Being named the Drake Relays Beautiful Bulldog is nothing to sneeze at - unless you're the 2006 winner, a 2-year-old bulldog named Hannah, owned by Curtis Jackson and Amanda Millard of Des Moines.
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Students, staff and faculty celebrated the coming of the 97th running of the Drake Relays with a boisterous march through the neighborhood Saturday morning followed by an afternoon of painting squares on Carpenter Avenue (and each other). Sunday, students got down and dirty in the annual mud volleyball tournament across from Carpenter Residence Hall. Rumors were rampant that studying also occurred on campus this weekend, but no reports have been confirmed.

Everybody loves a parade … and a parade with balloons, well, that's just too much giddiness for words.

Drake Relays Parade Marshals Daniel and Patricia Jorndt, both Drake alums, toss candy to children along the route.

A member of the Isiserettes takes a big step during the Relays parade.

A view from above: Airborne photographer Dave Tunge, of Yankton, S.D., shot this view of Street Painting from his private plane.

Members of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon social fraternity (and friends) brighten up a spot on Carpenter Avenue.

These students from Drake's KDCS radio station hunt up some rocking tunes to entertain the street painters.

Memo to students who might've misbehaved during Street Painting: Sentwali Bakari, dean of students, had his video camera going all day.

Ericca Saddoris, director of residence life, bleeds blue for DU, but she didn't need a coat of paint to prove it.

The Drake Outdoors Club served hotdogs and hamburgers that were (mostly) paint free.

All in all, it was a day of painted faces - both the student, above, and on the street, below.

This volleyball team isn't afraid to get down and dirty to win a game.

Whatever Head Women's Basketball Coach Amy Stephens makes her Bulldogs do in practice, it can't be as tough (or as gross) as when hoops star and sophomore education major Lindsay Whorton went through trying to make this dig in mud volleyball.

This student will definitely will need color-safe bleach when he tries to wash those shorts.
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In cooperation with the Iowa Department of Public Health, Drake University will hold a free mumps vaccination clinic for students from 9 to 11:30 a.m. Wednesday, April 26, at the Student Health Center.

The University strongly urges students who have not had two doses of the mumps vaccine to participate in the clinic to protect their own health and the entire Drake community.

Vaccinations will be free Wednesday only during the clinic. The Student Health Center regularly offers the mumps vaccine, as part of the MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) shot, at a cost of $40.

Wednesday's free clinic is part of a statewide campaign to reduce the spread of mumps among 18 to 22 year olds, the age group with the highest number of Iowa mumps cases.

For more information about the mumps, visit the Iowa Department of Public Health Web site at www.idph.state.ia.us
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Frederick Lane

Frederick Lane, an author and expert on issues of technology and privacy, will present the Hawley Foundation Lecture at Drake University on "Lost in MySpace: Social Networking, Student Privacy and Self-Protection." The lecture, which is free and open to the public, will start at 8 p.m. Wednesday, April 26, in Sheslow Auditorium in Old Main.

Lane is an expert witness, lecturer and author who focuses on the impact of technology on society. In 2000, he combined his technical interests and legal training to write his first book: "Obscene Profits: The Entrepreneurs of Pornography in the Cyber Age." That was followed in 2003 by publication of "The Naked Employee: How Technology is Compromising Workplace Privacy." He recently finished his third book, "The Decency Wars: The Campaign to Cleanse American Culture," which is scheduled for publication in August by Prometheus Books.

In addition to giving the Hawley Foundation Lecture, Lane will visit Joseph Schneider's honors class on Culture, Power and Knowledge at 2 p.m. Wednesday, April 26. That evening he will have dinner with a small group of honors students.

The Honors Program, Honors Student Council and the Office of the Provost sponsor Lane's visit to Drake. For more information, call x2999.
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Members of the Drake Board of Trustees will get a first-hand look at Drake students' science acumen and activity when they arrive Thursday for the Drake University Conference on Undergraduate Research in the Science, which runs from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in Parents Hall, Olmsted Center.

Science and math students will display posters and make presentations on the research that they've pursued during the academic year - just in time for the spring Board of Trustees meeting.

"We scheduled DUCURS on the same weekend as the board meeting so that we could show our trustees the changes that have taken place in science education. Students now carry out real research in collaboration with faculty," said John Burney, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. "We want to show the Trustees why we are investing money in new labs and flexible learning spaces to engage the science students in inquiry-based courses. We hope to work toward a new science building and further renovations of Olin and Harvey Ingham halls."

