabalan Rajakulanayakan, bn’10, product manager at
Standard Chartered Bank Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur. “But
Drake could always do more to encourage engagement
and association among international alumni.”
Mamoorian’s extended stay in Malaysia could become
a model for future international outreach. “Drake wants
to be a stronger global player, and this is our chance,”
says Delahunt. “We have the right person in place, we
have the pipeline into key recruitment areas, and now
is the time to demonstrate our deep and continued
commitment to our international students and alumni.”
Leslie Mamoorian, associate director
of international and graduate
admission (right), catches up with
Azwirah Yasin, a junior actuarial
science major from Malaysia.
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[ making a difference ]
Drake Ties Help Immigrants Move Forward
“I know how hard it is to adjust to the United States and the way
of life here,” says Paul Foo, bn’00, an immigrant from Malaysia
who came to Drake to study finance, investments, and marketing.
“It is not an easy task.”
Since graduating from Drake, Foo has worked as a financial
planner at MassMutual in West Des Moines. Today he has a
thriving financial advisory practice where half of his clients
are immigrants like himself.
Daniel Herting, lw’11, traveled to China for a fellowship after
completing law school at Drake. He says adjusting to the new
culture was more challenging than he imagined, and he was
incredibly grateful for the people who helped him adapt, including
Zixuan Yang—who is now the one acclimating as she pursues a
Master of Laws degree at Drake.
As a reflection of its owner’s gratitude and commitment to paying
it forward, Herting Law in Des Moines now provides many services
for immigrants in Iowa.
When Herting and Foo (above, left to right) met through a
mutual friend, they quickly bonded over their Drake education
and discovered a mutual interest in immigrant issues. The two
have combined skills and passions to help newcomers from Asia
transition to life in central Iowa. Cyndi Chen, visiting instructor
of Chinese at Drake, caught wind of their efforts and jumped on
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board. The result was the birth of Next Step Immigration, an
organization that helps immigrants in Iowa access services that
support personal and professional goals.
Unfamiliarity or even distrust (of, for instance, the banking system)
can be overcome with education and guidance.
“Paul and I ran a few brief seminars during the summer
providing general information about estate planning, and they
were wildly successful,” says Herting. “Just providing that basic
information about the planning options available was clearly
something that people needed to know more about; it was a
very rewarding experience.”
Herting says he’d like to see the organization expand its offerings
with more networking events, a greater online presence, and
partnerships with other service areas.
“I became a lawyer because I wanted to help people, but in
other areas of my practice I sometimes feel my work is focused
only on the day-to-day problems,” says Herting. “With Next Step
Immigration, I really feel like I am helping with long-term
success—both for individuals and for the community.”
— Haley Austin, Class of 2015, advertising-creative
[ how to ]
Emerging Entrepreneurs
It seems everywhere you look someone is launching his
or her own business. The statistics surrounding success,
however, are daunting—on average, 25 percent of startups
fail within their first year, 55 percent by the fifth year,
according to a recent Forbes article.
Drake Blue sat down with the students to learn which factors
contribute to start-up success:
The Lorentzen New Venture Hatchery, a newly developed
program at Drake, gives students an unprecedented opportunity
to start a business while still in school. In addition to use of
office space and equipment at StartupCity in Des Moines,
Hatchery students benefit from mentoring, coaching, and
other assistance from Drake faculty and local entrepreneurs.
—Aaron Hermsen, a junior studying finance while launching
Frank’s Fixies, a company that imports, assembles, custom
paints, and sells fixed-gear bicycles.
“Step one is finding something that you honestly care for and
are truly passionate about. You need to be sure you’re able to
devote yourself to the business before you even start.”
“I once heard someone say that, ‘work is what you’re doing
whenever you’d rather be doing something else.’ I don’t believe
in that. To succeed in starting a business, you have to have
passion and drive. If you don’t believe in what you’re producing,
you aren’t going to succeed.”
—Joaquin Valdes, a junior studying finance, accounting, and
international business while launching Frank’s Fixies with Hermsen.
“Before even attempting to start a business, you have to
determine a problem that you believe you can solve. Without
a problem, there’s probably no use for your business.”
—Dylan DeClerck, a sophomore studying marketing and finance
while developing Opportunity on Deck, a sports clinic for inner city
youth (more than 115 children in the Des Moines area participate
in the clinic).
“Working in a team is a huge advantage. Even working with just
one other person can be helpful. There are a lot of unforeseen
hurdles that come up along the way, and it’s especially tough to
tackle those challenges all alone.”
—Naren Bhojwani, a senior studying marketing and entrepreneurship
while developing AP Lumina, a new brake light system designed
to help drivers better determine the braking speeds of
surrounding vehicles.
“The biggest mistake people make is rushing into things. Think
about the consumer and why they’d care about the product.
Also, read, read, read. Stay up-to-date on news related to your
business so you can always make informed decisions.”
—Benjamin Mullis, a senior studying law, politics, and society and
rhetoric and communications studies while working with Bhojwani
to develop the AP Lumina brake light system.
Naren Bhojwani (left) and Benjamin Mullis present at 1 Million Cups,
a weekly startup showcase at Green Grounds Cafe in Des Moines’
Valley Junction.
“I know this sounds cliché, but networking is beyond important.
Once I stepped out of my comfort zone and started showing my
face at places like StartupCity and the Des Moines Social Club,
I began to connect with people who eventually helped me grow
my customer base. Other entrepreneurs are excellent for
bouncing ideas off of, and they can help you start putting your
ideas in motion.”
—Kevin Clark, a senior studying English and entrepreneurship while
developing Reflex Fight Gear, training equipment and apparel for
combat sports like boxing and mixed martial arts.
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blue notes
Rural Revitalization
Jennifer Zahradnik, lw’03, and James Ries, lw’03, are a rarity. These young lawyers are dedicated to life and work in a small town and are introducing
Drake Law students—like David Grapentine, 3l, (center)—to opportunities in the rural Midwest.
If you’re looking for a dizzying breadth of professional
experience, head to small-town Iowa. That’s the lesson
David Grapentine learned this summer. The third-year
Drake Law student spent three months as an intern in Belle
Plaine, a picturesque city (pop. 2,534) about 45 minutes west
of Cedar Rapids, at law offices owned by Drake Law alumna
Jennifer Zahradnik, lw’03.
“I went from taking my last final on Thursday to moving over
the weekend, prepping documents on Monday, and Tuesday
I was in a courtroom watching Jennifer try a trial,” says
Grapentine, who also worked in property, elder, and family
law, among other areas, during his full-time paid internship.
“It’s a lot of hands-on, practical experience.”
But while Grapentine dives into work at a small-town
practice, many attorneys his age are enchanted by work at
larger firms. Rural practices across the United States are
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shuttering their windows as older attorneys retire and young lawyers
seek opportunities with higher wages and more modern amenities.
Statewide, only about 4 percent of Iowa’s attorneys are in the 33
most rural counties. Some clients drive more than 30 miles to visit
Zahradnik and her legal partner James Ries, lw’03, who are among
only 18 lawyers in Benton County (pop. 26,000). Other states have
a similar shortage—in South Dakota, for example, 65 percent of
attorneys live and work in just four cities.
“I can name 20 firms right now where their lawyers are in their
late 60s, and they have no succession plan, no idea what they’re
going to do when they retire,” says Zahradnik.
Drake Law School, the University of Nebraska, and Creighton
University have teamed with the Iowa State Bar Association
to address the shortage. The association’s Rural Practice
Internship Program is currently in its third year. More than
30 Drake Law students applied for internship positions in
small towns in summer 2014.
“Whether our alumni choose to work in rural areas immediately
after graduation or four or five years down the road, we want to
make sure they have exposure to that career path,” says Jennifer
Zwagerman, director of career development at Drake Law School.
Ben Ullem, dean of Drake Law School, says students should
consider careers in small towns—and not only because of the
thriving job market.
“The primary reason most of us enroll in law school is to help
people,” Ullem says. “Lawyers who work in small towns often
have richer opportunities for community involvement than do
lawyers in larger practices. There are fewer barriers to making
a substantive difference.”
tour scenic Main Street in Belle Plaine, Iowa, and explore life as a
small-town lawyer (online at www.drake.edu/magazine).
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blue notes
Profile
Everyone’s Issues
Junior Domenic Lamberti, founder of Drake Men for Gender Equality, is a tireless leader, says Renee Cramer, associate professor of law, politics, and society.
White, male, upper-class—the trifecta of privilege in
America. Domenic Lamberti, a law, politics, and society
junior at Drake, uses this privilege to give voice to two
issues rocking college campuses across the nation:
sexual violence and gender inequality.
Lamberti founded a student organization, Drake Men for Gender
Equality, to encourage men to talk about these topics and to
embrace their role as advocates and allies to the cause.
“During a class, Critical Race and Feminist Theory, I delved into my
privileges as a white man,” recalls Lamberti. “The conversations I
was having in my class weren’t being had outside of my major. But
gender equality and violence prevention aren’t just women’s issues;
they’re everyone’s issues.”
The group is particularly relevant now, as media coverage of
sexual assaults on campuses across the nation—and universities’
mishandling of them—has increased public awareness.
A recent Department of Justice-funded online survey found that
one in five college women reported experiencing some form of
sexual assault.
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Under Lamberti’s leadership, Drake Men for Gender Equality has
held a number of discussions and lectures by Drake faculty and
outside experts. Attendance has been steady but low; Lamberti
acknowledges the subject matter is tough to tackle.
“While people seem to recognize this as an important set of issues,
it can still be an uncomfortable and morose subject,” he says. “I feel
some people are afraid or nervous to talk about sexual violence, but
this stems from the lack of conversation on this subject in young
people’s lives.”
Lamberti is well versed in addressing challenging matters with
his peers: He served as president of his fraternity and is a peer
mentor/academic consultant for first-year students. His soft-spoken
demeanor and inclusive nature help guide other Drake men through
difficult conversations.
“Domenic mobilizes different types of leadership: At times, he is
charismatic and leading from the front of the room, at other times
he is quietly leading from within the group,” says Renee Cramer,
associate professor of law, politics, and society, who serves as
adviser for Drake Men for Gender Equality. “He is seemingly tireless
in his efforts to leave Drake better than he found it.”
[ top five ]
International Moments at Drake University
While located in the heart of the United States,
Drake University has been making global
connections since its earliest days. The shape
and form of these connections has changed
over the years, but Drake’s dedication to
internationalism has remained constant. Here
are five defining moments from Drake’s history.
1.
In front of 11,500 spectators in Tanzania’s Sheik
Amri Abedi Memorial Stadium, Drake’s football
team defeated the CONADEIP All-Stars from
Mexico 17–7 at the Kilimanjaro Bowl on May 21, 2011.
It was the first American football game played
on the African continent. Team members and
others, including Drake President David Maxwell,
also summited Mt. Kilimanjaro, completed service
work, and hosted football clinics for area children.
2.
Just five years after opening its doors in 1881, to campus in 1886. Visit www.drake.edu/magazine to view photos of and learn more about one of these students, Jeu Hawk, who came to the University from China.
Artist Myriah Kolar, ed’14, was inspired by classroom discussion of a
sixth-century text exploring the power—and inadequacy—of words.
Ineffability was installed in the Provost’s Office this past May.
[ the best place ]
Old Main’s New Art
Unbeknownst to many on campus, a small eclectic art collection
on the second floor of Old Main spans form, media, and time.
In May Ineffability—an intriguing and, for some, baffling canvas—
became the 2014 installation in Provost Deneese Jones’ office
reception area, joining seven earlier Provost Purchase Award
winners that highlight a range of student work.
Each spring faculty from the Department of Art and Design
review selections made for the Annual Juried Student Exhibition,
held in Anderson Gallery. Only one is chosen to be exhibited in
the Provost Office and eventually become part of the University’s
permanent collection.
visit www.drake.edu/magazine to learn more about Myriah Kolar’s
confounding canvas that is anything but blank.
Drake welcomed the first international students
3.
The Center for Global Citizenship was founded
at Drake in fall 2002 and was renamed The Principal
Financial Group Center for Global Citizenship in
January 2011. The Center works to ensure that global
perspectives and issues are an integral part of the
intellectual and cultural experience of all members
of the Drake community. Learn more at
www.drake.edu/cgc.
4.
Drake University’s first missionary (yes,
we did missionary work at one time) was Miss Loduska Wyrick. She was sent in 1890 to work in Tokyo, Japan. Her work as a medical missionary
was exemplary, earning her medals from the Japanese emperor and more than 8,000 letters
and testimonials from Japanese soldiers serving
in the Russo-Japanese war.
5.
Drake alumnus and trustee Johnnie Carson, la’65,
was President Barack Obama’s 2009 nominee for
assistant secretary of state for African affairs and
served in the role until 2013. He is now a senior
adviser to the United States Institute of Peace.
Read more about Carson’s distinguished career
at www.usip.org/experts/johnnie-carson.
now
students show their 2014 summer style in front of cole hall.
17
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then
all gussied up
This circa 1910 photo captures Drake students resplendent with
hats—a bowler, a tam-o’-shanter, and a golf cap. Skirts would
remain ankle-length for a few more years, and hair was not yet
bobbed. The migration from facial hair to a clean-shaven look,
however, had begun thanks to the growing availability of the
safety razor.
18
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These Drake men and women, whose names are lost to history,
are gathered on the east side of Old Main (note the Kissing Rock
in the background), just south of Howard Hall. They are likely
posing before or after hitting the links at the Waveland
Municipal Golf Course, which opened in 1901.
Every Country Is the Best at Something
INDIA
FILM PRODUCTION
(1,200+ feature films annually)
BULGARIA
Home ownership rate (97%)
AUSTRALIA
BELGIUM
NETHERLANDS
BANGLADESH
UN TONS
CONTRIBUTOR TO
Cricket World Cup victories
(4 men’s, 5 women’s)
CHICORY ROOT Tallest people (average adult height of 6’1”)
PRODUCTION
40,000+
PEACEKEEPING FORCES
(8,316)
CANADA
ANNUALLY
CHINA
RENEWABLE ENERGY
PRODUCTION
PAPUA NEW
GUINEA
SPOKEN
MOST LANGUAGES
(14 confirmed craters)
GERMANY
HIGHEST
MINIMUM WAGE
($11.60 per hour)
Olympic canoeing medals
62 TOTAL, 31 GOLD
(820)
ASTEROID PER YEAR RWANDA
HIGHEST
IMPACT
RUSSIA
790+ TERAWATT HOURS
SOUTH
KOREA
IRAN WOMEN (21.9 MBPS)
PROPORTION OF
FASTEST INTERNET
connection speeds
HIGHEST FEMALE
to male school
ENROLLMENT
(1.22 to 1)
IN GOVERNMENT (56%)
UNITED STATES
NEW BOOKS PUBLISHED
(275,000+ annually)
fall 2014
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WORLD PIECE
INTERNATIONAL STRATEGIES
FIT TODAY’S GLOBAL PUZZLES
BY JILL BRIMEYER
AT THE TURN OF THE NEW MILLENNIUM in Madhya
Pradesh, India, officials in the poor, rural district of Dhar placed 38
networked computers—the Gyandoot system—in market areas in an
effort to make government services more accessible to villagers.
Unfortunately, spotty electricity and poor connectivity took all but
10 telekiosks out of commission. While a few did work, the majority
of poorer citizens weren’t aware of their existence, and others were
uncomfortable using them. Further, it broke social norms for women and
lower caste members to use the same kiosks as the general public.
