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| Michael Gartner | Bruce B. Pfeiffer |
At Drake University's three commencement ceremonies at the Drake Knapp Center
last weekend, the University welcomed more than 900 graduates to the ranks of
Drake alumni and presented two honorary degrees.
Bruce Brooks Pfeiffer, founder and director of the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation Archives at Taliesin West in Scottsdale, Ariz., received an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree at the undergraduate commencement ceremony Saturday morning.
At the same ceremony, attorney and journalist Michael Gartner, now chairman and principal owner of the Iowa Cubs, received an honorary Doctor of Laws degree. Gartner, former president of NBC News, also gave the commencement address at the Drake Law School commencement ceremony Friday night.
"The three commencements went exceptionally well," said Provost Ron Troyer, who gave the commencement address at the graduate ceremony. "Comments from parents and graduates were complimentary. The number of family members and friends attending the events was impressive. The weather was great. It was a good way to end the academic year."At the Alumni Awards Dinner last weekend, the Drake Medal of Service was awarded to James H. Ewoldt, BN'58, and Jo Ann Geiger Ewoldt, ED'59.
The Ewoldts have consistently demonstrated their commitment to students in all they have done for the University. Currently, they are chairs of the National Alumni and Parents Solicitation of Campaign Drake, which is scheduled to meet its $190 million goal by May 31, 2002.
Chair of Drake's Board of Governors from 1992 to 1995 and current member of the Board of Trustees, James Ewoldt led the University through completion in 1994 of the historic Campaign for Drake, which raised more than $130 million. Jo Ann Ewoldt, a former schoolteacher and active volunteer, has organized receptions for new Drake students in the couple's St. Louis-area home for more than a decade. James Ewoldt is retired senior partner in the St. Louis office of Arthur Andersen & Co.
Both of the Ewoldts served on Drake's second national study commission in 1993-94. James Ewoldt also served on Drake's first study commission in 1988-89. They are also generous supporters of Drake.
President David Maxwell presented the award, saying, "When it comes to serving Drake, Jim and Jo Ann Ewoldt 'get it.' They truly understand the many ways we need help from our alumni and other friends, and they have helped in virtually all of those ways.
"They co-chaired St. Louis' first Drake alumni chapter, hosted receptions for prospective and new students in their home for more than a decade, and have served on several university boards and commissions. They share their excitement about Drake with other alumni and friends, and they strive to motivate them to support Drake financially. They do so themselves with utter generosity and wisdom, supporting Drake's annual fund as well as its long-term endowment. And they do it all graciously and modestly."More than 30 works of art created by residents of the Iowa Juvenile Home in Toledo, Iowa, are on display in the main hallway of the School of Education, 3206 University Ave. The exhbition, which is free and open to the public, will continue through May 31.
Kathy Fejes, associate professor of education, brought the exhibition to Drake through her contacts at the Iowa Juvenile Home, where many of her students have been involved in community service projects.
The exhibit features works by teen-agers who have experienced trauma either during early childhood or later through environmental failure. They were encouraged to confront and express their disturbing emotions and memories through art therapy. Here's a sampling of the titles of the works they created: "Frightened Child," "Don't Let Evil Overcome You," "Built Up Anger," "Living with a Stranger" and "Rat."
Most of the 32 works in the exhibit are accompanied by quotes from the artists and their art teacher, Gary Olson. Olson had this to say about the "Mad Dog" mosaic created by a student asked to paint himself as an animal:
"This image retains the same haunted look of hopelessness and defeat as can be observed in the youth who made the painting. It should be noted that the early childhood history of this youth is filled with atrocious accounts of physical and emotional abuse. This painting gives the viewer a direct and accurate view of the emotional state of the artist. It also helps to visualize the overwhelming need for immediate stabilization, trust formation and strong nurturance."James Albert, professor of law, has been elected chairman of the Iowa Ethics and Campaign Disclosure Board, which is responsible for ensuring the integrity of political campaigns and campaign fund-raising in Iowa. The state agency also is responsible for ensuring the lawfulness of the contributions and disclosures of lobbyists, PACs and political parties; and the ethics of Executive Branch state office holders and 40,000 state employees.
Albert was first appointed to the six-member board in 1997 by former Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad, LW'74. His six-year term will continue through 2003. He is one of two attorneys on the board. The other attorney is former Iowa Supreme Court Justice Mark McCormick.
"Serving on the board for four years has been exciting," Albert said. "We have conducted a top-to-bottom revision of the board's procedures, cut excessive and stifling regulations, reversed absurd interpretations of the law and changed the very culture of the agency. As chairman, I hope to continue making this state agency a model of efficiency and good judgment in the exercise of our statutory powers."John W. Lytle, professor of journalism and mass communication at Drake University, has been appointed interim dean of Drake's School of Journalism and Mass Communication, effective July 1. He will succeed Janet Keefer, who recently resigned after seven years as dean to return to the faculty on June 30.
In announcing the appointment, Drake Provost Ron Troyer said, "John Lytle enjoys the strong support and respect of the School of Journalism faculty members. Students, alumni and colleagues admire his fairness, high standards, integrity and thoughtfulness. John has served the University exceptionally well in a variety of roles. I am confident he is the person to lead the School of Journalism during this time of change."The Drake Bulldogs lapped up the competition in the 2001 Krause Challenge. The collegiate investors beat the returns of the Dow Jones industrial average and S&P 500 by several percentage points and sent teams from the University of Iowa, the University of Northern Iowa (UNI) and Iowa State University back to the dog house.
As second-year participants in the annual Krause Challenge, Drake, Iowa, UNI and Iowa State senior business students have spent the past academic year running stock models, making forecasts, attending Krause Gentle Corp. board meetings and trying to get a grasp on the volatile stock market. Drake students demonstrated their ability to make better investment choices.
"We tried to pick companies where we could make good forecasts," said Carolyn Henson, a senior finance major from Waukee. "We avoided tech stocks and conglomerates because they were too complex. We stuck with single industry businesses we could understand --- companies we could get a grasp on."
Initially, all four schools started the Krause Challenge with a $100,000 Krause Gentle Corp. investment. Portfolio amounts carried over from last year's class. This academic year, each school showed investment declines compared to 2000 results.
Drake took first place with a decline of (.93) percent to $112,599. The University of Iowa placed second with a decline of (19.03) percent to $127,779. UNI finished third with a decline of (25.44) percent to $93,613. Iowa State was fourth with a decline of (30.30) percent to $100,057.Michael R. Cheney, associate provost and director of research at Drake, has been appointed provost and vice chancellor for Academic Affairs at the University of Illinois at Springfield, effective June 16. His last day at Drake will be June 15.
Cheney joined Drake
in 1981 as a faculty member in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication.
He received the University's President's Award for Outstanding Undergraduate
Teaching in 1986. He served as dean of SJMC from 1988 to 1993, when he was named
to his current position.
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