Drake is remodeling classrooms in Olin Hall to create an atmosphere in which students experience science learning as practicing scientists - developing theories that can be tested in the classroom lab facilities rather than simply memorizing concepts from a textbook. Long-term plans call for building a new science building.
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Lasers, mirrors and mousetrap springs are among the items Iowa's top high school physics students will employ as they go for the gold in the annual State Physics Olympics at Drake University on Wednesday, April 26. The competition, which is free and open to the public, will take place from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. in Parents Hall at Olmsted Center.

About 300 students from 50 high schools across the state who won top honors in regional competitions will participate in the state finals, sponsored by Drake's School of Education and the Heartland Area Education Agency. The events consist of the Optical Slalom, Mousetrap Car, Student-Powered Water Heater, Falling Mass-Powered Car, Ping-Pong Catapult and Soda Straw Arm.
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Matt Roth proposes to Stephanie Rohr under the disapproving gaze of Dana Gustafson in Drake's production of "The Importance of Being Earnest."

The Drake Theatre Department will present Oscar Wilde's "The Importance of Being Earnest" for its final show of the academic year.

Directed by Clive Elliott, Daniel B. Goldberg artist in residence in theatre arts, performances start at 8 p.m. April 27, 28 and 29 and at 2 p.m. Sunday, April 30, in Studio 55 of the Harmon Fine Arts Center.

Tickets are $5 for adults, $3 for senior citizens and non-Drake students and $1 with a Drake ID. Reservations are recommended due to limited seating. Call the Drake Fine Arts Box Office at x3841.
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Drake students earned two first-place honors in the Society of Professional Jounralists' Region 7 Mark of Excellence Awards for work in the 2005 calendar year. Collegiate journalists submitted more than 3,100 entries in 43 categories across SPJ's 12 regions.

The honorees were awarded certificates on April 8 at the Region 7 Conference held at the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. First place regional winners will advance to the national round of judging that takes place in early April. Winners will be announced in mid May.

Drake winners were:

Magazine Non-Fiction Article
First Place: Rachel DeSchepper, Drake University, "Campus Cover-up"
Third Place: Bridget Nelson & Sarah Schafman, Drake University, "False Confidence"

Best Student Magazine (published once a year)
First Place: Staff, Drake University, "Launch Magazine"
Second Place: Staff, Drake University, "515 Magazine"

Best Student Magazine (published more than once a year)
Third Place: Staff, Drake University, "Drake Magazine"
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H. Lynn Horak, regioal president of Wells Fargo Iowa and a member of the Drake Board of Trustees, admires his CBPA Community Leadership Award, presented to him last week at the Business Days Banquette.

The Drake College of Business and Public Administration awarded its first Community Leadership Award to H. Lynn Horak at last week's Business Days Banquette.

Horak, regional president of Wells Fargo Iowa and a member of the Drake Board of Trustees, is widely involved in the Des Moines-area community. His wife, Charlene, is a graduate of Drake's College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences.

In presenting the award, Charlie Edwards, dean of the College of Business and Public Administration, said, "Lynn has been a great friend to Drake and the College of Business for many years."

Horak's community involvement includes the Greater Des Moines Partnership Board, Project Destiny - Quality of Life Task Force Committee Chair, Des Moines Development Corp., Iowa Bankers Association Board of Directors, Civic Center of Des Moines Honorary Board of Trustees, United Way of Central Iowa Board, University of Northern Iowa Board of Trustees and Central Baptist Theological Seminary Board of Trustees.

Horak is active in many fundraising activities for various civic organizations, including: the Blank Park Zoo Foundation, Des Moines Botanical Center, Children and Families of Iowa, Iowa College Foundation, Juvenile Diabetes Foundation and the United Negro College Fund.
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David McCord, center, Drake professor of law, holds his Iowa Light of Wellness Award. Jana Peterson, Drake wellness director, (left) and Kristi Cook, Kristi Cook, assistant director of wellness, (right) who nominated him for the honor.

The Wellness Council of Iowa honored David McCord, Drake professor of law, with one of 12 Iowa Light of Wellness Awards on Thursday, April 20.