Gyandoot now serves as one of a number of cautionary tales. Tackling
the world’s biggest problems—technology access, hunger, health,
education, energy, climate change—is a bit like solving an intricate
dynamic puzzle. The overarching strategy must be paired with an
intimate understanding of the individual puzzles within—some cultural
and social, others political, financial, religious, or geographical.
Only when these individual pieces function well on a micro level can
they function together as a harmonious whole.
OUR BIG, SMALL WORLD
Our world is getting larger. All of human history was defined
by fewer than 1 billion people before 1800; today, our 7.2
billion can expect to be joined by another 2.4 billion by 2050.
Each day, an additional 220,000 people need food and
water, shelter, energy, education, and income.
At the same time, the world is getting smaller. People
travel and migrate from continent to continent with relative
ease, and technologies such as the internet, smart phones,
video conferencing, language translation apps, and more
have accelerated the rate at which ideas move to near
instantaneity. Many benefit from the strides and wonders
that nations produce while the effects of poverty, hunger,
water scarcity, disease, human rights abuses, global warming,
and other costly quality-of-life impediments continue to
reverberate around the globe.
Transnational approaches to global challenges, often driven
by a Western, Euro-centric perspective, cannot effectively
address pressing issues that transcend borders—in large
part because unique factors exist inside borders. Complex
problems require understanding of and input from diverse
cultures and experiences. The best strategies are international.
To begin to address problems on a global level, an
overarching framework is needed to help focus priorities.
Largely, that has been provided by the United Nations.
Working through its array of global sister associations, work
groups, and in-country grassroots partners, the U.N. draws
on global expertise and contacts to place boots—and
place-based tactics—on the ground.
Chris Whatley, the executive director of the United
Nations Association of the United States, recalls a time
when international efforts weren’t quite as cohesive.
“I spent my early career in the ‘90s working in development
assistance in sub-Saharan Africa, at a time in which total
overseas assistance was about a third of what it is today,”
says Whatley. “For the most part, you had individual donor
nations spending on priorities in a well-intentioned way
based on their own idea of what was the most effective
investment.”
It was the convening power of the U.N., he says, that
ultimately brought together member nations—rich, poor,
and in between—to coalesce around eight United Nations
Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The leaders
fall 2014
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the population has access to the internet. The I
nationwide effort to install computers and inst
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According to Whatley, the creation of these MDGs “took
what was 100 points of focus, all directed toward a world that
was on fire in terms of needs—HIV was screaming over
sub-Saharan Africa, you had more than 2 billion people living
on a dollar a day or less at that time—and then focused it
on eight key priorities.”
At the threshold of global polio eradication
challenges with World Health
Blue Square
Thing/Commons/Flickr
Organization’s Sona
Bari and
Wind energy
United Nations Environment
Kelstrup, Sjaelland, Denmark
https://www.flickr.com/photos/bluesquarethProgramme’s Patricia
J. Beneke.
ev
of 189 nations gathered in September 2000 to commit to
specific global objectives for addressing poverty, inequality,
disease, and pollution by 2015.
PERFECT FITS, FALSE MOVES
Every child everywhere
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ghanistan, 2011)
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Re d u ce c h
il d m o rt a li
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ext
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U.N.
Millennium
Development
Goals
(2000–2015)
di
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Maternal Health
Yasodha Ojha, a skilled birth attendant, was br
each month and is known throughout the dist
to the local clinic to have her check on the stat
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ger
David Neesley
improved sources of drinking water. Mortality rates
from
Storm Clouds
malaria fell by more than 25 percent. Measures70of
national
MPH winds blew through Chicago this week
the road from each other. This is a 3 shot panor
debt to revenue in developing countries dropped
nearly 10
percent. And the percentages of both undernourished people
and tuberculosis deaths are on target to be halved by 2015.
Still, achievement toward the MDGs has been uneven among
and even within countries. Sub-Saharan Africa and southern
Asia lag behind the rest of world in attaining MDG targets,
and daunting challenges remain in the areas of environmental
sustainability, child mortality, maternal health, HIV treatment
and prevention, primary education, and gender equality.
There have been hard-won lessons on the importance of
The progress made over the past 14 years has been called
factoring local culture into global problem solving. On the
“the most successful global anti-poverty push in history”
CBC Radio-Canada show The Current, journalist Nina Munk,
r
by U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and extends toh u n g e
author of The Idealist: Jeffrey Sachs and the Quest to End
d
n
a
multiple measures of quality of life in the developing
Poverty, described some cultural missteps of the Millennium
y world,
ert
o vhealth.
p
from income to food and clean water access
to
The
Villages Project, a collaboration of multiple nonprofit
e
em
r
t
x
proportion of people living in extreme
agencies including The Earth Institute at Columbia University.
e e poverty (on less
a t i o n The ongoing pilot project, launched in 2005, aims to
c a t globally from 47 percent
c
i
u
d
d
than $1.25 a day) has been halved
e
y
E ra
rimar
s a l p access to
1 . 2 billion people
r
to 22 percent. More than
gained
accelerate achievement of the MDGs within dozens of
e
v
i
un
2.
22
U.N. Millennium
evelopment Goals
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Achie
ve
po w er w om en
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Pr om ot e ge nd er
3.
4.
R
THE VACCINE RUNNERS A neighborly approach improves global health
In 2006, intrepid polio vaccination teams
blanketed India, traversing open sewers
teeming with refuse to blanket every
tightly packed shanty and immunize every
child. Progress was being made. But
volunteers, working through the United
Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the
World Health Organization, the Centers
for Disease Control, and Rotary International groups, noted that there was an
entire segment of the population that
continued to be infected.
“It was mostly minorities who were
not reached,” recalls Maya van den Ent,
senior immunization specialist for
UNICEF. “The programs came to the
conclusion that they were using
vaccinators and volunteers who were
from another group—they were
Hindi. If you have a health worker
from a certain tribe or village that
is not accepted in the target population,
you have a problem.”
Little by little, teams worked to mobilize
women from within these communities.
After training, these village women
educated their neighbors about vaccines,
organized vaccination sessions, and
phoned other mothers to make sure their
children attended.
“Even someone from the capital city will
not have results if they go to a remote
village,” says van den Ent. “It’s really the
link with the community that determines
the strength of the program.”
By 2011, the teams succeeded in interrupting the circulation of wild polio
virus in India. But the battle is far from
over. Just across the border in Pakistan,
as well as in Afghanistan and Nigeria,
sub-Saharan villages in various agro-ecological zones. In an
effort to alleviate hunger, the project distributed fertilizer
and high-yield maize seeds—chosen because of its nutrition,
drought tolerance, and ease of cultivation—to villagers.
It was an idea that played out better on a white board in New
York than it did in the mountains of Ruhiira, Uganda.
“Number one, the people in the village frankly didn’t even like
maize,” says Munk. “They call it prison food there because
in that part of Uganda it’s really only given to prisoners or
school children.”
Further, farmers didn’t know what to do with the enormous
yield, she says; and with no roads, finding a market was
difficult. So villagers dumped their piles of excess for rats
to devour, and the price of maize collapsed.
One of the most effective ways that U.N.-guided organizations
have avoided such culturally disastrous setbacks is to forge
close partnerships with in-country allies. Whatley highlighted
the usefulness of this kind of partnership in the U.N.’s efforts
to eradicate polio from India—recently certified by the World
Health Organization as polio free.
the preventable disease continues to be
endemic. While challenges in reaching
these countries are as varied as the
people who live there, many come down
to politics, mistrust of the Western world,
religious conflict, and violence. Since
July 2012, more than 23 polio workers
have been killed by militant groups who
are convinced that immunizations are
a front for U.S. spying. Some Muslim
factions also remain suspicious that
the vaccines are part of a Western
conspiracy to sicken or sterilize them.
“Localized solutions are the best
solutions,” says van den Ent. “One size
fits all? We cannot work with that. We
can give some broad guidance, but we
really need to adapt to local challenges
and have the input of the community to
actually provide the solutions.”
“The global effort has been a partnership with churches,
member state governments, and the Indian rural health
mission,” he says. ”The World Health Organization is
alongside all of that, providing the vaccines and technical
assistance. But who are those frontline workers, who are
often walking 10 to 12 miles to get to a village, crossing
streams with no infrastructure? It’s Indian health workers
from governmental ministries working alongside the U.N.”
THE RIDDLE OF THE FLIP SIDE
The biggest roadblock to addressing a problem in some
regions is getting people to recognize that a problem even
exists. And sometimes, with issues of gender equality,
education, and environmental sustainability, what one group
of people considers a dire problem another considers a
comfortable or even righteous status quo. In cases like these,
the U.N. may step in to serve as both outreach arm and hub
for divergent information streams. The key, says Whatley, is
how you frame the case for change.
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“Gender equity would be one of the big areas where that is
a challenge. You can view it as a human rights issue but also
as a development issue,” he says. “Improving gender equity
in education and other places has a strategic development
impact that cuts across all sectors of society and leads to
higher GDP growth.”
In regions where women are suppressed under cultural
norms, he says, the discussion centers on development
benefits.
“Either way,” says Whatley, “I think getting to the outcome
of better access for young women to education, land tenure,
the political system, and birth registries; so they’re actually
counted as individuals—the outcome is what matters.”
As the U.N. and other entities prepare to step forward with a
new set of ambitious goals beyond the MDGs’ 2015 deadline,
there is now, more than ever, a need for engaged people
with global understanding and cultural intelligence. And
the chance to contribute begins now. The second iteration
of Millennium Development Goals is employing an online
survey—at www.myworld2015.org—so that anyone with
computer and internet access can have a say in what matters
most where they live. And yes, access to technology is one
of the new priorities put forth.
“To have that kind of opportunity where citizens from around
the world can have their individual say and compare their
say with counterparts in Zambia or the Ukraine, that direct
engagement is exactly where the U.N. needs to be,” says
Whatley. “It’s where the world is.”
All photography in story courtesy of the Gates Foundation at Flickr Commons.
JUST ONE PATCH OF LAND
It’s been called the biggest crisis our
civilization has ever faced, and the trouble
zone is not where you might expect. The
Midwest is responsible for more carbon
dioxide emissions than most countries
across the globe, with the exception of
China, India, Russia, and Japan.
Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Ohio,
and Wisconsin account for 20 percent of
the carbon pollution of the world’s No. 1
producer: the United States.
“Some of it is because of how we get
our energy,” says Josh Mandelbaum, staff
attorney for the Environmental Law
and Policy Center in Des Moines. “Our
energy generation in the Midwest has
traditionally relied on a large amount of
coal, which is a particularly dirty source
of electricity. From a climate change
perspective, it creates a large amount
of carbon pollution.”
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The local benefit of clean energy fuels global change
It’s dire news with an upside, according
to Mandelbaum. “The Midwest is also
well-positioned to solve the problem.”
The region, he says, holds the nation’s
richest—and largely untapped—clean
energy potential. Solar, wind, biomass,
hydro, and geothermal power are all
options being explored, as well as other
technologies including an anaerobic
digestion system that creates fuel from
livestock manure.
It’s no secret that global warming is
a tricky issue. In 2013, 64 percent of
Americans surveyed said they believe
global warming is happening; 19 percent
said they do not (Yale Project on Climate
Change Communication). Yet most
people can get behind the need for a
cleaner environment, sustainable energy
sources, and the economics of a smaller
energy bill. That’s the case Mandelbaum
and his counterparts are making across
the Midwest, and—slowly but surely—
some pockets are reaping the benefits.
“Farmers are embracing solutions
because it’s better for their bottom
line,” he says. A good example is in
Washington County, Iowa, made up of
mostly small, rural communities with
a strong agricultural economy. “They
raise a lot of hogs, which can be a
pretty energy intensive operation. Yet
Washington County has more solar
energy than any other county in Iowa.”
Change, he says, was gradual and driven
by the farmers themselves.
“One or two people figure it out, and
you see solar panels going up on your
neighbor’s farm. You ask questions,
check it out yourself, and see that
it makes sense for you, too,” says
Mandelbaum of small, practical steps
that can add up to a large impact
around the world. “Very local solutions
are part of addressing global challenges.”
A class trip through Europe reveals America’s sustainable potential.
Willpower
by Danny Akright, jo’10, as’10
spring 2014
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I’ve always thought of wind turbines as graceful, turning slowly above the Midwestern
landscape I call home. Standing inside the base of one in the wooded hills of southern
Germany, looking up into its cavernous, dark, humming innards, gave me an entirely
different impression: powerful. Unlike most wind turbines in the United States, this
turbine in the small town of Wildpoldsried isn’t owned by a massive utility or energy
conglomerate; it is owned by a co-op of farmers and villagers. With a population smaller
than Drake’s undergraduate student body, Wildpoldsried uses this wind turbine, along
with two others, plus photovoltaic solar panels, biomass, and hydroelectricity, to power
an entire village.
Wildpoldsried is unusual in that the town’s energy production exceeds its energy needs—
it’s profitable. As a result, the village has been able to create a slew of new buildings,
including a school, a town hall, and an athletics center. Local residents are reaping both
the economic and environmental benefits of their energy entrepreneurialism. I, along
with a couple dozen other students and faculty of Drake’s Master of Public Administration
program, was there to learn how they did it.
The Environmental Performance Index—a sustainability metric created jointly by Yale
and Columbia universities and measuring the protection of human and ecosystem health
and resource management— ranked the U.S. at 33 of 178 countries in 2014. This is,
admittedly, a large gain from 2010, when the country ranked 61 of 163, but we still have
a lot to do. And a lot to learn.
Our trip wound through Europe, stopping at nine of the best examples of sustainable
development on the continent. The goal was to learn from people who’ve proven the
viability of their projects, digest those lessons, and bring them back to the United States.
Each site spoke to a particular aspect of sustainability: transportation, city development,
or renewable energy.
Houten, in the Netherlands, was totally redesigned in the 1960s and 1970s. During the
era in which the U.S. was adapting to interstate highways and massive suburbs, this city
of almost 50,000 people was transforming into a bike-first culture. Bicycles take priority
in pathway and parking, and the central area of the city is all but off-limits to cars. Because
of Houten’s layout, street design, and speed controls, bikes have become more efficient
than cars, housing density is higher, and the city is quiet except for the hum of bike tires
and the jingle of handlebar bells. Some U.S. cities have started to adapt a few of the
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strategies that make a town like Houten possible: protected bike lanes, bikes-only
stoplights, and bicycle parking lots to begin with. Despite such efforts, the U.S. car
culture remains firmly entrenched.
Vauban, an area of Freiburg, Germany, has reclaimed a former military base and
turned it into an eco-friendly neighborhood and university housing. The Western
Harbor, a district of Malmö, Sweden, transformed an industrial port into desirable—
and sustainable—housing, shops, and restaurants. HafenCity, a bright and shiny
riverside region of Hamburg, Germany, turned old piers, docks, and warehouses
into a thriving, upscale business and living area. These areas struck me as brilliant
alternatives to two American city archetypes: suburban sprawl and a downtown
that’s either dead or gentrified.
Some of the best examples
of sustainable development
were found in the HafenCity
district of Hamburg (the atrium
in the Unilever headquarters
for Germany, Austria, and
Switzerland, previous page),
in the Baltic Sea (wind farm,
top); and in Houten, Netherlands (bicycle parking at the
train station, below).
Photography by Danny Akright,
jo’10, as’10.
It’s hard not to notice the abundance of wind turbines and photovoltaic panels
throughout Germany. From wind farms off the Baltic coast and dotting the countryside like dandelions to solar panels on barn rooftops, renewable energy is a national
priority. Three years ago, Germany boasted more than twice as much solar power
as the U.S. has today, despite the fact that we have about 240 million more people
and about $13 trillion more in gross domestic product. This June, Germany generated
more than half of its national electrical grid needs from solar power alone.
