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April 7, 2000 - Vol.52, No. 42

Drake launches economic-development initiative

Business leaders gathered at the Greater Des Moines Partnership office in downtown Des Moines last Friday for Drake President David Maxwell's unveiling of a new economic-development initiative. Dr. Maxwell announced that Drake has joined four local businesses in an innovative partnership that will help central Iowa companies recruit and retain more highly educated employees. The partnership will address critical work-force needs by providing incentives for new professionals to launch their careers in the area.

Four major businesses have agreed to participate in the Drake University/Des Moines Corporate Partners Scholarships, and University officials hope more companies will join the program in the coming weeks. The initial participants are The Des Moines Register, Norwest Bank of Iowa, Pioneer Hi-Bred International Inc. and The Principal Financial Group.

Each of these businesses will establish one or more funded Corporate Partners Scholarships at Drake. Each scholarship provides full tuition and room and board for a selected student in his or her junior year at Drake. In most cases, the business will provide internship and summer employment opportunities as well. In return, the scholarship recipient has an obligation to accept appropriate employment from the business for a three-year period following graduation.

An information session about the scholarships will be held at 4 p.m. Tuesday, April 11, in room 310 of Olmsted Center. The application deadline is May 1.

Lt. Gov. Sally Pederson praised the new scholarship program as did Mike Blouin, chief executive officer of the Greater Des Moines Partnership. "The partnership between Drake and these four corporations is a model initiative that we would like to see replicated around the state," Pederson said. "This is exactly the kind of creative collaboration that will help Iowa enhance a professional work force..."
Herbal medicine expert to speak Monday

Varro E. Tyler, a nationally renowned expert on herbal medicine, will give a lecture at Drake University on Monday, April 10.

The lecture, titled "What You Should Know about Herbal Medicine," will start at 7:30 p.m. in Parents Hall at Olmsted Center. Tyler will discuss unsafe and ineffective herbal medicines as well as popular herbal products whose safety and efficacy have been demonstrated by scientific and clinical studies.

A trustee of the American Botanical Council, Tyler has written more than 30 books, including Tyler's Honest Herbal and Tyler's Herbs of Choice: The Therapeutic Use of Phytomedicinals.

He holds a B.S. in pharmacy from the University of Nebraska and an M.S. and Ph.D. from the University of Connecticut. He has had a long and distinguished career that included serving as dean of the School of Pharmacy and Pharmacal Sciences at Purdue University, where he later served as executive vice president for academic affairs. He retired from Purdue in 1996.
Renowned researcher to discuss emotions and healing

Candace B. Pert, a research professor in the Department of Physiology and Biophysics at George-town University Medical Center, will discuss her research on emotions and mind-body communication in a lecture at Drake on Tuesday, April 11. Pert's lecture, which is titled "Molecules of Emotion," will start at 8 p.m. in Parents Hall at Olmsted Center. She will explore how our biological communication systems weave mind and body into a single web, and how this system is affected by our behavior, feelings, lifestyle and environment.

A pharmacologist who has lectured worldwide, Pert has published more than 200 scientific papers in research journals and written a popular book titled Molecules of Emotion, Why You Feel the Way You Feel.

Pert also holds patents for modified peptides for treatment of numerous diseases, including Alzheimer's disease, chronic fatigue syndrome, stroke and head trauma. She is completing a research study on a peptide-based therapy for the AIDS virus.
Pert earned her Ph.D. in pharmacology from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine for her discovery of the brain's opiate receptor.
Keep up with program review

To stay up to date with Drake's program review, check out this Web site: www.drake.edu/artsci/drakeprogrev/.
Provost candidates to visit soon

Two candidates for the provost position will visit Drake next week for interviews.
Suzanne Shipley, dean of arts and sciences at the University of Northern Arizona, will interview on Monday and Tuesday. More information about her is posted on the Drake Web site at www.drake.edu/provostsearch/shipley.html.

David Woods, dean of music and fine arts at Indiana University-Bloomington, will interview on Thursday and Friday. More information about Woods is available at www.drake.edu/provostsearch/woods.html.

Both candidates will speak at open forums in Bulldog Theater in Olmsted Center. The open forum with Shipley will be held from 3 to 4 p.m. Monday, April 10. The open forum with Woods will take place from 3 to 4 p.m. Thursday, April 13.
Unusual concert set for today

"The Poet's Quill," a concert exploring the relationship between music and words, will be performed at 8 p.m. today (Friday, April 7) on the Jordan Stage in Sheslow Auditorium in Old Main. Admission is free.

The performance will feature Clive Elliott, narrator; the Drake Chorale, conducted by Eric Knapp; the Drake Chamber Choir, conducted by Aimee Beckmann-Collier; and the Drake Flute Choir, conducted by Patty Shinehouse.
Drake joins spring-cleaning effort

Drake staff and students will be helping with the Drake Neighborhood spring clean-up on Saturday, April 8. The University will provide heavy equipment to assist the Kirkwood Glen and Carpenter Neighbors associations in collecting rubbish and depositing it in dumpsters at 21st Street and Forest Avenue.

