“They quite obviously have confidence in us.”
“They” being the Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD), referred to by Chancellor Mark S. Wrighton in a news conference Sept. 23 announcing Washington University in St. Louis as host to the second of three presidential debates that will take place in the fall of 2016.
Wrighton was speaking from a podium in the Field House of the Athletics Complex, not far from the exact location where podiums were set up for candidates Joe Biden and Sarah Palin in 2008 for the vice presidential debate; and in the same gymnasium where presidential debates were held in 2004, 2000 and 1992.
“We know that this is a very special occasion,” Wrighton said. “The Washington University community will benefit enormously. Our students, faculty and staff will have the opportunity to be right here firsthand in terms of being able to participate in educational programs that will attend our hosting of the presidential debate.”
At the same time Wrighton was making the announcement of the university’s presidential debate, scheduled for 8 p.m. CDT Sunday, Oct. 9, 2016, the CPD was announcing in Washington, D.C., that the university was joining three other institutions in hosting debates in 2016: Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio, will hold a presidential debate Sept 26; Longwood University in Farmville, Va., will hold a vice presidential debate Oct. 4; and the University of Nevada-Las Vegas will hold a presidential debate Oct. 19.
“We are very fortunate to have wonderful facilities,” Wrighton said. “We’re in the Field House, and by this time next year we will have completed the Gary M. Sumers Recreation Center. We are thrilled to have these new facilities be a part of the debate site.”
Wrighton made the announcement along with Robert L. Virgil Jr., PhD, emeritus trustee and retired partner of Edward Jones, whom he called the “mastermind of the very first debate held here in 1992.”
“This is great for Washington University,” Virgil said. “It’s great for St. Louis, and it’s great for the nation. These debates are now a regular part of presidential elections.”
Virgil recalled the first debate in 1992, in which the university had just one week to prepare: “It’s true,” he said. “Chancellor (William H.) Danforth received the call from Washington on a Sunday. He called and asked if I would head up the team and make it happen, and we did.
“We didn’t have a whole lot of time to consider alternatives. We adopted a motto of ‘let’s get it done,’ and we did.”
That same can-do spirit persists in the students today, and was echoed in remarks by Lori S. White, PhD, vice chancellor for students; and from students Ally Melvin, president of the Graduate Professional Council; and Jordan Finkelstein, student body president.
Wrighton said he was hopeful the CPD would release an allotment of tickets to the university as it has in the past, and that any the university receives will be distributed to students via a lottery.
Wrighton also noted members of the team who helped make it happen and who will have key roles in the planning process, including his chief of staff, Steve Givens, who will head the university’s debate steering committee; Art Ackermann, head of facilities; Robert Hall, director of maintenance operations; and Josh Whitman, the John M. Schael Director of Athletics.
“This is for any American institution a record,” Wrighton said, referring to the six times Washington University has been selected by the CPD. Four debates were held here and one, in 1996, was canceled just weeks before the event.
“We’re proud of that,” Wrighton said. “We’re proud to have the confidence of the commission, and we’re proud of all those who helped make this possible.”
With that, Wrighton and the panel donned ball caps with what will quite likely be a trending hashtag on Oct. 9 of next year — #WashUdebate2016 — a testimony to how much debate planning has changed.
“I remember we had to have a bank of pay phones set up in 1992,” Givens said after the news conference. “Pay phones!” he chuckled. “We’ve come pretty far.”