Across the Atlantic, the U.S. Department of Defense has begun to account for
climate change in its war plans and is investing in methods of developing fuel from
seawater. Michael Bloomberg, Henry Paulson, and a number of other economists
and industrialists have started a group called Risky Business to highlight the serious
impact that climate change will have on our bottom line. Their concern is not shared
by many legislators and business leaders, who deny the need to invest in sustainability.
Standing on a hill in southern Germany, three wind turbines towering above me and a
village nestled below, I couldn’t help but think of how closely Wildpoldsried resembled
a small Iowa town. Within 20 years, Wildpoldsried went from an average German
farm town to a model of energy efficiency and prosperity. Germany’s sustainability
clout is huge, but it didn’t start that way; it started in villages like Wildpoldsried,
neighborhoods like Freiburg’s Vauban, and redevelopments like Hamburg’s HafenCity.
America’s lagging, but the lessons we need are right in front of us. All we need now,
it seems, is the will to get it done.
spring 2014
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Un•der•stand•ing Learning to interact
and connect with those from other
nations and backgrounds—vital in an
increasingly global workplace.
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Defining Global
Citizenship
Exploring the world in order to enrich it
By Alyssa Young
It’s a world of laughter, a world of tears
It’s a world of hopes and a world of fears
There’s so much that we share
That it’s time we’re aware…
It’s a small world after all—a phrase and song ingrained in
America’s collective consciousness with a message, crafted
in the ‘60s, that continues to resonate in the 21st century.
The melodic motif is one that Drake University has embraced,
as evidenced by the steady stream of visiting professors
from institutions around the world, a robust international
student population, and increasing study abroad numbers.
An intentional, campuswide effort to internationalize the
University and develop responsible global citizens is underway.
“We are starting to understand that the exceptional learning
environment we provide students isn’t just in Des Moines; it’s
the entire globe,” says Drake President David Maxwell. “We’re
providing those experiences in Uganda, in Belize, in China. At
the same time that we’re pushing our students into the world,
we’re also bringing the world to campus.”
Internationalization is a big concept. It’s one that encompasses
initiatives touching nearly all corners of campus and a movement
driven by personal experience and individual passion: the hopes
of an immigrant parent from Panama, the dedication of a Russian
literature scholar, a wish for peace and understanding, a desire
to change the University and the world.
The staff of Drake International is spearheading the
internationalization effort. The office oversees a number
of campus operations, including study abroad, faculty-led
seminars, and international student services. Ultimately,
according to Drake International’s Vision for 2020, Drake
will establish itself as a “global hub”—a learning community
that develops global talent, addresses pressing global issues,
enhances visibility and connections around the world, and
fosters intercultural understanding.
fall 2014
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Building Skills for a Global Workforce
As Lindsey Phelps, bn’13, jo’13, greeted the head of
marketing for Unilever Turkey at a Walgreens flagship
store in Chicago, Guclu Atinc’s voice was in the back
of her head: “Don’t get right down to business, make
sure to establish a relationship first.”
Phelps was just three months into her career at Unilever
and was unexpectedly solo, giving her Turkish colleague
a tour of the store and discussing business strategy and
sales performance. By reaching out before her meeting
to Matthew Mitchell, assistant professor of international
business, she connected with Atinc, then assistant professor
of management and international business at Drake, who
gave her a basic understanding of how business is done
in Turkey, Atinc’s native country. Phelps strove to get
acquainted with her colleague, learning about Turkish coffee
shops and marketing tactics in his country in the process.
Experiences like Phelps’ are rapidly becoming the norm in
a changing world. By the end of the century, 80 percent of
the world’s population will live in Africa and Asia, and only
10 percent will live in the West. The end of the century is
a ways off, but consider this: More than 95 percent of the
world’s consumers currently live outside of the United States.
It’s safe to say the need for global talent—graduates with
experience in other countries, intercultural understanding,
and foreign language abilities—can only increase in the U.S.
“If you’re going into the workforce, you need to have basic
skills that enable you to work with people from around the
world,” says Mitchell. “How many Fortune 500 companies
aren’t conducting international business? None.”
Drake students are increasingly aware of the skills
needed in a smaller world. First-year enrollment in the
international business major doubled this academic year.
The department’s current research includes a focus on
Islamic finance, an unfamiliar business model for Western
perspectives in which religion has minimal influence in
commerce. But the Islamic financial industry is growing
at a rate 50 percent faster than conventional finance
companies and is expected to be worth more than $2 trillion
by the end of 2014.
The Principal Financial Group Center for Global
Citizenship raises awareness and sparks conversation
about important international issues. Learn more online
at www.drake.edu/academics/undergraduate/global/cgc.
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Muhamad Iqbal Mohd Rafi, an economics and finance double
major from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, recently completed
research on Shariah-compliant financial markets and the
effect of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan on those
markets. Shariah, or Islamic religious law, forbids making
money from money—so interest, for example, is prohibited.
Investment in companies involved with alcohol, gambling,
tobacco, or pornography is also off limits.
“This research allows me to help Western businesses
understand how they can tap into this socially responsible
investor market by offering Shariah-compliant products,”
says Rafi. “I would like them to understand that Shariahcompliant products are not only for Muslims. For instance,
there are Islamic banks in Malaysia with a customer base
that is 95 percent non-Muslim.”
As a state-sponsored student, Rafi will return to Malaysia
to work for his government upon graduation. He will take
his understanding of Western business practices with him
while leaving behind a better appreciation of how religion
and business intersect in other parts of the world.
Beyond internationally focused majors, Drake International
staff and the University’s faculty are working to ensure
intercultural perspectives are integrated into majors across
campus. John Rovers, professor of pharmacy practice, brings
his extensive international experience to the classroom
through stories from time spent in Mali and Vietnam. He
recalls treating a few-months-old infant in Mali whose
mother had died. The child’s grandmother was breastfeeding
her own newborn but did not want to do the same for her
grandchild, requesting formula instead. Rovers says such
a story highlights numerous public health issues such
as formula versus breastfeeding, Malians’ preference for
modern Western culture, and the young age at which
women have children in that country.
Rovers is not an anomaly on campus; he is part of a growing
number of faculty bringing intercultural experience to
the Drake classroom—giving students the foundation for
successful global careers and lives. Drake alumni from a
variety of majors work all over the world: conducting research
in Costa Rica; teaching English in Seoul; advising students
for the U.S.-U.K. Fulbright Commission in London; battling
pandemics for The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis,
and Malaria in Geneva. In fact, Drake alumni live and work
in 98 countries, while countless others are employed at
multinational companies domestically.
Jour•ney Discovering new perspectives
while studying abroad in more than
70 countries.
Changing the World: Pipe Dream or Possibility?
Just a few blocks from beautiful beaches, where aquacolored water laps the sand and cliffs meet the Caribbean
Sea, was a country in disarray. The magnitude-7 earthquake
that rocked Haiti in 2010 was six months passed—along with
it the attention of the world. But families were still homeless,
living in plastic tents in steamy 80-plus-degree weather,
crammed together on any available land. A cholera epidemic
was in full force—the first outbreak in the country in more
than a century and one that would claim more than 8,000
lives by 2013.
Daniela Bermeo Torres, as’08, was in the midst of it,
working in the Canaan displacement camp to construct
temporary housing to replace the zinc and plastic lean-tos
slapped together in the immediate aftermath. During
her one-year experience, Torres absorbed the Haitian
culture, learning Creole and riding colorful tap taps (local
public transportation). She also witnessed the politics
and complicated challenges surrounding multinational
organizations, which redirected her career and eventually
led her home to Ecuador.
Torres’ story is one of transcending physical borders and
cultural differences to effect change. It’s a story that’s
becoming more commonplace among Drake students,
alumni, faculty, and staff.
“Students are aware of worldwide issues that no single
country can deal with alone, such as global warming and
hunger,” says David Skidmore, professor of politics and
international relations and director of The Principal Financial
Group Center for Global Citizenship, a forum exploring
complex international affairs and hosting world leaders,
such as U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon (pictured on
page 33). “They understand that they must develop a global
perspective on those problems that their generation faces
if they are to be solved.”
That heightened awareness has led students and alumni
to all corners of the state, nation, and globe to tackle
world-altering issues.
Stephen Rapp, lw’74, served as chief of prosecutions at
the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, prosecuting
criminals from the 1994 Rwandan genocide. Since 2009,
about 20 pharmacy students a year spend a rotation in
Hillside Health Care International Clinic in Belize, often
loading their luggage with books and medical supplies for
the community. A group of Drake students initiated plans
for the Kikandwa Health Centre in Kikandwa, Uganda,
raised the needed funds, and broke ground in 2013.
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A•ware•ness Sharing culture and heritage
with more than 300 international students at
the annual International Night on campus.
Finding Common Ground
Briefly, the glimpse of a young man as he looks through the
camera lens to focus the shot. Once the camera is fixed to
his person, the viewer is whipped around Shanghai, weaving
between cars down narrow streets lined with closely built
cement buildings. Passersby barely give a second look.
The YouTube video “Fixed in Shanghai” captures Drake
students Joaquin Valdes, finance, accounting, and
international business triple major, and Aaron Hermsen,
finance major, as the two ride “fixies”—fixed-gear bikes,
which are extremely popular in China—during their time
abroad. That video, and the fixie culture in China, sparked
the idea to sell fixies in Des Moines. The bikes were
originally imported from China, where the two students
made contact with a local manufacturer. Funded by
the Lorentzen Student Hatchery—a venture at Drake
fostering student startups (learn more on page 11)—Valdes
and Hermsen are introducing a new kind of activity to
the community.
Grassroots connections like those made by Valdes
and Hermsen, paired with strategic partnerships with
organizations around the world, are setting Drake apart
in higher education, says Christa Olson, vice provost
for international programs.
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“What distinguishes Drake from our peer institutions is the
commitment we have to developing a select number of global
partnerships into multifaceted, high-impact relationships,”
says Olson. “Another distinguishing factor is the engagement
of leaders from the Des Moines community—such as
Luis Valdés from Principal International—in connecting
Drake with relevant institutional partners.”
Thanks to these global collaborations, Drake has been part
of a number of worldwide firsts. Drake law students were
the first U.S. legal group to study agricultural law in Cuba,
which in turn led to a visit from the first Cuban professor
of agricultural law to be granted a visa to the U.S. since
the 1962 embargo.
The first American football game played on the African
continent launched one of the University’s strongest
global partnerships. Drake athletes competed against a
team featuring players from Technológico de Monterrey
(Monterrey Tec), now a partner university in Guadalajara,
Mexico. Drake has enjoyed one of its richest collaborations
with Monterrey Tec, including faculty exchanges and, most
recently, a hands-on teaching experience in which Drake
secondary education and English majors worked—both
online and in person over spring break—with Prepa Tec
(a preparatory school for Monterrey Tec) students on
a semester-long writing project, providing feedback
and mentoring.
The next step in the partnership: a J-Term class at Monterrey
Tec with the men’s and women’s soccer teams. In a unique
set up, both teams will take a course in international business
(fulfilling a major or Area of Inquiry requirement) while
playing a number of games against local teams and training
in the warmer weather.
Sean Holmes, men’s soccer head coach, says such an
experience is unusual in Division I soccer. Most teams
head to England or Western Europe, and they only play
soccer. While the Bulldogs will be playing fútbol matches,
the academic focus of the trip will make for what Holmes
hopes is a more meaningful experience.
“I want them to remember this as a defining time in their
college career,” says Holmes. “I want them to leave with
an appreciation for the world. I want them to leave having
made friends from another country.”
The development of stronger global partnerships aims to
enhance intercultural understanding, perhaps the most
crucial piece of the puzzle—and most difficult to achieve.
Amelia Piecuch, as’13, is one 27 Drake students since 1997 to
receive a Fulbright Scholarship. (In fact, Drake is one of the
top five producers of Fulbrights among master’s institutions.)
Piecuch’s grant is funding research on the effects of new
fishing laws on local and artisanal fishermen in Chile.
“Originally I had planned to conduct interviews with local
fishermen,” says Piecuch. “But I’ve had trouble getting
past the obstacle of credibility. People take my background
into account and give me the responses they think I want
to hear as an American.” To overcome this bias, she’s
developed connections and tactics to build trust within
these communities.
Piecuch also notes the difficulties of making friends in a
country where friendships are traditionally set in stone from
an early age. Here she’s discovered a solution: She joined
a running club.
“My club is made up with people from all over Chile, all
different age groups and various professions,” says Piecuch.
“It has encouraged me to go outside my bubble and has
made me feel part of a community.”
And this, perhaps, is what is at the heart of intercultural
understanding: accepting and navigating differences while
also finding common ground. After all, it is a small world.
Con•nec•tion Inspiring deeper
reflection and sharing ideas with world
leaders and the Drake community.
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SUPERSTAR
With matching pink tutu and toenails, Lucey, winner of the
2014 Beautiful Bulldog Contest, quickly became a media darling.
Following her victory over 49 competitors in the 35th annual
competition, Lucey was featured on the “Today” show, “Good
Morning America,” in The New York Times, Huffington Post, U.S.
News & World Report, and The Daily Telegraph in the United Kingdom,
among other media outlets. Overnight fame hasn’t changed her.
Lucey continues to represent Drake—and bulldogs everywhere—
with poise and grace.
Update
do something groundbreaking
At the start of any academic year, there is always a
bit of magic in the air—a sense of new possibilities
inspired by our incoming students as they take the
first steps toward achieving their dreams.
I have to admit, their enthusiasm is contagious, and in
this culminating year of distinctlyDrake, excitement on
campus is greater than ever. Since the beginning of the
campaign, the generosity of our alumni and friends has
truly transformed the University. We’ve raised more than
$185 million for scholarships, campus improvements,
and new and expanded opportunities for students.
While I have immense pride in what we have already
achieved, my passion for what we have planned is even
greater. As you’ll read in the following pages, we have set
our sights on a new state-of-the-art science and education
complex that will shape Drake’s future and enhance the
University’s already exceptional learning environment.
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As always, these incredible changes are being made possible
through the leadership and generosity of the Drake community.
I hope you will join us as we seek to propel this University
forward through the visionary initiative,STEM@DRAKE.
—John Smith, as’92, gr’00, Vice President for Alumni & Development
$200 million
$100 million
$0
STEM@DRAKE:
Leading the Way in
Science and Education
Drake has a bold plan for transforming the way students
engage with math, science, and technology, as well as the
way the University prepares educators who will lead and
inspire tomorrow’s innovators.
STEM@DRAKE—with its ‘E’ for education—is a forwardthinking strategy that will connect science, technology,
education, and math in a distinctive, interdisciplinary learning
environment. The campus-wide effort will build on Drake’s
success in the sciences and education, lead to innovative new
programs and majors at the undergraduate and graduate level,
and attract the best and brightest students and faculty to
Drake University.
It will also make a considerable impact on traditional STEM
education at the k-12 level. The School of Education will be
relocating to the new STEM@DRAKE complex, enabling future
teachers and administrators to learn alongside those training
for professions in science, math, and technology.
“The overarching goal of STEM@DRAKE is to position
the University so we are not just providing an exceptional
21st- century science education but also serving as a
proponent and driver for it,” says Joe Lenz, dean of the College
of Arts and Sciences. “We are going to move the School of
Education back to campus and literally connect it with the
sciences, math, and computer science. The goal is not just to
produce students who will go to medical school or conduct
research in the sciences but also develop those who will be
teaching math and science in the k-12 system. We’re looking
at this not only as something we are doing for our students
but also something that has the potential to influence students
in the 12 years before they even get to us.”