The award was given to people in local businesses and organizations who, as a result of participating in their company's wellness program, have made a positive change in their lifestyle.

"David has not only been an advocate for the program, but also an active example," the Drake Wellness staff said in their nomination of McCord. "He has been a faithful group exercise participant, participating in yoga and Pilates since they were introduced at Drake. Not only does he attend, but he volunteers to lead the class when an instructor is unable to attend. He has set a positive example and made others feel comfortable attending, especially boosting the male participation rate in wellness programs. In addition to participating in group exercise, he also does physical activity on his own on a regular basis."
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Scott Russell Sanders

Scott Russell Sanders, professor of creative writing at Indiana University, will close out the 2005-06 season of the Drake Writers and Critics series at 8 p.m., Monday, May 1, room 206, Cline Hall.

Sanders' publications include novels, short story collections and works of creative nonfiction as well as books for children. His writing appears regularly in the Georgia Review, Orion, Audubon and numerous anthologies.

Sanders has been awarded fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the Lilly Endowment. His work has also received the Associated Writing Programs Award in Creative Nonfiction, the Kenyon Review Award for Literary Excellence, the Great Lakes Book Award and the Ohioana Book Award. For his work in nonfiction, Sanders received a Lannan Literary Award in 1995.
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Olympian Amy Acuff will highlight the women's special invitational high jump held in downtown Des Moines on Wednesday.

The races and action are here. Here's a look at what's happening this week:

MONDAY, APRIL 24

• Beautiful Bulldog Contest, 11 a.m., Nollen Plaza, downtown Des Moines.
• Hypnotist Jim Wand, 9 to 11 p.m., Sheslow Auditorium, Old Main.

• Wear Your Blues Day: Faculty and staff are encouraged to wear their Drake blue shirts and bulldog pins today as part of Drake Relays week celebrations.
• Drake Relays Downtown: women's special invitational high jump featuring Olympian Amy Acuff and Chaunte Howard, silver medalist at the 2005 World Outdoor Championships, noon, Nollen Plaza, downtown Des Moines.
• Relays Carnival, 4 to 7 p.m., Helmick Commons and Olmsted Center.

• Drake Relays, events beginning at 11 a.m., Drake Stadium.
• Foam dance party, 9 p.m. to midnight, Olmsted Center patio.

• Drake Relays, events beginning at 8 a.m., Drake Stadium.
• Dedication of Drake Plaza and bronze bulldog statue, 12:15 p.m., near corner of former 28th Street and Forest Avenue, Drake Stadium.
• All classes dismissed after 1:50 p.m.
• Relays celebrations on Court Avenue, 7 p.m. to 2 a.m., Court Avenue downtown.

• Drake Relays, events beginning at 8 a.m., Drake Stadium.
• Dedication of Drake Stadium, 11:50 a.m., Jim Duncan Track, Drake Stadium.
• Ten-Year cluster reunion (Classes of 1995, 1996, 1997), 6 p.m., Science Center of Iowa, 401 W. Martin Luther King Pkwy. Hors D'Oeuvres will be served and a cash bar will be available. The cost is $20 per person and includes admission to the Science Center of Iowa to those arriving before 6 p.m. Contact John Brown at (515) 271-3378 to register.
• Forty-Year cluster reunion (Classes of 1965, 1966, 1967), 6 p.m., Des Moines Club, 666 Grand Ave. Hors D'Oeuvres will be served and a cash bar will be available. The cost is $20 per person. Contact Melisa Cox at (515) 271-2769 to register.
• Step Show, 6:30 p.m. to 1 a.m., Parents Hall, Olmsted Center.

• Try to get some sleep. Finals and graduation are coming.

• Beautiful Bulldog Contest, 11 a.m., Nollen Plaza, downtown Des Moines.
• Holocaust Memorial Service will be conducted by the Jewish clergy 7:30 p.m., Levitt Hall, Old Main, with musical selections from the Temple Bínai Jeshurun Choir, conducted by Laura Berkson. A reception follows the service. The public is invited to gather 6:30 pm at Cowles Library to view Fighting the Fires of Hate: America and the Nazi Book Burnings, a traveling exhibition from the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum.
• Hypnotist Jim Wand, 9 to 11 p.m., Sheslow Auditorium, Old Main.

