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October 25, 2002 Vol. 55, No. 19

Drake students to paint houses on 'Make A Difference Day'

Approximately 200 Drake University students will paint houses, rake leaves and collect litter on national "Make a Difference Day" on Saturday, Oct. 26.

Half of the students will work at the home of Rosetta Mills, an 80-year-old widow who lives at 1128 27th Street, just a block south of the Drake campus. From 8 a.m. to noon, the students will rake and mow the lawn, repair the porch and paint the exterior of the 2.5-story house.

"The house is badly in need of work and Mrs. Mills doesn't have the resources to do it," said Larry Molenburg, Drake's real estate manager and coordinator of the effort. "She and her late husband, Thomas, have been active volunteers in the Drake Neighborhood Association. We picked her house because she's very deserving of the help that our students can provide."

The other 100 students will work from 8 a.m. to noon in the Mondamin Presidential Neighborhood, which is located between 16th Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Parkway and Hickman Road and Clark Street. They will rake leaves, clean up vacant lots and paint the home of Iona Freeman, a blind woman who lives at 1931 Allison St. Volunteers from Americorps also will be helping with the work in that neighborhood.

"It will be neat for our Drake students to help make a difference in this neighborhood, which is one of the poorest neighborhoods we have in the city," said Dolph Pulliam, coordinator of the project and director of community outreach and development at Drake. "We were looking for individuals who were disabled or elderly who had no other means of support to get this work done. We chose Iona Freeman because she's blind. To me, she's the neediest of the needy. To paint her home, mow her grass and rake her yard is going to make that house look just beautiful."

After completing their volunteer work, the Drake students will gather for a picnic at 12:30 p.m. on the west side of the Drake Knapp Center. Food and supplies for the day's activities are being donated by painting contractor Ken Agee, Coca-Cola, Drake Area Business Association, Drake University, Kum & Go, McDonald's, Sodexho Campus Services and Sodexho Facility Services.

Last year was the first time Drake students have participated in "Make a Difference Day." Approximately 90 students helped paint a house on 26th Street.

"We're happy to have more than twice as many volunteers this year," said Traci Sturtz, student volunteer coordinator for the day. "Students who participated last year had a good time and they spread the word."

Myrtle hohl Staley stands nex to her quilt in the foyer.
Quilt depicting 50 states displayed in School of Education

It took three years of work, a keen eye and a mile of thread to complete Myrtle Hohl Staley's counted cross stitch quilt, which now hangs in the foyer of the School of Education.

A retired school teacher, Staley, ED'43, GR'60, recently donated the quilt to the School of Education during a ceremony on Parents and Family Weekend. The quilt, which Staley designed, contains 50 colorful blocks that show the highlights of each state. Staley said she hopes Drake students will use the information on the quilt as an enjoyable learning tool.

Salina Shrofel, dean of the School of Education, said, "Not only does the quilt beautify the School of Education's entryway, but it helps connect the generations of teachers who have graduated from Drake."

Staley also has endowed a scholarship fund for students majoring in education.
Foster receives Fulbright grant

David Foster, professor of English at Drake, recently was awarded a Fulbright Scholar grant to lecture and perform research at The Technical University of Dresden in Dresden, Germany, from February to July of 2003. He will focus on the American essay and essay writing, literacy and culture, writing pedagogy and American drama and film.

In 1997, Foster also received a Fulbright Scholar grant and taught at Munster, Germany. He has written and taught about pedagogy, literacy and literature at Drake for more than 30 years.

Foster is among 800 U.S. faculty and professionals who will travel abroad during the 2002-2003 academic year through the Fulbright Scholar Program. Established in 1946 under legislation introduced by the late Senator J. William Fulbright of Arkansas, the program's purpose is to build mutual understanding between people of the United States and other nations.

Grant recipients are selected on the basis of academic or professional achievement and extraordinary leadership potential in their fields.
Let's DU Lunch set for Nov. 6

Rick McConnell, president of Pioneer Hi-Bred International Inc., will speak Wednesday, Nov. 6, at the Let's DU Lunch speaker series sponsored by the Drake University Central Iowa Alumni Chapter and the Greater Des Moines Partnership.

McConnell will discuss Pioneer's merger with DuPont, the latest developments in the food industry and biotechnology highlights.

The lunch will start at 11:30 a.m. in the Younkers Tea Room in downtown Des Moines. The cost is $15. For reservations, call x3848 or send an e-mail message to jolie.prentice@drake.edu.
Learn more about DULAP

A Question-and-Answer Forum on the Drake University Language Acquisition Program will be held from 3 to 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 29, in the Medbury Honors Lounge. The forum will be conducted by Jan Marston, director of DULAP and associate professor of second language acquisition.
Crowley remembered as outstanding teacher, researcher

Ayn E. Crowley


Ayn E. Crowley, professor of marketing, died of cancer Sunday at Hospice Kavanagh House. She was 48.

Crowley earned her bachelor's degree in business from Drake in 1977 and went on to receive a master's degree from Colorado State University and a Ph.D. from the University of Texas at Austin. She joined the Drake faculty in 1993.