Achievement of this vision requires significant capital
improvements. Drake University plans to build a state-of-theart STEM@DRAKE complex—a place filled with leading-edge
technologies and innovative spaces designed for learning,
research, experimentation, and cross-disciplinary connections.
The proposed project includes three distinct components:
•
A connector building to link the programs in Olin Hall
(biology, psychology, environmental science and policy)
with those in Harvey Ingham and Cline halls (chemistry,
physics, pharmacy, health sciences) to create a hub for
communication and cooperation across disciplines
•
A new academic building south of and connected to Olin
Hall to house the School of Education, as well as the math
and computer science departments
•
The renovation of Olin and Harvey Ingham to create
flexible classrooms and laboratories that that can
accommodate a variety of learning styles
“We recognize that science isn’t advanced in isolation,” says
Lenz. “It is done in a community. We’re deliberately designing
these buildings so students and faculty across disciplines can
better connect with one another.”
The first stages of this initiative began this summer with
renovations in Harvey Ingham. The project will only
become a reality with powerful philanthropic support.
Visit www.distinctly.drake.edu.
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Update
Opportunity of a Lifetime
It’s been nearly 70 years since Joan Gerling, ed’45,
graduated from Drake, and she still fondly remembers
her time at the University.
“This is where I spent two years, living in the dorms and
having a normal life,” says Gerling, “so Drake has always
been significant for that reason.”
Gerling attended Drake at the height of World War II. There
were few men on campus, and she, like many female students,
spent her second year volunteering at Des Moines’ Mercy
Hospital as a nurse’s aide.
“I felt that I was doing some good and helping during the war,”
she says.
While her time at the hospital was meaningful, it was her local
student teaching placements at Hubbell and Greenwood
elementary schools that helped her uncover her true passion:
education. Those placements began a 20-year teaching career
that was driven by a deep concern and love for her students.
She remembers enjoying it so much that she once told her
principal that she would teach for free.
“I loved teaching the children,” she says. “I enjoyed third grade
the most, though I taught second and fourth at other times.”
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She retired from teaching in 1968, but the students—and
Drake—have never been far from her mind. Or her heart.
A decade ago, she created the Joan Huber Gerling Endowed
Scholarship to help undergraduate or graduate students who
are pursuing a teaching license in elementary education
attend Drake.
In recent years, she has developed a close friendship with
Dean of the School of Education Jan McMahill. They meet
a few times a year in Burlington, Iowa—at a restaurant
appropriately named The Drake—to reconnect and chat
about the University.
When they meet, the conversation inevitably turns toward
the new home for the School of Education. The building—
which will connect with Olin Hall in the STEM@DRAKE
complex—is a shared passion and an endeavor Gerling has
supported generously.
“Jan talks about how important this project is, and I want
to do something I think will be very good for the School of
Education,” says Gerling.
As one of the building’s biggest advocates, she is eager
to see it break ground.
“I think it will be wonderful,” she says. “I just keep telling Jan,
‘I hope this will happen in my lifetime.’”
A Father’s Inspiration
Strengthens Tomorrow’s
Science Teachers
Todd Shaw, bn’86, had many meaningful teachers as a child.
He remembers several in middle and high school that were
“really tough and had high standards”—something he has
grown to appreciate over time. But the biggest influence on
his life is a long-time principal and beloved teacher who he
knows simply as “Dad.”
His father, Donald Shaw, ed’54, gr’62, worked in the
Des Moines public school district for nearly 50 years, first
as a teacher, then as a principal and administrator. Todd, and
his wife Elizabeth, honored this commitment by creating the
Donald D. Shaw Family Scholarship at Drake University.
“My dad is one of those people I look up to,” says Todd. “I
remember being struck by how much respect and love there
was for my dad from the people he worked with. There is
incredible value in educating people, and I aspire to contribute
as much to people’s lives as he did.”
The scholarship is designated for education majors who will
teach in the traditional STEM (science, technology,
engineering, and math) fields, combining two of Donald’s
interests—science and education.
“One of my dad’s early passions in life was becoming a
doctor,” says Todd. “He served in a MASH (Mobile Army
Surgical Hospital) unit in Korea. He ended up there because
originally he was studying pre-med before he switched to
education. I think he appreciates that we are helping kids in
elementary and middle school get a good education in the
sciences and helping other people toward that path.”
As chief human resources officer for Verifone, a payments
technology company, Todd also has a personal interest in
helping STEM education improve.
“In my profession, I see a huge need for education in
technology and math,” he says. “We need to send a lot
more kids out of school prepared in those disciplines.”
Todd believes well-trained teachers are the key to improving
STEM education, and he hopes others who share his passion
consider supporting existing scholarship funds—or creating
a new one.
“If we can help a few people over the years, really good people
that we help afford an education at a great place like Drake
and allow them to become teachers in the public school
system, I will feel very fortunate.”
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Update
Alumni Challenge:
Pay It Forward
Though School of Education alumni Debbie and Ric Scripps
received their degrees from Drake in the 1970s, they describe
their Drake experience much as students do today: an
education characterized by valuable real-world experiences
and the close guidance of dedicated faculty.
“I had fantastic instructors,” says Ric, ed’70, who taught
middle school for several years. “I remember one that taught
me a very basic concept I used throughout my teaching career:
Kids learn differently. You have to teach everything three or
four different ways.”
“The hands-on experience was valuable,” adds Debbie, ed’72,
a former first-grade teacher. “It made me a better teacher.”
Ric and Debbie no longer work in the classroom, but they
remain committed to education and the school that brought
them together. Debbie provides leadership to Drake as a
member of the board of trustees, and Ric and Debbie have
given generously to the building project that will provide a
new home for the School of Education.
“We’re putting our money where our heart is,” says Debbie.
“Drake gave us the opportunity to further our lives, and we
have the opportunity to repay that. We hope that students feel
the same way—that they have a wonderful Drake experience
and pay it forward someday.”
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The Scripps see tremendous value in the new building, which
will be part of the STEM@DRAKE complex. They particularly
appreciate its potential to closely connect Drake’s education
majors with students and faculty in the math and computer
science departments—to be housed in the same new
building—and the sciences.
“The School of Education is currently not on campus, so for
it to gain a presence is important to us and also important for
the students, so they can feel they are a part of the campus
experience,” says Debbie. “The ties to math and science are
also beneficial. The building will be interdisciplinary and
enhance the educational experience for the students.”
While many individuals have given generously to the School of
Education building project, the Scripps hope more alumni will
invest in the future of the School of Education and its students,
especially as the endeavor nears its fundraising goal.
“This is an effort by a great number of people,” says Debbie.
Because of their passion for the project, the Scripps have
issued a challenge for fellow Drake graduates. They will match
gifts to the School of Education building from alumni and
friends dollar-for-dollar up to $250,000.
“This helps send the message of how important we think this
is,” says Ric. “We are not alone in this.”
Take the Scripps Challenge!
Visit www.alumni.drake.edu/scrippschallenge.
Don, bn’67, and Carol Fletcher are passionate supporters of
the University—and they hope to inspire the same generosity
in other Drake alumni and friends.
For more than a decade, Don has made substantial
contributions of time and talent to the University. He is a
current member and past chairman of the Drake University
Board of Trustees and has served as a career adviser and a
member of the College of Business and Public Administration’s
National Advisory Board.
Don and Carol have also bolstered the University through
philanthropy, creating a scholarship fund to aid Drake students
from Liberty, Missouri, and supporting The Drake Fund—which
addresses the most immediate needs of the University.
Boost Your Gift
Be part of the Fletcher Challenge:
Don and Carol Fletcher will match
all new and increased gifts to
The Drake Fund this fiscal year
up to $100,000. Don’t miss the
chance to make an even bigger
impact on Drake.
This challenge represents how strongly Don and Carol believe
in distinctlyDrake and The Drake Fund and their desire for
others to join them in supporting distinctlyDrake in its final year.
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THE BLUE SHEET
College of Arts & Sciences
as the world turns
far and away
This summer fans across the globe came together to celebrate
the phenomenon that is the World Cup. Even the United
States was thoroughly caught up in the frenzy—at least until
we were eliminated. Being part of a global event was fun
while it lasted, and it served as a reminder that in everyday
life, not just in sporting events, we need to participate fully
as global citizens. At Drake University we are striving to
create citizens who are consistently, not occasionally,
engaged in the world.
It is ironic. As our Office of Admission will no doubt confirm,
prospective students spend years carefully determining that
our distinctive learning environment is right for them and
that Drake is the place they want to be. And yet almost from
the moment they arrive, we are encouraging them to go away,
whether for a summer internship, a three-week intensive
travel seminar, or a transformational semester abroad. This
past year, for instance, 133 A&S students spent all or part of
the academic year studying in 28 different countries including
Brazil, Japan, Israel, Cameroon, Italy, and New Zealand.
Like the rest of the University, we in the College of Arts and
Sciences have adopted various strategies in our effort to
foster engaged global citizens. On the one hand, we provide
opportunities for our students to visit destinations around
the globe, encouraging long- and short-term international
experiences that provide direct contact with other languages,
other cultures, other ways of living and doing. On the other
hand, we are internationalizing the curriculum, infusing
our courses—and not just those that are, by definition,
“international”—with multiple perspectives. The more our
students understand that knowledge is interconnected
and interdependent, the better able they will be to engage
with and contribute to the world of the 21st century.
Even more students took advantage of our J-Term (a threeweek session between semesters in January) travel seminars
in 2014. These seminars, limited to 20 students and typically
team-taught, are designed to integrate topic and locale. For
instance, the International Environmental Seminar, led by
David Courard-Hauri, associate professor of environmental
science and policy, took students to Ecuador and the
Galapagos Islands. For Islam in the 21st Century, students
traveled with Mahmoud Hamad, associate professor of
politics, to Egypt and Turkey. And to study Risky Business:
European Roots of Actuarial Science, Deborah Kent, assistant
professor of mathematics, led a group of students to London,
where in the 18th century the insurance industry was born.
Just mentioning the titles and the places, however, does not
communicate the full scope of what the students study,
encounter, and experience. To begin to do that, I’d like to
focus on two trips in more detail.
south of the border
Contemporary Urban Mexico, designed by Darcie Vandegrift,
associate professor of sociology, and Eduardo García-Villada,
assistant professor of Spanish, drew from staff and facility
resources of a new partnership with Tecnológico de Monterrey,
Guadalajara campus (ITESM). Drake students learned about
everyday life in contemporary Mexico through hands-on
interactions in flea markets, the chamber of commerce,
community social movements, the U.S. Consulate, Sunday
Catholic Mass, an upscale shopping mall, and an elementary
school, as well as engagement with students and experts
from ITESM.
Students visit Old Delhi’s Red Fort—home to Mughal emperors for
nearly 200 years—as part of the 2014 January Term course, India on
the Eve of Independence.
THE BLUE SHEET
fall 2014
The class met with journalist and television commentator
Eduardo Gónzalez, an expert on migrant lives and culture.
The students toured two shrines dedicated to the Death
Saint, a popular religion in Mexico that recognizes the
realities of migration and drug violence. Student participant
Carly Kinzler comments, “It’s amazing how much one’s
perspective can change from a three-week trip.”
For alumni and friends of the Drake University College of Arts & Sciences
dean, college of arts & sciences
development staff
Joe Lenz
Doug Lampe
[email protected]
As news reached the U.S. this summer about child
migrants traveling through Mexico by train, Vandegrift
thought back to the conditions witnessed on field site
visits to the tracks and receiving centers where these
children pass: “The train is referred to as ‘La Bestia,’
the beast. These journeys claim hundreds of migrant
lives each year.”
[email protected] | 515-271-3055
They met around the conference table to engage in often fierce
and passionate debates about whether India could or should
remain one country or about how democracy could guarantee
freedom of religion if religious practices differed and clashed.
Six months after it ended, the class is still discussing
the lessons learned during the course through an active
Facebook page. Kinzler adds, “I understand the importance
of being an ambassador for a neighboring country, because
people know so little about life in Mexico.” Kinzler published
her project on non-governmental organizations and democratic
development in the spring 2014 issue of the Drake University
Social Science Journal. All students created individualized
research projects on topics such as the new middle class,
women’s gender roles, and definitions of health and wellness.
Three students completed additional certification in cultural
competency in Spanish.
This reacting game has been taught on campus and has
always been intense and absorbing for students. But it was
all the more powerful for students to actually be on-site in
India to see Shimla and the Viceregal Lodge where the actual
conferences were held; to see the very bullet holes in walls of
the Jallianwala Bagh in Amritsar, the site of the 1919 Amritsar
Massacre; to visit Hindu temples and Islamic mosques and
the Sikh Golden Temple filled with devout worshippers. The
presence of these shrines and the multitudes of present-day
Indians who live and worship in them brought the struggles
of the past deeply and vividly to the students’ consciousness.
In short, history wasn’t history, the dead hand of the past,
anymore; it was lived reality, with very present and
determinative meaning for millions of people including,
now, the Drake students who became “midnight’s children.”
a passage to india
world cup
Those of you familiar with the novels of Salman Rushdie
(one of our previous Bucksbaum lecturers) will especially
appreciate this next seminar. Elizabeth Robertson, associate
professor of English, and Tim Knepper, associate professor
of philosophy and the Ron Troyer Research Fellow for
2014–2015, created their course, Developing Democracy:
Critical Political, Social, and Religious Issues: India on the
Eve of Independence, 1945–1947, to introduce students to the
richness and complexity of Indian political and social history
in the period leading up to independence. They also examined
the vital role diverse religious beliefs and practices played in
the establishment of India and Pakistan.
Finally, as evidence that our efforts to internationalize
our students’ experiences does, in fact, produce engaged
global citizens, let me close by mentioning our three recent
graduates, all veterans of Drake travel seminars, all recipients
of Fulbright Scholarships for 2014–2015 to assist their service
to the global community. Nora Sullivan, as’14, received an
award to teach English in Bulgaria. Nicole O’Connor, ed’14,
received an award to teach English in Malaysia. And Erin
Hassanzadeh, as’14, jo’14, received an award to teach English
in South Korea. The Fulbright Scholarship is one of the most
competitive postgraduate international exchange programs
in the nation. Historically, Drake University has been one
of the top institutional producers of Fulbright Scholars, with
25 in the past decade—of which 20 were humanities and
social science majors. Our goals are to foster intercultural
engagement, to develop global talent, and to enhance
our visibility and connections around the world. I think
we scored.
The course featured the Reacting to the Past pedagogy
developed at Barnard College, a pedagogy that engages
students in elaborate role-playing as they recreate the
debates, factions, and divisions of a society at a moment
of crisis. For instance, a “game” might reenact the trial of
Galileo, the Declaration of Independence, or, in this case,
the end of British colonialism and the partition of India and
Pakistan. Thus, even as they traveled in New Delhi, Shimla,
and Amritsar—visiting temples and historical sites important
to the establishment of independence in India—students were
researching their roles as Jawaharlal Nehru, as Mohammad
Ali Jinnah, as a Sikh leader, as Mohandas Gandhi adherents.
fall 2014
THE BLUE SHEET
THE BLUE SHEET
College of Business & Public Administration
cbpa’s promise to its students is delivering
unexpected benefits—not only to students but also
to a community that extends well beyond the walls
of Aliber Hall.
Two projects are particularly noteworthy:
• Kikandwa Health Centre: The design and construction of
this health center in rural Uganda is a result of collaboration
among Drake faculty and students, the Rotary Club of
Des Moines A.M., the Iowa-based Shining City Foundation,
community leaders, church leaders, and the Rotary Club
of Kampala South in Uganda.
• International Business Young Scholars: A program to
provide Ph.D.-level research training as well as publication
and presentation opportunities for undergraduate students
interested in global issues.