• Drake history exhibit opens at the Polk County Heritage Museum, 111 Court Ave. Hours are 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. Exhibit runs through Friday, June 2.
• Drake Symphony Orchestra Young Artists Concert, John Canarina, conductor, 8 p.m., on the Jordan Stage, Sheslow Auditorium, Old Main.

• Wear Your Blues Day: Faculty and staff are encouraged to wear their Drake blue shirts and bulldog pins today as part of Drake Relays week celebrations.
• Mornings @ Drake presents Tom Westbrook, Drake professor of education, discussing accountability in leadership, 7 to 8 a.m., upper level of Olmsted Center. Contact John Brown at x3378 to register.
• State of Iowa Physics Olympics, 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., Parent's Hall, Olmsted Center.
• Drake Relays Downtown: women's special invitational high jump featuring Olympian Amy Acuff and Chaunte Howard, silver medalist at the 2005 World Outdoor Championships, noon, Nollen Plaza, downtown Des Moines.
• Drake softball vs. South Dakota State, 3 p.m., Buel Field.
• Relays Carnival, 4 to 7 p.m., Helmick Commons and Olmsted Center.
• Author Frederick Lane discusses "Lost in MySpace: Social Networking, Student Privacy and Self-Protection," 8 p.m., Sheslow Auditorium, Old Main.

• Drake Relays, events beginning at 11 a.m., Drake Stadium.
• Drake University Conference on Undergraduate Research in the Science, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Parents Hall, Olmsted Center.
• Faculty Tech Series presents Peggy Steinbronn, "What's New?" demonstrating the newest features of Blackboard 7.0, 3:30 p.m., Carnegie Learning Lab.
• Drake Jazz II, directed by James Romain, 8 p.m., Performing Arts Hall, Harmon Fine Arts Center.
• Drake Theatre Department presents Oscar Wilde's "The Importance of Being Ernest," Harmon Fine Arts Center, 8 p.m.
• Drake Writers' Night, sponsored by the Writers and Critics Series, 8 p.m., Medbury Honors Lounge.
• Foam dance party, 9 p.m. to midnight, Olmsted Center patio.

• Drake Relays, events beginning at 8 a.m., Drake Stadium.
• Dedication of Drake Plaza and bronze bulldog statue, 12:15 p.m., near corner of former 28th Street and Forest Avenue, Drake Stadium.
• All classes dismissed after 1:50 p.m.
• Relays celebrations on Court Avenue, 7 p.m. to 2 a.m., Court Avenue downtown.
• Drake Theatre Department presents Oscar Wilde's "The Importance of Being Ernest," 8 p.m., Studio 55, Harmon Fine Arts Center.
• Drake Municipal Observatory presentation, "Uranus, Neptune and Pluto Physical Attributes and Materials Available for Life," 8 p.m., Drake Municipal Observatory, Waveland Park.

• Drake Relays, events beginning at 8 a.m., Drake Stadium.
• Dedication of Drake Stadium, 11:50 a.m., Jim Duncan Track, Drake Stadium.
• Drake softball vs. Wichita State, 6 p.m., Buel Field.
• Ten-Year cluster reunion (Classes of 1995, 1996, 1997), 6 p.m., Science Center of Iowa, 401 W. Martin Luther King Pkwy. Hors D'Oeuvres will be served and a cash bar will be available. The cost is $20 per person and includes admission to the Science Center of Iowa to those arriving before 6 p.m. Contact John Brown at (515) 271-3378 to register.
• Forty-Year cluster reunion (Classes of 1965, 1966, 1967), 6 p.m., Des Moines Club, 666 Grand Ave. Hors D'Oeuvres will be served and a cash bar will be available. The cost is $20 per person. Contact Melisa Cox at (515) 271-2769 to register.
• Step Show, 6:30 p.m. to 1 a.m., Parents Hall, Olmsted Center.
• Drake Theatre Department presents Oscar Wilde's "The Importance of Being Ernest," 8 p.m., Studio 55, Harmon Fine Arts Center.

• Drake softball vs. Wichita State, noon, Buel Field.
• Drake Theatre Department presents Oscar Wilde's "The Importance of Being Ernest," 2 p.m., Studio 55, Harmon Fine Arts Center.

• Drake English Department's Writers and Critics Series presents a lecture by Scott Russell Sanders, professor of creative writing at Indiana University, 8 p.m., room 206, Cline Hall.