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Mark Kostek and Dave Blank watch Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack sign the Relays Week proclamation.
Festivities generate enthusiasm for the Relays

From the Beautiful Bulldog Contest to the "Fake" Relays to tonight's Court Avenue Celebration, downtown festivities are drawing attention to and creating enthusiasm for the 93rd annual Drake Relays.

A record 51 dogs competed in Monday's Beautiful Bulldog Contest. The winner, Fred of Grinnell, Iowa, is serving as the Relays mascot and will ride in the Relays Parade, which starts at 10 a.m. Saturday at the foot of the State Capitol.

Wednesday's "Fake" Relays attracted local celebrities and CEOs who competed in non-traditional races including office chair sprints and hurdle climbs.

The festivities continue from 5 p.m. to 1 a.m. tonight (Friday, April 26) at the Court Avenue Celebration featuring street entertainment combined with jazz and blues bands. Also tonight there will be an All-Alumni Tent Party from 5 to 8 p.m. in the Alumni Tent across from the Drake Stadium.

In addition to Saturday's track and field events, there will be children's activities from 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Camp D.U. under the canopy near the Alumni Tent. Saturday morning also will bring the Paul Morrison Relays Lecture by professor Bob Hariman, who will discuss "Icons of Patriotism in American Life" at 10 a.m. in room 106 of Meredith Hall.

Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack also got involved in Relays activities this week. He recognized the importance of America's Athletic Classic to the state by proclaiming this week Drake Relays Week.
Fred the bulldog drake team
Dolph Pulliam, left, announces that Fred, flanked by his owner, Jim Jolly of Grinnell, is the winner of Monday's Beautiful Bulldog Contest. Al Lorenzen, Steve Jordan of Mix 100.3, David Maxwell and Lisa Stone celebrate their second place finish in the "Fake" Relays Wednesday.

Awards to be presented Tuesday

The spring Faculty/Staff Recognition will be held at 3 p.m. Tuesday, April 30, in Sheslow Auditorium. Drake will recognize the outstanding accomplishments of the faculty, staff and retirees. Faculty and staff members who have completed 20, 25, 30, 35 and 40 years with the University also will be honored. In addition, the recipients of the Madelyn M. Levitt awards for mentoring and teaching will be announced. A reception will follow.
Drake Symphony to give Young Artists Concert May 7

The Drake Symphony Orchestra, conducted by John Canarina, will perform its annual Young Artists Concert at 8 p.m. Tuesday, May 7, on the Jordan Stage in Sheslow Auditorium.
Four outstanding student soloists will be featured with the orchestra.

Pianist Jessica Barnett, a sophomore from Jefferson, Iowa, will be heard in the first movement of Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 9. Soprano Christine Fortner, a senior from Kirkwood, Mo., will sing arias from Mozart's "Don Giovanni" and Leonard Bernstein's "Candide." Oboist Rachel Lueck, a sophomore from Oneida, Wis., will play two movements from the Oboe Concerto by Czech composer Bohuslav Martinu. Violinist Daniel Pettit, a junior from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, will perform the final movement of Beethoven's Violin Concerto.

The orchestra will open the program with the Overture to "Masaniello" by Auber and conclude with three Dance Episodes from Aaron Copland's ballet "Rodeo."
Cavalcade of Choirs to perform

All four of Drake's choral ensembles - Drake Choir, Chamber Choir, Chorale and University/Community Chorus - will perform and collaborate with a number of instrumentalists in a concert at 8 p.m. Thursday, May 2, on the Jordan Stage in Sheslow Auditorium. The program includes works by Bernstein, Bach, Rutter and Faure, as well as folk songs, a spiritual and a piece sung in Mongolian. The Drake Choir, which will give two performances in Carnegie Hall in June, will sing portions of its New York tour program.
ken meyer
C. Kenneth Meyer, center, addresses the class at an open air market in Nice, France. Standing beside him are an interpreter and tour guide.
Professor Meyer leads graduate students on excellent European Adventure

How does society bridge the gap between urban and rural ecosystems? To give students a tangible example of societies that are successfully bridging this gap, C. Kenneth Meyer, the Thomas F. Sheehan distinguished professor of public administration, took his students to Europe in March to investigate how countries there are creating sustainable living and working environments.

The course focused primarily on sustainable development, design, smart growth, urban sprawl, transportation policies, alternative and renewable energy sources and livable communities. The MPA class, Comparative Management and Policy Analysis in a Global Context, traveled to France, Italy, Germany, Austria and the Netherlands.

"Over time," Meyer said, "graduate education in just about all disciplines has become increasingly insular in nature and inward looking for solutions to problems and dilemmas that stalk our organizations and environment rather than searching for and identifying exogenous ways of addressing our problems."

Jeff Geerts, an MPA student and program planner for the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, said, "The opportunity to meet with European government, business and non-profit leaders gave us a greater understanding of the worldwide impact that the programs and policies of the United States and organizations such as the United Nations, European Union and the World Trade Organization can have on the sustainability of our communities, businesses and planet."
Writers and Critics Series to feature multimedia artist/author Magdalen Hsu-Li

As part of the Drake Writers and Critics Series, Magdalen Hsu-Li, multimedia artist, lecturer and author, will give a performance and lecture at 7 p.m. Monday, May 6, in the Performing Arts Hall in the Harmon Fine Arts Center. The event is free and open to the public.

The musical performance will be accompanied by a lecture about Asian women in the arts. As an Asian-American artist, Hsu-Li opens new doors of expression by challenging stereotypes, raising awareness and bringing communities together through her music.

As a multimedia artist, Hsu-Li works with words, images and sounds. She has created two CDs: "Fire" and "Evolution." Her live performances feature piano, vocal and drumset duos, impromptu standup and theatre, poetry readings and percussion and drum improvisations.

Born in the rural south, Hsu-Li grew up in one of the only Asian families in Martinsville, Va. "My upbringing was very, very difficult - extreme prejudice and bigotry," she said in an interview with Curve Magazine. "I experienced a very extreme form of hazing every day as I grew up, and it's hard to be able to develop love when people are more or less pushing you down."

Hsu-Li began her artistic career as a painter in 1988 at the Rhode Island School of Design. After earning her bachelor of fine arts in painting in 1992, Hsu-Li moved to Seattle where she began her study of jazz and classical music at Cornish College of the Arts. For more information about Hsu-Li, visit www.chickpop.com.

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