What is particularly striking is that both programs involve
students from across the Drake campus.
Our Promise: The CBPA prepares our
learners to succeed as leaders and global
citizens by bringing the world into the
classroom and the classroom into the world.
kikandwa health centre
This collaboration first began in 2004, when Jimmy Senteza,
associate professor of finance, invited colleague Tom Root,
associate professor of finance, on a visit to his native Uganda.
In the decade since, collaborative activities have included
faculty and student exchanges with Makerere University
Business School (MUBS), joint faculty research projects,
and exchange visits by MUBS and Drake administrators.
The centerpiece of the collaboration is the annual
three-week seminar that has taken more than 160 Drake
students to Uganda to study a variety of issues related
to sustainable development in this resource-rich but
underdeveloped country. Participants define a research
project; collect data as they visit schools, clinics, political
offices, and businesses in Uganda; and write a report upon
their return. The participants, who include students from
pharmacy, pre-med, political science, education, and biology
as well as business, are paired with MUBS students
throughout their travels in Uganda.
THE BLUE SHEET
fall 2014
Over the years, the program has increased its emphasis
on service-learning, the hands-on experience that integrates
classroom material with meaningful community service.
One such project began in the summer of 2011, when faculty
visited Kikandwa, a rural village that relies on cash crops
such as coffee and bananas. During and following the trip,
village elders identified the need for a health center and
students began planning and fundraising in 2012. In spring
2012, students on the seminar were split into two groups.
One group worked with MUBS students to conduct a fullday survey to determine what types of services were needed
and should be offered at the center. Another group of
Drake and MUBS students reviewed preliminary site plans
for the health center with the villagers, discussing how
the center should be structured in order to be sustainable.
Based on feedback, students concluded that Kikandwa not
only needed health care services, but also health education
and preventive care.
The site plans and recommendations were turned over to an
architect associated with the Rotary Club of Kampala South.
About the same time, the Mukono Diocese of the Church of
Uganda donated land for the health center. Groundbreaking
for phase one (treatment rooms, laboratory, waiting room,
and pharmacy) took place during the students’ visit to the
village in June 2013. The Rotary Club of Kampala South
supervised the construction.
During that same summer, Drew Harkins, a senior biology
and philosophy double major, spent two weeks in Kikandwa
developing a detailed site map of health care services in the
area. “They have so few resources,” says Harkins, who found
that the most immediate need was for prenatal and maternity
care, as well as immunizations and specialties such as dental
and vision services. Harkins also met with local school and
community leaders to identify ways to partner with the
community for health education.
In the fall of 2013, Drake students prepared the first draft of a
memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the Church
of Uganda, members of the Kikandwa community, Rotary
Club of Des Moines A.M., and the Rotary Club of Kampala
South. When finalized, the MOU will specify the terms of the
operating model for the health center, including the surgical
and inpatient facilities to be developed over the next three to
five years.
Students also led fundraising efforts for the center. Emily
Raecker, a marketing and finance double major who was in
For alumni and friends of the Drake University College of Business & Public Administration
dean, college of business
& public administration
development staff
Terri Vaughan
Michael Peterson
[email protected]
[email protected] | 515-271-2132
Drake students celebrate phase one of the new health center with Kikandwa residents in June 2014.
Kikandwa for the 2012 kickoff, has played a major role in the
fundraising effort. Raecker notes that the villagers “needed
so much. It was wonderful that Drake’s involvement provided
a stimulus for the project.” Back on campus, Raecker worked
to obtain a large number of small donations from students
and students’ families as well as a $20,000 grant from the
Shining City Foundation. By the end of the 2012–2013 academic
year, the students had raised more than $42,000. During the
2013–2014 academic year, they obtained a commitment for a
donation of a 40-foot container of repurposed medical
equipment and raised an additional $15,000 to cover the
cost of shipping it to Kikandwa.
Phase one of the health center was dedicated during the
students’ visit in June 2014 and is expected to open in the
fall of 2014.
“It was so exciting to see the how much the students’ efforts
meant to the residents of Kikandwa,” says Root. Harkins
concurs: “The Kikandwa experience took my education to
a whole new level, and I plan to go back to work with the
health center when I finish my medical training.”
international business young scholars
The college takes a different approach to providing
global opportunity in its International Business Young
Scholars program.
Each year, the international business faculty select four
first-year students from across the Drake campus to
conduct original research on topics that explore “the
appropriate relationship between business and society in
different national contexts.” According to Matthew Mitchell,
assistant professor of international business and strategy,
the students are expected to perform at a Ph.D. level.
In return, they have access to publication in peer-reviewed
journals and presentations at scholarly conferences.
And it seems the program is meeting its goals. Junior
Muhamad Iqbal Mohd Rafi’s paper on Islamic business
practices has already been published in a peer-reviewed
journal, Organizations and Markets in Emerging Economies
(spring 2014). Last fall, six young scholars’ research projects
were accepted for presentation at the 2013 conference of
the Academy of International Business.
At the conference, Will Heaston, a senior international
relations and history double major, delivered a paper on
corruption in global sports. After 18 months of work, he
won the conference award for the best undergraduate student
research paper. “One goal in joining the young scholars
program was to present at a conference like this,” says
Heaston. “To win this award far exceeded my expectations.
It’s really a testament to the quality of the program.”
the bottom line
These two programs—in which students and faculty work
closely together—are great examples of the collaborative
learning that characterizes the Drake experience. Educational
opportunities that go beyond the classroom to address
real-world problems are just one of the many reasons our
graduates are so well prepared to meet today’s challenges.
fall 2014
THE BLUE SHEET
THE BLUE SHEET
College of Pharmacy & Health Sciences
where in the world is cphs?
Internationalization of the College of Pharmacy and Health
Sciences means more than the development of student
Advance Pharmacy Practice Experiences (APPEs). It also
includes developing faculty who are global citizens. CPHS
has a number of faculty members who are engaged globally—
building partnerships for further expansion of opportunities
in research, development, service, and teaching. Fifty
percent of our faculty have been involved in some type
of international experience.
from australia and vietnam to
south africa and belize
John Rovers, professor of pharmacy practice, has long been
a proponent of international experiences for our students.
He developed Drake experiences in Australia and South
Africa, and identified Hillside Healthcare International,
Belize, as a potential partner. Most recently, he and Andrea
Kjos, assistant professor of social and administrative sciences,
traveled to Hanoi, Vietnam, where they met with faculty and
staff from Hanoi University of Pharmacy (HUP). Rovers
and Kjos had collaborated with HUP faculty in 2011 to study
drug distribution systems in Vietnamese hospitals. Following
that project, HUP administrators and policymakers from the
Vietnamese Ministry of Health requested Drake’s assistance
in modernizing the pharmacy curriculum at HUP.
During their recent visit, Kjos and Rovers discussed pharmacy
education and practice in Vietnam with HUP faculty and staff
from the Ministry of Health as well as personnel from the
Health Affairs Attaché’s office at the U.S. Embassy in Hanoi.
They visited several community pharmacies to evaluate
the state of pharmacy practice, and are currently preparing
recommendations on how Vietnamese pharmacies can
enhance patient care and public health. Kjos and Rovers plan
to continue their collaboration with Vietnamese colleagues
as some of the suggested changes are implemented.
partnerships in ethiopia, india
Drake pharmacy professors Abebe Mengesha, assistant
professor of pharmaceutics; Pramod Mahajan, associate
professor of pharmaceutical sciences; Denise Soltis,
assistant dean, community and global engagement and
associate professor of pharmacy practice; and Frank
Caligiuri, assistant professor of pharmacy practice; have
initiated a partnership with Addis Ababa University
(AAU) in Ethiopia, Mengesha’s home country and home
undergraduate training institution. The partnership will
provide an opportunity to submit a grant to the National
Institutes of Health. In the future we hope to see health
sciences and pharmacy students traveling to AAU to
complete experiences in the research labs and rural health
attachment. We also plan to submit a Global Practitioner
in Residence application for a faculty member at AAU
for academic year 2015–2016.
Mahajan championed a new partnership with Pravara Institute
of Medical Sciences (PIMS) in India. Mahajan, Rovers, Soltis,
and Leslie Mamoorian, associate director of international
and graduate admission, traveled to Loni, India, to forge the
partnership. In summer 2013 we sent six students to Loni
to complete a Social Medicine Certificate program. Two more
students traveled there in 2014. We hope to host two faculty
members from PIMS next year for research collaborations.
Abebe Mengesha; Annique Kiel, assistant director, Drake
administered programs abroad; and Denise Soltis at Addis
Ababa University in Ethiopia.
THE BLUE SHEET
fall 2014
The CPHS partnership with Hillside Health Care International
has not only provided approximately 20 APPEs each year;
it has also provided an opportunity for our faculty to refine
their cultural competence skills and discover the public
health issues in a developing country. To date, 12 different
faculty members have experienced the interprofessional,
multicultural practice environment. Soltis has provided
dedicated service to Hillside as pharmacy committee chair,
secretary, and now president of the board of directors.
For alumni and friends of the Drake University College of Pharmacy & Health Sciences
dean, college of pharmacy
& health sciences
development staff
Wendy Duncan
Jackie Howard
[email protected]
[email protected] | 515-271-4050
Denise Soltis (middle) with Sarah Thune, ph‘13 (left, standing), Ellen Heikens (right), now a p4, and local staff member Jennifer Choco (seated)
at the Santa Anna Health Center in Belize.
hospitals and clinics in thailand and china
Timothy Welty, professor of pharmacy practice and chair of
the clinical sciences department, began his long history of
international involvement in college at a mission hospital
in south Thailand. He served in a clinical pharmacy, working
with physicians, nurses, and other health professionals at
the hospital. It was that experience that sparked his interest
in utilizing his pharmacy training to work internationally.
His next opportunity to be involved on a global level came
about 15 years later working with a non-governmental
organization, MSI Professional Services, in southwest China.
This organization was working under official contracts with
provincial governments to improve health care delivery and
education in this part of the country. Association with this
organization has allowed Welty to make approximately 15 trips
to China to consult with rural hospitals, provide continuing
education programs for pharmacists and physicians, teach
pharmacy and medical students, and engage in teaching English
to students. As a result of these interactions, he developed close
professional and personal friendships that have led to research
collaborations and exchanges of students.
Our partnership with University of KwaZulu-Natal in Durban,
South Africa, brought a visit in May from Fatima Suleman,
associate professor of pharmaceutical sciences, who lectured
Drake faculty and students on multicultural approaches to
medication use. She will be our Global Practitioner in Residence
for the spring 2015 semester, teaching a course on health policy.
In summary, CPHS is making significant strides internationalizing
our faculty, our students, and our curriculum.
fall 2014
THE BLUE SHEET
THE BLUE SHEET
Drake Law
new beginnings
There’s nothing quite like the start of the new academic year.
The 1ls have completed orientation and are getting into the
routine of legal research, torts, and writing their first memos.
Faculty, who were busy over the summer writing, teaching, or
presenting at various professional conferences, have returned
to what it is we really do: educate, train, dialogue with, and
mentor the next generation of legal professionals.
The deanship is not the only transition. After 38 years on the
faculty, Russ Lovell has retired. Lovell joined the Drake faculty
in 1976 after working at the Legal Services of Indianapolis and
the Indiana Center on Law and Poverty. He is known for his
unflagging energy and innovation.
Throughout his tenure, Lovell twice
served as associate dean and spent
years developing programs to benefit
law students and the community
as director of clinical programs.
He has had a career-long association
with the NAACP, for which he has
been honored repeatedly.
law school transitions
As you may have heard, former dean of Drake Law School
Allan Vestal resigned in late June due to health issues. He
plans to take a sabbatical and return to a faculty position
for the 2015-2016 academic year.
I was appointed dean for the next two academic years and
began my role on July 1 (taking a leave of absence from my
current position as a member of the Drake University Board
of Trustees). For those who may not know, I graduated from
Drake University in 1966 and from Drake Law School in 1969.
It is an honor and privilege to serve the Law School once
again in this role (you may remember I served as interim dean
in 2008–2009), and while we have so much to be proud of,
our best days are still ahead. All of us pulling together can
achieve greater things.
“Russ Lovell’s impact on Drake has
been, and will continue to be, long
lasting. The innovative First-Year
Trial Practicum he developed provides
Drake students with a trial experience that no other law school
offers,” says John Edwards, associate dean for information
resources and technology and professor of law. “His tireless
work in stints as associate dean and in serving as clinic director
shows how willing Russ is to undertake challenging jobs when
the law school needed him to do so.”
Russ Lovell has retired
after nearly four decades
with Drake Law.
Lovell’s colleagues say he has been a consistent voice for public
service and is a powerful example of how an individual lawyer
can make a difference.
“His commitment to public service helped instill that spirit
in others, whether students pursued it as a vocation or
participated in projects to make our community a better place,”
continues Edwards. “Through his work on so many fronts,
Russ has made Drake and Des Moines a much better place.”
20 années avec université de nantes
For two decades, Drake’s partnership with the University
of Nantes (two hours west of Paris) has fostered valuable
opportunities for our students, including the Drake Law
Summer in France program. For six weeks, students gain
valuable experiences—both academic and cultural.
Summer in France combines academic and cultural experiences while
strengthening the University’s partnership with the University of Nantes.
THE BLUE SHEET
fall 2014
The program began as a connection in agricultural law. As
a frequent visitor to Drake Law School, Professor Louis
Lorvellec, from the University of Nantes, connected with
Neil Hamilton, The Dwight D. Opperman Chair of Law,
professor of law, and director of the Drake Agricultural
Law Center, and worked with then-Dean David Walker to
eventually develop the Summer in France program.
For alumni and friends of Drake Law
dean, law schooldevelopment staff
Ben UllemSarah Conroy
[email protected] Participants take six credits in a variety of subjects relating
primarily to comparative and international law. More
recently, the program expanded to include the International
Environmental Law course. A continuation from what the
main Drake Law campus does so well, the program offers
students hands-on experience through out-of-classroom
projects, including negotiations with French students and
a French mock trial at the Palais de Justice. Curriculum is
designed to allow extended weekends and plenty of free time
during the week so students can take advantage of the many
cultural activities and sites in Nantes. During weekends
students are also able to travel around Europe, including
France’s picturesque Mont Saint Michel and Normandy.
As with many study abroad experiences, Drake Law’s
Summer in France program enhances a student’s
experiences in ways they did not expect.
“I was able to interact and hang out with local students
from the University of Nantes, travel each weekend, and
take classes that are not available during a traditional
semester,” says Tayler Haggerty, a 3l from Dallas, Texas.
[email protected] | 515-271-1877
“During my last weekend in Europe I was able to travel
to Dublin and see Rihanna perform! I am truly thankful
for being able to have a great summer experience.”
From the very beginning, the Summer in France program has
encouraged students to become immersed in the world of
international law. For 20 years, Drake Law students have had
this advantage when making professional connections and
beginning their career.
“Originally from Iowa, but having been gone for several years,
I was surprised by the substantial international connections
that Des Moines boasts,” says Ryan Hanlon, lw’12, foreign
service officer with the United States Department of State.
“The summer after my first year, I took advantage of Drake
Law’s fantastic Summer in France program, which provided
a meaningful overseas academic experience appropriately
tailored for graduate level study abroad.”
We’d love to know what’s happening with you. Keep us posted
by emailing your updates and news to [email protected].
Visit us at www.law.drake.edu/newsevents for more recent news.
150th anniversary celebration—this is big!
It’s hard to believe, but 2015 will mark our 150th anniversary as a law school. As one of the
25 oldest law schools in the country, this is truly something to celebrate.