Students volunteering to help with the clean-up are scheduled to meet in Hubbell Field at 9 a.m. The volunteers have been asked to bring a $3 donation for the Drake Community Center. The student participation is being organized and sponsored by the Student Senate and First-Year Interest Committee.
Music marathon planned

To raise money for a European tour in May, members of the Drake Choir will perform eight hours of continuous music on Wednesday, April 12, in the lobby of Olmsted Center.

The music marathon, which will also include performances by faculty and friends of choir members, will run from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. "It's sort of the Drake equivalent of playing in the subway," said Aimee Beckmann-Collier, director of choral activities.
Jazz group wins regional contest

Drake University Jazz Ensemble I recently won the Eau Claire Jazz Festival 2000 in Eau Claire, Wis. This marks the third time the ensemble has won the regional festival, which draws college big bands from six states.

Conducted by Andrew Classen, Drake Jazz Ensemble I also won the honor of being the featured college big band in the festival's evening concert in which trumpeter Jon Faddis and trombonist Bill Reichenbach performed. Pianist Steve Gilbertson, a sophomore finance major from Minnetonka, Minn., received the Outstanding Soloist Award for the entire festival and received a scholarship to this summer's Birch Creek Jazz Camp.
White House Project presentation

Results of a new survey about younger Americans' attitudes toward politics will be released when the White House Project conducts a presentation and panel discussion from 9 to 11 a.m. Wednesday, April 12, in Sheslow Auditorium in Old Main. The session is free and open to the public.
Young Artists Concert Tuesday

The Drake Symphony Orchestra, John Canarina conducting, will perform its annual Young Artists Concert at 8 p.m. Tuesday, April 11, on the Jordan Stage in Sheslow Auditorium in Old Main.

Five outstanding student soloists will perform with the orchestra: sophomore soprano Ashley Cooprider of Nevada, Iowa; first-year soprano Stephanie Curtice of Wichita, Kan.; sophomore soprano Jennifer Rissman of Urbandale; sophomore flutist Demetra Bastas of Pella, Iowa; and sophomore saxophonist Ryan Leatherman of Des Moines.
Warner to read from her novel

Sharon Oard Warner, director of creative writing at the University of New Mexico, will speak at Drake on Wednesday, April 12 - the day after her first novel, Deep in the Heart, is published by Dial Press.

Warner will read from her novel at 7:30 p.m. in the Honors Lounge of Medbury Hall. The event is part of Drake's Writers and Critics Series.
Gingrich to speak Wednesday

Candace Gingrich, a leading advocate for gay, lesbian and bisexual equal rights as well as the half-sister of former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich, will speak at 8 p.m. Wednesday, April 12, in Sheslow Auditorium in Old Main.

Her speech, which will focus on activism, tolerance and the current and future state of the gay rights movement, is free and open to the public as part of Drake's seventh annual Bisexual, Gay and Lesbian Pride Week, April 10-14.

Pride Week, which is sponsored by the Bisexual, Gay & Lesbian Alliance at Drake, begins Monday, April 10, with a panel discussion at 7 p.m. in Bulldog Theater in Olmsted Center. Please see the calendar for more Pride Week events.
Juried art exhibit opens April 16

The 29th Annual Student Art Exhibition will open at the Anderson Gallery on Sunday, April 16, and run through May 7. The opening reception will be held from 1 to 3 p.m. April 16, with the awards ceremony starting at 1:30 p.m.

This exhibition features close to 40 works of art, including paintings, drawings, prints, graphic design, interior design and sculpture. These works, ranging in style from the figurative to the abstract, were selected from more than 100 submissions. Jeff Fleming, senior curator at the Des Moines Art Center, served as juror for the exhibition, which is supported by Friends of Drake Arts.
Drake to celebrate Earth Week

To launch Drake's celebration of Earth Week on the morning of Monday, April 17, the Drake Environmental Action League (DEAL) will park a Honda Insight in Hubbell Field.

The Insight is a hybrid car that gets 71 miles per gallon on the highway and has been endorsed by the Sierra Club. The car will be raffled off on Earth Day (Saturday, April 22) as a fund-raiser for the Botanical Center's educational programs. DEAL will be selling raffle tickets for the car all week in Olmsted Center.

DEAL will distribute petitions and postcards to be signed concerning current environmental issues during Earth Week. David Osterberg, an environmental consultant for the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, will give a talk titled "Global Warming: Watch Out!" at 9 p.m. Wednesday, April 19, in room 101 of Meredith Hall.

Earth Week will conclude Thursday, April 20, with a benefit concert by Dithyramb from 8:30 to 11 p.m. in the patio/amphitheater at Olmsted Center.

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