Historic First for UMass Boston and the Northeast First Presidential Debate Held on Campus October 3
University Communications
University Reporter
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Historic First for UMass Boston and the Northeast First Presidential Debate Held on Campus October 3 |
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Campus Basks in Worldwide Media Spotlight |
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Convocation Celebrates the Spirit of Civic Education |
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Lipke Viewing Sparks Debate |
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Debate on the Internet: UMass Boston Votes |
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Political Analysts Provide Pre-Debate Bipartisan Commentary |
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Debate Highlights |
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Hats off to These UMB Colleagues, Who Helped Make the Debate a Success! |
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Golden Key Registers 800 Voters for Election 2000 |
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Fitting In: The Debate in History |
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By Joe Peters
The leading candidates came, millions of viewers worldwide saw, and in
the end, the University of Massachusetts Boston conquered several challenges
on its way to being the first institution in the Northeast to host a presidential
debate.
It was apparent to anyone on campus this past September that much work was being done to accommodate the debate. However, this was just the visible tip of an iceberg of planning and cooperation among many departments on campus.
In January, the Commission on Presidential Debates announced that UMass Boston and its Columbia Point neighbor, the John F. Kennedy Library, would cohost the first scheduled debate. While the planning started shortly thereafter, activities heightened throughout the summer months. It wasn't until Labor Day weekend that Republican candidate George W. Bush took the wind out of the debate sails by announcing that he did not intend to come to Boston.
When the parties finally agreed to the Boston debate, the event was suddenly only two weeks away. In that time frame the Clark Athletic Center had to be converted into a debate hall and the adjacent hockey rink into a media center, replete with red carpet, approximately 700 phones, more than 70 televisions, and accommodations for almost 1,600 media representatives from around the world.
"People pitched in and crossed boundaries. They invested a great deal of time and effort in this to ensure the debate would go without a hitch for us," said LaVerne Cawthorne, associate vice chancellor for administration and finance. "People truly cared about their individual work. Down to the smallest details, people pulled together."
The debate presented a rare opportunity for departments to combine forces and for the campus to work closely with its neighbor and cohost, the John F. Kennedy Library.
"The debate really gave an opportunity for people who might normally
never have the chance to work together to do so," said Annemarie
Lewis Kerwin, assistant vice chancellor for university communications
and debate coordinator. "I think we have already seen this sense
of cooperation and appreciation surrounding the debate continue into the
day-to-day life of the campus."
This is not to say the debate did not have surprises. Delays in the allotment of tickets postponed the student lottery to the afternoon of the debate. But even at that late point, volunteers from different departments hurriedly worked together to contact each selected student to ensure he or she had the opportunity to witness this event of a lifetime.
Green Party candidate Ralph Nader, attempting to enter the debate with
what is believed to have been a false ticket, was turned away without
major incident.
Recognizing early on that very few tickets would probably be available
to students or the public, debate planners developed creative ways of
involving the campus and the community.
Several convocation events adopted an election perspective. The campus
Web site hosted opportunities for people to voice opinions or connect
with other election-oriented Web sites. Including on-campus events and
forums at the JFK Library, there were two dozen public programs surrounding
the debate.
The return on all this effort likely will be seen over many years. Prior
debate hosts have seen double-digit enrollment increases, better ability
to attract grant and other funding, and an increased sense of school spirit
among students, faculty, and staff.
Two days after the debate, in a crowded meeting with faculty, University President William Bulger opened with "I know that what you all really want to know is, Who won the debate?" The audience laughed at the icebreaker from the former state senator. "The University of Massachusetts did," he concluded, to the applause of those gathered.