As we approach this milestone in our history, we are already planning a year of celebration.
Be on the lookout for various events that will involve the entire Drake Law community.
Think about ways you would like to interact with Drake Law School and plan to visit this
wonderful place during one of the many upcoming activities.
We hope to take this opportunity to highlight the accomplishments of both the Law School
and the many people who have been transformed by their experience here.
As Kool and the Gang so wisely said, “Celebrate good times—come on!”
Please visit www.law.drake.edu/alumni for an updated list of events.
fall 2014
THE BLUE SHEET
THE BLUE SHEET
School of Education
going global
where did they go?
As I settled in to write this installment of the SOE Blue
Sheet, I considered my brewing options: coffee beans from
Brazil or premium green tea leaves from China. Faculty
members brought both back from their travels abroad.
When I was a Drake student, travel meant going to Chicago
with my roommate during spring break. Today, travel is an
international experience; in the past year, SOE faculty and
students have journeyed across the world to Asia, Europe,
South America, Central America, South Africa, the Middle
East, and the Bahamas.
Bengu Erguner-Tekinalp, associate professor of education,
presented her research on resilience last fall at the International
Counseling Conference in Istanbul. During the conference, as
part of the counseling department’s efforts to internationalize
its curriculum, she established relationships with counseling
programs in Turkey. Because of these new connections, two
scholars from Turkish universities visited Drake during the
spring term and lectured to graduate students on the topics
of happiness and procrastination.
why did they go?
Our students need to experience and understand other
countries and cultures. Our mission and vision includes
the promotion of lifelong learning as a purposeful activity
that advances global citizenship and a just society. Through
international experiences, students learn about global
issues and expand their creative thinking, problem solving,
and collaboration skills in order to take action and create
sustainable change. This has been accomplished through
a series of January Term and spring break travel seminars,
newly designed courses, conference presentations, and
guest lectures by faculty.
Kathleen Diedrich, ed’14, taught school children in Asikuma, Ghana,
during a 2014 J-Term travel seminar. For eight days, Drake students
had an unfiltered view of life in a rural African village.
THE BLUE SHEET
fall 2014
Fourteen students traveled to Rio de Janeiro for a J-Term
course with Erguner-Tekinalp and Cris Wildermuth, assistant
professor of education. Half the class was focused on human
resource and organizational practices while the rest took a class
on counseling diverse populations. “This was a magical trip
and experience,” says Wildermuth. “We visited major Brazilian
and multinational organizations, learned from a labor lawyer,
discussed fascinating aspects of the country’s culture, and, of
course, saw amazingly beautiful places.”
Thomas Westbrook, professor of education, teams with a
second faculty member each January to offer 20 Drake students
an adventure at sea sailing the Bahamas Out Islands. This year
his faculty partner was Melissa Sturm-Smith, associate provost
for academic excellence and student success. Students enrolled
in Leadership at Sea include SOE undergraduates who are
completing the Leadership Education and Development
(LEAD) concentration. The course encourages students to
navigate new environments (Nassau and a tall-mast sailboat),
learn a new language (bow from stern), and work in teams
(following and leading). The class spends one week on campus,
a week in Nassau visiting governmental and community
organizations, and a week at sea learning to sail the tall-mast
schooner Liberty Clipper.
Additionally, Westbrook will oversee the first two LEAD
students to complete the new international LEAD capstone
requirement. One student, Alana Linde, a secondary education
major, spent six weeks this summer in Punta Gorda, Belize,
working with a special project, “Plenty Belize.” She focused on
community education for women and youth and advancing
economic development through microfinance. As one of the
first students to complete the international capstone, Linde
takes her role seriously. “Belizean culture and hospitality is
rooted in family and lasting relationships,” she explains. “I
hope to see this experience become a long-lasting partnership
with the countries and the organizations that we have the
privilege to work alongside.”
For alumni and friends of the Drake University School of Education
dean, school of education
development staff
Jan McMahill
Meaghan Tigges
[email protected]
[email protected] | 515-271-4843
Belize is also host to other international efforts organized by
Sally Beisser, professor of education. Through both alternative
spring break and J-Term teaching experiences, she has been
traveling to Belize since 2006 to serve impoverished children
at Holy Cross School. She has donated more than 2,000 books
to the school and conducted professional development
workshops. Volunteer work in Belize has expanded to include
work in a Belize chocolate factory, a Mayan archaeological
site, and a marine conch shell project.
In addition to co-leading the J-Term course in Belize with
Beisser, Shelley Fairbairn, associate professor in education,
presented her work at professional conferences in China
and Canada during the spring semester. Fairbairn presented
opening and closing conference keynotes, as well as two
breakout sessions in China. At the Celebrating Linguistic
Diversity conference in Toronto, she and Stephaney Jones-Vo,
ed’73, presented key information from their co-authored
book, Differentiated Instruction and Assessment of English Language
Learners: A Guide for K-12 Teachers, for a symposium and in a
session focused on their book’s topic.
Matthew Hayden, assistant professor of education, has
collaborated closely with a colleague at the University of
Cyprus to develop a J-Term travel seminar to Cyprus and
Greece. In January 2014, Hayden planned the curriculum and
visited potential historical research sights in Cyprus. Along
with Benjamin Gardner, associate professor of art and design,
he will lead 20 students there for the first time in 2015.
This past year, Eunice Merideth, professor of education,
traveled to Belfast, Northern Ireland, to explore study abroad
possibilities for education students at Stranmillis University
College, one of the top five teacher-education institutions
in the United Kingdom system. The visit was successful in
articulating 12 courses and setting up a special program that
allows students to complete the second half of fall student
teaching in Belfast. Already, eight students have jumped at the
opportunity to student teach abroad. Merideth is now working
with the Institute for Study Abroad-Butler, the third-party host
of this program, to see if a spring student teaching placement
might be possible in the future.
Students had the opportunity to study education in Ghana
thanks to the efforts of Jill Caton Johnson, associate professor
of education. Drake undergraduates spent eight days during
J-Term in the rural village of Asikuma, arriving with more than
20 suitcases of school supplies, medical supplies, backpacks,
and soccer balls. Our students had an honest and unfiltered
view of life in a developing country where educational options
were limited. They saw firsthand both cultural and educational
differences between the Des Moines area and this povertystricken village and the challenges villagers face.
Drake students analyzed the instructional paradigms used in
the village schools, trained local teachers to use new writing
techniques, and gained an understanding of village students’
expectations. They also discovered some of the cultural
differences between male and female students and experienced
the overall condition of the educational opportunities afforded
these young children. Our students also taught in schools,
helped children get medical attention, and played games
with the village kids. “This trip allowed us to learn beyond
what textbooks taught us,” says education major Dori
Hauser. “It gave us the opportunity to apply our knowledge
and skills. The experiences and memories we made on the
trip will influence our future college experiences and careers.”
what’s next?
We’re about to discover how some of the most successful
school systems outside the United States lead students to
the highest levels of academic excellence. Drake’s education
leadership team is focusing on the addition of international
experiences for future principals and superintendents. The first
opportunity is a J-Term seminar to Finland where students will
be immersed in the culture and pedagogy of the well-known
Finnish education system. A group of undergraduates and
Des Moines-area school leaders are already preparing for the
first trip to Finland in January 2015. Drake University Board
of Trustees member and past Rhodes and Fulbright scholar
Lindsay Whorton, as’08, ed’08, spent a year conducting
research with Finnish educators, and she helped guide the
planning and implementation of the educational leadership
department project. Future education leaders will also have
the option to spend their clinical time in the Toronto metro
schools. Both experiences will expand the knowledge, vision,
and global perspective for these up-and-coming school leaders.
In addition, Associate Dean Catherine Gillespie will travel
in October to the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN)
in Durban, South Africa. Gillespie will take our relationship
with UKZN to the next level and help forge a multilayered
agreement between Drake and UKZN.
As columnist and author Thomas Friedman reminds us,
we’ve always known the world is flat and our future depends
upon the interdependence and understanding between
countries and cultures. Now, we are actively creating options
to make that intention a reality. As always, I send my thanks
to you for the time, talent, and resources you direct to the
School of Education.
fall 2014
THE BLUE SHEET
THE BLUE SHEET
School of Journalism & Mass Communication
engaging with the world
I saw the power of international travel to open young minds
and change lives firsthand in 2003. My husband and I decided
to bring our children—then ages 16, 14, and 10—with us on
one of our periodic pilgrimages to visit relatives in Ireland
and Great Britain. It was a complicated and expensive
expedition—schlepping five people, including a couple
of sometimes fractious teens and a youngster who usually
traveled on a diet of hot dogs—through several foreign
countries. Before we left home, I laid down the law: I did
NOT want any embarrassing whining or fighting or
complaining about the food. And (amazingly!) there was
none. What I saw instead were three sets of eyes opened
to different ways of living, talking, thinking, and engaging
with the world. And while all three have traveled abroad
by themselves since then, they refer to the trip as one of
the defining experiences of their young lives.
It’s a reaction I hear frequently from SJMC students who
have the glorious and challenging opportunity to travel and
study abroad. The school consistently has the highest study
abroad rate on campus, and our legion of travelers is growing
with the introduction of our January Term international
seminars. Dorothy Pisarski, associate professor of journalism,
led a class last year to Poland to study the evolution of
consumer society in that former Soviet Bloc nation. David
Remund, past assistant professor of public relations, took
a group of students to study public relations in Chile last
winter. The SJMC is establishing strategic international
partnerships with universities in Spain, Mexico, and China.
And increasing numbers of our graduates are spending a
“gap year” following graduation as English teachers in places
as far-flung as Romania, Indonesia, and Honduras. Six SJMC
students in six years have received prestigious postgraduate
Fulbright Scholarships to teach overseas.
Assignments and experiences that cultivate multicultural
perspectives are also incorporated into the on-campus SJMC
curriculum. Public relations students partnered with an
English class this spring to produce and promote a book
written by local Latinas. Every semester students in the Media
Responsibility Over Time class explore the diverse religious,
racial, and ethnic communities throughout Des Moines, which
is a thriving center of immigrant resettlement. SJMC classes
conduct Skype interviews with international practitioners, and
the first Distinguished Lecture in Public Relations was
delivered by Frenchman Patrick Merle, assistant professor
of communication at Florida State University. Drake’s
Constitutional Law Center Chair Mark Kende led
THE BLUE SHEET
fall 2014
this spring’s Communications Law and Ethics class through
a comparison of Americans’ views on free speech with those
of other countries. Magazine and news-internet students
met with a group of Middle Eastern journalists—some of the
many international visitors brought to Drake through local
nonprofits devoted to promoting democracy worldwide. And
of course, every four years the Iowa Caucuses lure journalists,
filmmakers, and political junkies from around the world to
our backyard.
Whether we venture out into the world, or the world comes
to us, the SJMC community is enthusiastically embracing
the adventure.
sjmc curriculum updated to stay at
forefront of communications education
After months of research and discussion, the SJMC faculty
voted this spring on the biggest reorganization of its core
curriculum and majors in decades. Starting in fall 2015, all
SJMC majors will take classes in communication in a global
society with a multimedia lab, beginning reporting and
writing, a career development workshop, intro to visual
communication, media law and ethics, a financial
fundamentals workshop, and a course on emerging
and evolving media.
Even more significantly, the majors have been reconfigured
to reflect the revolution in the communications industry
and to ensure that our students acquire the skills necessary
to thrive and lead in a multimedia, online, mobile
environment (learn more on page 7).
Advertising has become one track, with all students taking
classes in video production, ad principles, consumer
awareness, copywriting, and content design, and choosing
from courses in strategic message design, media planning,
and account planning.
In addition to public relations, we’re excited to add a major in
strategic political communication, which will leverage Drake’s
strengths in both PR and politics and Iowa’s unique position
in the presidential election process.
The magazines, news-internet, broadcast news, and radio-TV
producing programs have been sharing classes and projects
for years, but the new curriculum kicks the collaboration to
a higher level. The new magazine media, news, and digital
media production majors will share a set of core classes in
video, audio, and web design, in addition to specializations in
magazines, news journalism, and advanced video production.
For alumni and friends of the Drake University School of Journalism & Mass Communication
director, school of journalism
& mass communication
development staff
Kathleen Richardson
Michael Peterson
[email protected]
[email protected] | 515-271-2132
The most exciting aspect of the new journalism curriculum
is a pioneering combined capstone experience, in which
students in all three majors will collaborate on producing
a yearlong website that will provide a showcase for the
school’s best multimedia content, to be promoted by PR
and advertising students.
As the faculty put it in a memo to Drake’s academic
leadership team: “With our new curriculum, we are fully
embracing the multiplatform, multimedia ecosystem. We
are progressing with mobile creation and delivery. And we
are acknowledging the essential role of marketing, promotion,
and social media in finding and attracting an audience.”
continuing a tradition of excellence:
recognition of sjmc student work
Students in the Master of Communication Leadership
research cohort won a Bronze Quill award in June from the
Iowa Association of Business Communicators (IABC) for
their research and data analysis for Des Moines’ World Food
and Music Festival. Undergrads Taylor Larson, Laura Plumb,
Bob Griffith, and Olivia O’Hea won IABC awards for projects
they did in their public relations classes.
the startup category for their prototypes for new magazines.
Kelsey Johnson, jo’14, was recognized for investigation and
analysis, and a new publication, The Annual, was recognized
for design.
DUH (Drake University Honors magazine) won Best Student
Magazine and Drake Magazine was a finalist in the Midwest
region Society of Professional Journalists Mark of Excellence
contest. Urban Plains and Think were finalists in the Best
Digital-Only Student Publication category.
Senior Sean Hall won a gold ADDY and student Best of Show
award in the American Advertising Federation of Des Moines
contest. Louis Laurent, jo’76, president and owner of ZLR
Ignition in Des Moines, won the Silver Pro award, and Lydia
Metzger, jo’11, account executive at Two Rivers Marketing in
Des Moines, was honored as Rookie of the Year. Advertising
senior Sumit Sen won a competitive postgraduate internship
at Olson in Minneapolis.
Times-Delphic staff members won six awards in the annual
Iowa College Media Association Awards contest, including
three first-place writing and photography awards.
Seniors Gwen Baumgardner and Frank Merchlewitz won
first-place awards in the Iowa Broadcast News Association
contest in May. Noelle Smith, jo’13, also took a first-place
award, and sophomore Mariah Lewis won the Eliot Keller
Scholarship that recognizes outstanding promise. Broadcast
news graduate Erin Hassanzadeh, jo’14, received a Fulbright
Scholarship to teach English in South Korea.
A video promoting electronic media education at Drake
won a Telly Award and seniors Brianna Laubach and Ashley
Thompson won a regional Emmy for best editing for their
work on the project.
SJMC magazine and news students knocked it out of the
park at the Association for Education in Journalism and
Mass Communication magazine contest this year. They
Oustanding student work in Drake Magazine was recognized by the
Society of Professional Journalists.
won 12 awards, more than any other university in the country.
The annual contest is judged by media professionals and this
year featured 270 entries from 28 universities. The spring
2014 issue of Drake’s news magazine, Think, won the general
excellence award for single issue of an ongoing magazine.
The magazine app can be downloaded for free on iTunes.
Think’s website (think-mag.com) was also recognized, as was
drakemagazine.com. Junior Meagan Flynn won two first-place
and one third-place writing awards. Junior Selchia Cain,
Hali Ortega, jo’14, and junior Kayli Kunkel won awards in
fall 2014
THE BLUE SHEET
alumniconnections
achievements 1950s
Bruce Cottington, bn’53,
Litchfield, Minn., traveled on the
Honor Flight to Washington, D.C.,
on April 22, 2014.