Crowley was noted for her research on the effect of color and scent in retail environments. Her findings were published in scholarly journals as well as The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post. She also founded Sensory Design L.C. and launched Office Scents, a product line. She was a member of Nexus Executive Women's Alliance and the board of directors of the Iowa Environmental Council.

"Ayn Crowley epitomized the ideal Drake professor," said Harry Walk, professor emeritus of accounting. "She was a nationally recognized researcher in marketing but she also was a conscientious and concerned teacher. She will be sorely missed by her faculty colleagues and students."

Marie Klugman, professor of statistics, said Crowley was well liked by her students. "I had a lot of students who commented about how much they enjoyed her classes," Klugman added. "She had a way of sparking students' interest in marketing."

Pat Heaston, interim dean of the College of Business and Public Administration, said Crowley "got very high evaluations from her students and her research was top quality." He added that "We've lost a really outstanding teacher and a researcher with a national and even international reputation."

Funeral services were held Tuesday at St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church. Survivors include a stepsister, Missy DeYoung, Drake's Web editor.
Drake Symphony, Flute Choir to perform concerts

The Drake Symphony Orchestra, John Canarina conducting, will perform the opening concert of its 2002-03 season at 8 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 29, on the Jordan Stage in Sheslow Auditorium.

An all-orchestral program will be presented, opening with Haydn's Symphony No. 93 in D major. One of the composer's greatest works, it successfully combines his mastery of symphonic form with his mischievous sense of humor.

From the 20th century, the orchestra will perform Darius Milhaud's "Suite Provençale," a colorful and boisterous work based on French folk songs, and Bela Bartók's Hungarian Sketches, one of many examples of the composer's nationalistic spirit. Tchaikovsky's ever-popular "Romeo and Juliet" will close the program.

The Drake Flute Choir, conducted by Erika Inge Leake, will perform a concert titled "Flute and Nothing but the Flute" at 8 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 5, on the Jordan Stage in Sheslow Auditorium .
Drake Theatre's production of 'The Crucible' to open Nov. 7

Drake Theatre will present Arthur Miller's play about the Salem Witch Trials at 8 p.m. Nov. 7, 8 and 9 and at 2 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 10, in the Performing Arts Hall, Harmon Fine Arts Center.

Miller's 1953 Tony Award-winning drama is much more than a history lesson, said director Michael A. Rothmayer. "The Crucible" is "a parable about the evil humanity seems forever capable of committing when reason is supplanted by ambition and misguided devotion," he said.

Tickets are $6 for adults and $3 for students, senior citizens and those with a Drake ID. For tickets, call the Drake Fine Arts Box Office at x3841.

A TalkAbout dinner at First Christian Church, 25th Street and University Avenue, will precede the Friday, Nov. 8, performance. The TalkABout will begin with a supper of hearty beef stew, corn bread and fruit cobbler followed by talk by Rothmayer on "Yesteryear, Yesterday and Today: Three Meanings of 'The Crucible.' "

"It is a sad but true fact that if you substitute the references to witches in this play for certain 'others' in our history, including suspected terrorists today, the story remains shockingly similar," Roth-mayer said. "Ignorance begets fear begets hatred."

Tickets for the TalkAbout and play are $16 per person. Reservations are required. For reservations, call 271-3700 by Tuesday, Nov. 5.
Levitt funds award program

Future recipients of the Employee Excellence Award will receive $1,000, thanks to the generosity of Madelyn M. Levitt, special counsel to President David Maxwell and a member of the Drake Board of Trustees. The award is presented annually to two employees who demonstrate exceptional commitment and excellence in the performance of their duties.

In addition, Drake's seven-week recognition program for employees "caught in the act" of demonstrating values such as integrity, citizenship and fiscal responsibility will become an annual event. Nominees will be honored at the Faculty and Staff Convocation.
Marquart to give reading Nov. 5

Poet and author Debra Marquart will read from her work as part of the Drake Writers and Critics Series at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 5, in Medbury Honors Lounge. She is associate professor of English and coordinator of the Creative Writing Program at Iowa State University. She also is poetry editor of Flyway Literary Review and author of The Hunger Gone: Rock & Roll Stories.
Tickets expected to go fast

Tickets go on sale at noon on Friday, Nov. 1, for the annual Drake Christmas Madrigal Dinners on Dec. 7 and 8. Last year the performances sold out in less than 24 hours, so it's important to contact the Drake Fine Arts Box Office expeditiously.

The dinners will start at 7 p.m. in Olmsted Center. Guests will be greeted by herald trumpeters and serenaded by strolling minstrels. The Drake Chamber Choir, directed by Aimee Beckmann-Collier, will present the after-dinner concert. Guests will feast on sirloin of beef, wild rice pilaf, spinach salad, baked apple, scones, flaming pudding and wassail. Vegetarian meals are available. Tickets are $35 per person. All seats are reserved. For tickets, call x3841.
Students collect baby items

Faculty and staff are invited to donate new and used baby items for mothers who can't afford these things for their children. The Drake Students for Life group is collecting donations in boxes in all residence halls, Meredith Hall and Olmsted Center through

Nov. 1. Monetary donations may be put in the organization's mailbox in the Student Life Center. All donations will go to the Agape Crisis Pregnancy Center in Des Moines.

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