1960s
Bruce Cottington, bn’53, lw’63,
Scottsdale, Ariz., was honored
as a 2014 Historymaker by the
Arizona Historical League on
Feb. 8, 2014.
Richard Hewins, ed’69, gr’76,
Des Moines, was honored with
the Drake Athletics Double D
Award on Feb. 15, 2014.
Eric Ramberg, la’69,
Austin, Texas, started a
consulting company, Viking
Oncology Consulting.
Bruce Gillilan, bn’71,
Wheeling, Ill., received the U.S.
Department of Commerce’s
Export Achievement Award, the
SBA’s Illinois Small Business
Exporter of the Year, and the
President’s “E” Award for Exports.
Dean Matthew Powell, la’71,
lw’74, gr’74, Arlington, Va.,
assistant general counsel at the
National Science Foundation
(NSF), received the NSF Director’s
Distinguished Service Award,
the highest form of recognition
conferred on individual Foundation
employees. The award recognizes
singularly exceptional service that
has had a profound impact on
NSF, its mission, or the nation.
Douglas Frazer, la’74, gr’79, ‘83,
Des Moines, was named
Instructor of the Year (2013–
2014) at the Newton Campus
of Buena Vista University.
54
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Alice (Bode) McBride, la’77,
Brooklyn Park, Minn.,
was appointed pastor of
the St. Anthony of Padua
Catholic Church.
Joel Tonda, fa’79, gr’83,
Knoxville, Iowa, was inducted
into the Athletic Hall of Fame at
Knoxville High School. Tonda
coached boys’ tennis at Knoxville
for 33 years and coached the 2001
1a-State Tennis team champions.
1980s
Scott Anderson, fa’80,
Minneapolis, won a Minnesota
State Arts Board Artist Initiative
grant in 2012.
1970s
Michael K. Pierce, bn’76
Eveleth, Minn., retired from
his position as associate
professor at Flagler College.
He is a past president of
the Newell Rubbermaid
Home Fashions Group,
which is headquartered
in Brussels.
Cheryl (Brossman) Garland,
jo’80, gr’04, Johnston, Iowa, is
chief executive officer and clinical
director of Integrative Counseling
Solutions, Inc., a mental health
counseling agency she founded in
2008 to meet the mental health
and substance abuse needs of
Iowans. In addition to providing
outpatient mental health services
in West Des Moines, Knoxville,
and Waukee, Cheryl and her team
of 10 licensed therapists provide
school-based mental health
outreach in 26 schools.
Christopher Hart, fa’82,
McComb, Miss., was featured
as baritone soloist in Carmina
Burana, performed by the Chorus
and Percussion Ensemble of
Southwest Mississippi
Community College.
Myron Cahill, la’83, Smyrna,
Ga., was named assistant vice
president of Aspen Insurance.
Frederick Davis, la’83,
Broadview, N.M., retired from
the U.S. Department of Justice
with the Federal Bureau of Prisons
fall 2014
with 24 years of service to the
U.S. government.
Study of Twins Reveals
Surprising Answers.”
Brenda Sutton, jo’84,
Santa Monica, Calif., is a member
of the Los Angeles County Bar
Association (LACBA) Board of
Trustees and just completed a
term as chair LACBA Labor &
Employment Section.
Brendan Daly, as’97,
Foxboro, Mass., was added as
a defensive assistant to the
New England Patriots.
Glen MacDonell, jo’86,
Scottsdale, Ariz.,
was recognized by the Hospitality
Sales & Marketing Association
International as one of Top 25
Most Extraordinary Minds in
Sales & Marketing for 2013.
Rose McKinney, jo’87,
Minneapolis, was designated
to the President’s Circle of
Engagement by Metropolitan
State University.
Amy Elizabeth (Ouart) Farlinger,
ph’89, Cresco, Iowa, is working
as a staff pharmacist at Sterling
Drug #35.
1990s
Michael J. Elston, as’91,
Woodbridge, Va., was promoted
to the position of associate
general counsel and chief ethics
and compliance officer of the
U.S. Postal Service.
Rinky Parwani, bn’92, gr’93,
Tampa, Fla., was selected for
the 2014 Leadership Institute
Class of the Hillsborough
County Bar Association.
David Borzo, fa’94, gr’11,
Des Moines, was instrumental in
the AdoptAClassroom.org program.
Mark D. Belongia, bn’95,
Chicago, earned a position in
the Duane Morris Chicago law
firm as a member of the trial
practice group.
Tasha Ransom, bn’95,
Evanston, Ill., received a Peter
Lisagor Award for Best News
Specialty/Health/Science for
the story “Chicago’s Doctor’s
Rebecca Valcq, as’97,
Milwaukee, Wis., was appointed
as general counsel by Lammi
Sports Management.
Emily Thompson, fa’98,
Oswego, N.Y., was awarded the
2014 Library Innovation Award
by the Eastern New York Chapter
of the Association of College
and Research Libraries on
May 19, 2014.
Amanda (Lewis) Crowell, as’99,
gr’99, Davenport, Iowa, was
promoted to director of payor
contracting with UnityPoint Health.
Jarriet Dewitt, as’99,
Omaha, Neb., is a workforce
inclusion business partner
(human resources) at Blue Cross
and Blue Shield of Nebraska.
2000s
Tammi Blackstone, as’00,
Des Moines, was honored with
the Drake Athletics Double D
Award on Feb. 15, 2014.
Joshua Devine, ph’00,
West Des Moines, Iowa, was
appointed chair of the Iowa
Alcoholic Beverages Commission.
Robin Shelby, gr’01,
Orlando, Fla., was appointed
to the position of business
development executive at
Fry Hammond Barr.
Grant Geyerman, bn’02,
Arlington, Va., was elected a
partner of Williams & Connolly LLP.
Nikki (Coffman) Syverson, jo’03,
Clive, Iowa, was named director
of development at the Des
Moines Community Playhouse.
alumniconnections
The Office of Alumni Relations
biannually compiles updates
on Drake alumni and makes
efforts to confirm the accuracy
of published information. This
issue of Drake Blue includes
entries received as of July 2014.
CoraLynn Trewet, ph’03,
Ankeny, Iowa, was selected by
the APhA Academy of Pharmacy
Practice and Management as a
2014 Fellow.
Nichelle Dawkins, bn’04, gr’08,
Irving, Texas, was named director
of strategic data at Perr&Knight,
Inc., based in Fort Worth, Texas.
Kasey Skala, jo’04,
Chicago, joined the Solo Cup
Company as head of social
media and digital marketing.
Cracking the
Class Code
Below is the “code” for identifying
your fellow Drake alumni.
The College of Arts and Sciences
evolved during the reorganization
of Drake’s colleges and schools
in 1987, when “Liberal Arts”
and “Fine Arts” were combined.
Those pre-1987 alumni carry the
acronym “la” or “fa,” while those
post-1987 alumni are labeled “as.”
as Arts and Sciences bn Business and
Public Administration
dv Divinity
ed Education
fa Fine Arts
gr Graduate Studies
jo Journalism and
Mass Communication
la Liberal Arts
lw Law
ph Pharmacy and
Health Sciences
Grant Kimberley, gr’05,
Ankeny, Iowa, was selected as
the new executive director of
the Iowa Biodiesel Board.
Tim Ryder, jo’05,
Chicago, has been working with
improv groups such as the Second
City National Touring Company,
The Second City’s Improv
All-Stars, Baby Wants Candy,
The Beatbox, Sears Tower,
and The Senate. Represented
by Gray Talent Group.
Carter Casmaer, as’07,
Minneapolis, is a staff emergency
physician at Abbott Northwestern
Hospital in Minneapolis.
Mary Rooney, as’08, ed’08,
Denver, was promoted to manager
of planned giving at the Denver
Museum of Nature & Science.
Van Everett, as’09,
Des Moines, was recognized for
his pro bono work by the 2014
Polk County Bar Association.
Rachael Stanger, as’09,
St. Petersburg, Fla., joined the
Florida Bar in May 2012 and is
currently a marital and family
law attorney in St. Petersburg
(Tampa Bay), Fla.
2010s
Justin Fletcher, gr’11,
Norwalk, Iowa, was elected to the
school board of Norwalk.
Elizabeth Shoemaker, lw’12,
Bettendorf, Iowa, joined the
Davis Brown Law Firm as an
associate attorney.
advanced degrees
Daniel Sadowski, as’08,
Prior Lake, Minn., graduated from
Southern Illinois University School
of Medicine and will enter urology
residency at SIU School of Medicine.
Jennifer (Strauch) Benters, as’09,
Sycamore, Ill., graduated from
University of Illinois at Chicago
with Master of Science in Nursing
as pediatric nurse practitioner.
Margaret Shepard, jo’11,
Rochester, Minn., received a Master
of Science in Mass Communication
from North Dakota University in
May 2013 and is currently a fulltime social media contractor at
Mayo Clinic.
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spring 2014
Sarah (Grauerholz) Alden,
ph’07, and Dan, Kasson, Minn.,
a daughter, Olivia Grace Alden
Ashley (Andrews) Mills,
bn’07, and Brandon, Milan, Ill.,
a son, Jacob James Mills
Aliona (Hairetdinova)
Pavlovskaya, as’08, bn’08,
and Dmitriy, Los Angeles,
a son, Leo
Kevin Bell, lw’11, and
Erin, Des Moines, a son,
Carter Warren
marriages
Christopher Hart, fa’82, to
Karen Clark, March 22, 2014
authors
Joel Barrows, lw’89,
Bettendorf, Iowa, published his book,
Deep White Cover.
births
Myron Cahill, la’83, to Nakia
Washington, Oct. 5, 2013
Julie Lagus, ph’03, to Greg
Davenport, Sept. 4, 2011
Elissa Koc, bn’05, to Victor
Maurer, June 1, 2013
Lillias Freeman-Hogan, jo’81,
and Terry, Omaha, Neb., adopted
a 14-year-old daughter, Skye Blue
Kavi Chawla, as’98,
and Elizabeth, River Falls, Wis., a
daughter, Ayanna Bronwyn
Chris Goode, bn’98,
and Jennifer, Alexandria, Va.,
a daughter, Caitlin Virginia
deaths
1930s
Gordon Bird, fa’36, DeKalb, Ill.
Beverly (Lindstrom) Scott,
ed’37, ed’60, Phoenix, Ariz.
Ben Hall, bn’38, St. Paul, Minn.
Harold Newman, fa’39,
Ankeny, Iowa
Grant Geyerman, bn’02,
and Sarah, Arlington, Va.,
a daughter, Mary Elizabeth
1940s
Julie (Lagus) Davenport, ph’03, and
Greg, St. Paul, Minn., a son, Landon
Catherine (McGleam) Philpott, as’03,
and Justin, Naperville, Ill., a daughter,
Kiera Anne
Cara (Stein) Rinkoff, jo’03,
and Evan, Montgomery Village, Md.,
a daughter, Marissa Elyse
Jessica (Ellis) Baker, jo’04, and
Mark, Chicago, a son, Calvin John
Erin (Kane) Joseph, jo’04, and
Phillippe, bn’02, Cape Cora, Fla.,
a son, Phillippe Joseph III
55
Megan (Thumma) Sease,
bn’05, Des Moines, a daughter,
Harper Lee
fall 2014
James Roberson, la’40,
Wheat Ridge, Colo.
Phyllis (Culbertson) Miller,
la’41, Fairfield, Calif.
Abe Rissman, bn’41,
Minneapolis
Theodore Czech, ed’42,
Portsmouth, R.I.
Don Paulsen, bn’43, lw’49,
Scottsdale, Ariz.
Illa (Dorsey) Coffey, ed’46,
Altoona, Wis.
Victoria Katsuko Iwata, la’46,
Johnston, Iowa
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55
alumniconnections
Profile
Leadership Legacy
a bold decision changed lives and secured iowa’s place in history
Gov. Robert Ray elevated Iowa
to the international stage when
he opened the state’s doors to
refugees fleeing Southeast Asia.
Ray and his wife, Billie, shared
photos from their travels (opposite)
in a book, Robert D. Ray: An Iowa
Treasure (2013), produced by Keep
Iowa Beautiful.
Among the flood of refugees fleeing southeast Asia in the
wake of the Vietnam conflict in 1975 was a small ethnic group
from Laos. Only a couple thousand in number, the Tai Dam
had no advocates in the United States government, which
planned to separate and relocate them around the country.
The Tai Dam feared disbandment could mean the end of
their language, heritage, and ethnic identity.
With nowhere to turn for help, an advocate for this small
group—devoid of political power or influence—sent a letter
requesting a favor of some of the most powerful people in
the U.S. The plea, sent to dozens of governors in the country,
seemed a simple one: Help us. Let us come to your state
and live together as a community.
What the Tai Dam were asking for was not even legal under
U.S. State Department rules at the time, and the political
landscape in the wake of Watergate and Vietnam did not
inspire elected officials to take risks. The politically smart
decision was to simply ignore the request, which is what
almost every governor chose to do. Iowa Gov. Robert Ray,
bn’52, lw’54, did not.
“I responded thinking maybe we could do that, and to my
amazement I was the only governor who responded,” Ray has
said about the moment. “The State Department had a policy
that refugees could not be relocated in a group in any one
community ... But I thought there was a good reason for the
exception, and so I worked with the State Department and
the White House. And I remember making the trip to talk to
[Secretary of State] Henry Kissinger and then to [President]
Gerry Ford, and [in] the final analysis they agreed, and they
made the exception. And so we were able to invite the Tai
Dam to come to Iowa.”
Many Iowans did not agree with Ray’s actions, fearing a flood
of refugees who would negatively affect employment and
resources in the state. But Ray believed this issue transcended
politics—and even his own career. The first group of 300 Tai
Dam arrived in Iowa in late October 1975.
“This was a momentous decision that changed the lives of
these people and helped them preserve their culture and
heritage,” says Ken Quinn, president of the World Food Prize
and a member of Gov. Ray’s staff on loan from the U.S. State
Department from 1978 to 1982. “The legacy of this decision
and his leadership is that Iowa has an amazing humanitarian
heritage of easing human suffering and helping those in need
who are seeking freedom and trying to build new lives.”
And Ray’s leadership in this area continued through his tenure
as governor as he ensured Iowa—and the rest of the country—
provided assistance to other refugee groups in need.
“Between 1975 and 1980,” says Quinn, “impelled by a moral
impulse planted deep inside him by his family, church, and
education at Drake University, Gov. Ray welcomed the Tai
Dam to Iowa; sent food, medicine, and Iowa doctors and
nurses to save the lives of starving Cambodians through the
Iowa SHARES program; and was the first governing leader
anywhere to offer to resettle the Vietnamese Boat People,
saving hundreds of thousands who were perishing and
making Iowa a global humanitarian leader.”
Drake University is currently working with the Iowa Department
of Cultural Affairs to explore options for digitizing a wide variety
of correspondence, documents, and publications in the Robert D.
Ray Collection and expanding public access.
fall 2014
DRAKE
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57
alumniconnections
Alumni Calendar
october 2014
february 2015
Francis Marion Drake
Society Dinner
October 17
Parents Hall, Olmsted Center
(by invitation only)
distinctlyDrake Naples
February 19
Golden Reunion 2014
October 23
Des Moines
MVC Men’s Basketball Tournament
March 5–8
St. Louis, Mo.
november 2014
MVC Women’s Basketball Tournament
March 12–15
St. Charles, Mo.
James E. Bowman, ed’47, gr’49, ’75, Pittsburg
Phyllis (Clipson) Rittgers, ed’47, Des Moines
Shirley Jean (Henke) Drake, ’49, Muscatine, Iowa
Vivian L. (Newton) Fielmann, ed’49, Des Moines
Angelo C. Scandroli, ph’49, Rockford, Ill.
Thomas Textor, la’49, Urbandale, Iowa
1950s
march 2015
Joseph J. Bell, ed’50, Urbandale, Iowa
Robert Inhofe, bn’50, Honolulu
Let’s DU Lunch
November 5
Des Moines Embassy Club
Student Alumni Association
On-Campus Networking
November 10
Drake University
Scholarship Luncheon
November 14
Cowles Library Reading Room
(by invitation only)
december 2014
Hy-Vee Big Four Classic Men’s
Basketball vs. Iowa State
December 20
Wells Fargo Arena, Des Moines
Supreme Court Celebration
March 26–28
Drake University
Robert Lagomarsino, la’50, Lodi, Calif.
Donald Jenkins, la’50, bn’50, Sun City, Fla.
Vern Schultz, la’50, Prescott, Ariz.
Robert Boyden Hedges, la’51, Des Moines
Jack W. Kaley, ed’51, gr’56, Bement, Ill.
Ruth (Wedemeyer) Powell, ed’51, ed’70, Adair, Iowa
Patricia A. Conway, jo’52, Saint Paul, Minn.
William Mock, lw’52, Leawood, Kan.
Ernest M. Wilson, bn’52, Mayfield Village, Ohio
april 2015
Drake Relays
April 22–26
Drake Stadium
Distinguished Alumni Awards
April 23
Drake University
All-Alumni Tent Party
April 24
Drake University
Don Beran, jo’53, Oregon, Wis.
Morgan Cline, ph’53, Middletown Township, N.J.
John Fred Phillips, ed’53, ed’58, Des Moines
Alice (Grossman) Daniels, ed’54, Urbandale, Iowa
Doris Landess, ed’54, Saratoga, Calif.
Vernon E. Leach, ‘54, Des Moines
Ronald John Rex, la’54, Odebolt, Iowa
Doris (Peterson) Weber, ed’54, Arlington Heights, Ill.
William Basinger, la’55, Des Moines
Susan (Grundman) Kramer, ed’55, Park Forest, Ill.
Young Alumni Brunch
April 24
Drake University
Don Maurice Jacobs, bn’56, Corwith, Iowa
Ione (Jennings) Wight, ed’56, Winterset, Iowa
january 2015
All-Greek Reunion
April 25
Drake University
distinctlyDrake Sarasota
January 16
may 2015
distinctlyDrake Charleston
December 9
Commencement Weekend
May 16–17
Drake University
Visit www.alumni.drake.edu for event descriptions and
the most up-to-date details.
58
DRAKE
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fall 2014
Marvin E. Kelley, fa’56, gr’60, Grinnell, Iowa
Ronald D. Nelson, la’56, Berkeley, Calif.
Max Hockett, jo’57, lw’60, Des Moines
Marion E. Tvarian, ph’57, Germantown, Md.
Bernie Wolfe, ed’57, Guthrie Center, Iowa
Charles “Ron” Lund, la’58, Hastings, Neb.
Adrian Martin, ed’58, Des Moines
Richard Gregory, la’59, Dayton, Ohio
1960s
Patricia Ann (Milligan) Bienlien, ed’60, Freeport, Ill.
Charles Ferguson, gr’60, Lake View, Iowa
Career Tips
Gary Hoskin, la’60, New York City
Larry Maxwell, ph’61, Ankeny, Iowa
Fashion in the Workplace
Sandra (Allen) Sinnard, fa’61, Lincolnshire, Ill.
Fashion-forward fans began buzzing the moment
Gary Dean Christopher, fa’62, West Des Moines, Iowa
Tim Gunn, star of Project Runaway, was tapped to
Robert Groom, jo’63, Dover
deliver the 33rd Martin Bucksbaum Distinguished
Lecture. Gunn’s campus visit in September was a
Thomas G. Powers, la’63, lw’65, Indian Harbour Beach, Fla.
rare opportunity to experience the style guru’s sassy
John Thomas, bn’63, Denver, Pa.
demeanor and signature catchphrases up close
Jennifer (Porter) Adair, ed’64, gr’72, Benton, Ark.
and personal.
Everett P. Fulton, gr’64, White Water, Wis.
Whether you’re a diehard fashionista or far from it,
Thomas Gray, la’64, gr’65, Durango, Colo.
Juri Kaseoru, la’64, Des Moines
Kay (Moore) Alvord, ed’65, Urbandale, Iowa
Paul Fleischacher, bn’65, West Palm Beach, Fla.
what you wear matters—especially in the workplace.
We sought advice from Chrystal Stanley in Drake’s
Professional and Career Services Development Office.
“Talk to me.”
Carol (McKay) Winterberg, ed’65, Des Moines
Your wardrobe speaks volumes. It’s not just what
Beulah Lorraine Lucas, ed’66, Des Moines
you wear; it’s how you wear it. Perhaps the biggest
David E. Roseberry, la’66, Louisville, Ky.
faux pas that can be made in the office is to wear
Gene Wanek, gr’66, Wilber, Neb.
Nancy Elizabeth “Betty” Lemon Finch, ed’67, Hartford, Iowa
poorly fitted clothes. If they are too large, you risk
looking unkempt. Clothes that are too tight are often
inappropriately revealing. Make sure your clothes are
Ila (Rogers) Lappe, ed’67, Indianola, Iowa
saying what you want them to say about you. If you
Joan (Snelling) Lewis, la’68, Fair Oaks, Calif.
want an executive position, speak up by dressing
Frank Gerald Wieslander, la’68, lw’71, Altoona, Iowa
the part.
Leah Jean (Himschoot) Hamilton, ed’69, Windsor Heights, Iowa
Ed “Geezer” Henderson, bn’69, Clive, Iowa
David Jewett, fa’69, Mountain View, Calif.
1970s
Max Gors, lw’70, Pierre, S.D.
“Make it work.”
Take note of what others are wearing around the
office. In a new job, it’s safest to dress conservatively
for the first week while you assess the dress code.
A suit and tie might not be your favorite choice,
but making it work can reap serious benefits.
Nancy (Lane) Hood, la’70, Des Moines
Robert Hyde, gr’70, Des Moines
Judith “Judy” Lindquist, gr’70, West Des Moines, Iowa
John Barakat, gr’71, ‘77, Urbandale, Iowa
Robert “Bob” Stolz, la’71, Carlisle, Iowa
Dorothy (Brown) Graham, ed’72, LeClaire, Iowa
Lois (Willis) Vincent, ed’72, gr’75, Des Moines
Gary Faust, lw’73, Council Bluffs, Iowa
John Gumm, bn’73, Windcrest, Texas
James E. Station, la’73, Knoxville, Tenn.
Eleanor “Becky” (Van Beckum) Vanden Branden, fa’73, Clive, Iowa
Rosayln (McClelland) Dawson, ed’74, Earlham, Iowa
Mark S. Sullivan, la’74, Broken Arrow, Okla.
“It’s a little costumey.”
Don’t over-accessorize. If your jewelry or nails
announce your presence before you do, you’ve
gone too far.
alumniconnections
Profile
Blue Behind Bars
journalism graduate helps inmates discover the joy of learning
Twice a week Monica Rizzo, jo’85, passes through a series of
bolted doors and security checkpoints to reach her classroom
in Five Keys Charter School, operating inside the San Francisco
County Jail. Her students there are all facing, fighting, or
convicted of felony charges.
What led you to teaching?
At about age 46, I finally realized what I wanted to be when
I grew up. When I went back to school to get my teaching
credential, it was with the intention of working in under-served
schools. It is my hope that I can help students who got off the
educational track get back on and reach their full potential.
What makes the Five Keys Charter School unique?
Five Keys provides the opportunity to earn a high school
diploma or GED to inmates in the San Francisco County Jail,
people on probation, and any adult who has not earned their
diploma. This has a ripple effect through their family and the
community at large. Students who earn a high school diploma
cut their chance of recidivism almost by half, and children
whose parents earn a high school diploma are more likely to
earn one themselves.
Tell us about your classroom.
I teach in two different sites. I teach independent study to
adult students in the sheriff’s community program, which
requires one-on-one work with individual students as well
as some group instruction. Many of these students have no
connection to the criminal justice system. In the jail, I currently
teach English. There is nothing quite like the experience of
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teaching Guy de Maupassant’s The Necklace to women in jail.
The perspective they bring to the interpretation of literature
is sometimes shocking and sometimes brilliant.
What are the challenges of teaching in this environment?
Jail is by its very nature high stress. It is a claustrophobic
environment with no fresh air and little to no natural light.
Many students are distrustful of schools and teachers. My
first job is to help them discover the joy of learning and the
beauty of success. This is no place to bring a boring lecture.
I need to bring my ‘A’ game every single day.
I have also had to adjust to the revelations about life on the
street. When people are homeless, drug-addicted hustlers,
their in-class essays are very different from what we wrote
and read at Drake. I have learned to control my reactions to
shocking revelations.
The worst thing I have had to face is a student who was shot
in the chest on the way to turn in his homework. He survived
the gunshot but has not completed his diploma. I remain
hopeful for him. Violence is a part of many of my students’
daily lives. Poverty, homelessness, and hunger add to the
long list of factors working against them.
What do you find rewarding in this role?
This position allows me to occasionally help an individual
break out of the cycle of poverty and violence that has
been their life. It doesn’t always happen, but when it does,
it is the sweetest thing there is. I have learned to savor the
small successes. Also, I do not have to chaperone a prom—
something I will be eternally grateful for.
alumniconnections
Keith Peterson, fa’76, South Whitley, Ind.
1990s
Sandy (Solfisburg) Whitelaw, jo’76, Chicago
Theresa Hockins, as’90, Des Moines
Marilyn (Pierschbacher) Bridgford, ed’77, Chariton, Iowa
Brent Helmkamp, ed’91, Ankeny, Iowa
Anthony Kingkade, ph’77, San Diego
Daron Fritz, lw’92, Lake Mills, Iowa
Helen (Johnson) Moyer, gr’77, Kellogg, Iowa
Rebecca Zalleck, bn’93, gr’99, Des Moines
correction
Brant Bruhn, bn’94, Muscatine, Iowa
While Drake Notes accurately reported the passing of Robert Zeller,
la’49, in the Spring 2014 issue of Drake Blue, we regret that his son—
Robert Zeller, ed ‘74—was mistakenly included in the list of 1970s
deaths. Alumnus Roger Davison, bn‘74, kindly reminded us that Bob
is alive and well in Manchester, Mo.
Sybil Linn, as’94, Des Moines
1980s
2000s
Sheila (Eichmann) Lumley, la’80, Waukee, Iowa
Thomas Nielsen, gr’01, Johnston, Iowa
Donald Patton, bn’80, Chicago
Susan (Kramer) Johannsen, gr’03, Park Forest, Iowa
Kevin Alphin, la’82, St. Louis
Sara Rick, gr’07, West Des Moines, Iowa
Leon Joseph Swift, ph’82, West Des Moines, Iowa
emeriti faculty
Steven W. Feldman, la’83, Palatka, Fla.
John Hicks, professor emeritus of art, Des Moines
Mike Corum, gr’85, Pella, Iowa
Milan Kaderavek, professor emeritus of music theory,
Perrysburg, Ohio
Vicki (Jackson) Scharf, bn’85, Des Moines
Julie A. (Norris) Westrom, fa’86, Glen Ellyn, Ill.
Scott Larson, bn’89, Chicago
James McKean, jo’94, Arnold, Mo.
Rodney Bragg, bn’96, Burlington, Iowa
Stephanie (Westpfahl) Seiler, gr’97, Van Meter, Iowa
Donald Roland Keyworth, professor emeritus of philosophy,
Des Moines
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driven by the global
intercultural imperative
“Puedo hablar con Señor Gutiérrez? Me llamo Christa Olson. Estoy
una profesora visitante, y hago une investigación …”
I can hear the frustration in the voice of the woman on the other
end of the phone. I try repeating my carefully rehearsed script in
Spanish, but she can’t understand my thick accent and finally hands
the phone over to another colleague. A few weeks earlier, I had
arrived at the Universidad de Guanajuato as a Fulbright scholar with
a research agenda that depended on interviews conducted in
Spanish with university leaders, professors, and students. My
questions were carefully scripted, but the task of arranging the
interviews was proving to be a challenge. I had not yet learned that
in this particular higher education setting, email communications
were spotty and face-to-face communications were critical. In this
new context—like so many others in which Drake staff, faculty,
and students will likely find themselves in this global era—I needed
to speak the language well and understand the culture to be
professionally effective.
Global Vision 2020, Drake University’s international strategic plan,
emphasizes developing global talent, facilitating intercultural learning,
and addressing pressing global issues. These features resonate with
faculty, staff, and students at Drake; with colleagues at our partner
institutions; and with members of our respective communities
because they convey in simple language the global intercultural
imperative—the dire need to transcend intercultural differences so we
can work together effectively in addressing the most pressing issues
facing our world.
Since the introduction of the Global Vision 2020 plan and the
receipt of generous support from The Principal Financial Group
and several alumni, Drake has made steady progress with our
internationalization efforts. Our strategic partnership initiative,
global service learning initiative, international grants program,
additional student scholarships, and robust travel seminar program
all facilitate global learning opportunities for our faculty, staff, and
students. Professors from both Drake and Minzu University of China
are offering master classes at each other’s institutions. Faculty and
staff are identifying internship opportunities in Australia and Chile.
Drake education majors are mentoring Mexican high school
students. Drake professors are leading travel seminars that engage
students in sustainable development projects in Uganda.
Yet my experience in Guanajuato demonstrates that however well
one may be globally prepared with content knowledge, it is also
essential to be linguistically equipped and culturally aware of the
contexts into which one enters. Likewise, if the University is going to
deliver fully on our mission of graduating responsible global citizens,
we have to ensure we are equipping our students with sufficient
opportunities to enhance their language skills, deepen their cultural
awareness, and fine-tune their intercultural communication skills
before we send them out into the world.
I wonder if, when proposing our partnership activities, service
learning experiences, or travel seminars, we are paying sufficient
attention to ways we might enhance linguistic and intercultural
competence? Can we draw more upon our institutional and
organizational partners to facilitate more language and cultural
awareness? Have we considered building language immersion
experiences into our travel seminars? I welcome exploring further
with alumni, friends of Drake, faculty, staff, and students how we
might systematically engage all Drake students in speaking second
or third languages, deeply experiencing other cultural practices,
and thereby preparing for their contribution in addressing global
challenges. It’s simply Drake’s most pressing need at this point in
our evolution as an institution with global relevance.
—Christa Olson, Vice Provost for International Programs
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Just for Fun
by claire sedovic, class of 2015
No need to dog-ear your pages! Start with a square piece of paper (just trim an 8.5 x 11 sheet down to size) and follow the steps
below to create your own bulldog bookmark.
1. Pre-crease both diagonals
by folding and reopening.
6. Fold down top point to
touch bottom point.
2. Fold left and right
corners to the center.
7. Fold top layer back so
point touches top.
10. Pull down left corner pocket and crease.
Return to position.
13. To finish nose, fold under
bottom point of diamond.
3. Flip over paper.
4. Fold left edge to center.
8. Fold left flap in half, reducing 90-degree angle
to 45-degree angle. Crease, then reopen.
11. Repeat Step 10 for right corner pocket.
5. Fold right edge to
center to match left.
9. Repeat Step 8 for right flap.
12. Now pull down both pockets while
simultaneously pinching and flattening
the top point to create the bulldog nose.
14. For ears, fold down
both top triangles.
visit www.drake.edu/magazine to watch a how-to video.
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