Penn rallies to bring 1996 presidential debate to campus

About 100 students gathered in the Annenberg Quadrangle yesterday morning to convince the Commission on Presidential Debates to bring the 1996 presidential or vice-presidential candidates to campus. The Penn Band played "Fight on, Pennsylvania!" and Paul Simon's "You Can Call Me Al" as Janet Brown, executive director of the commission, made her way into the plaza in front of the Annenberg School for Communication. Brown was all smiles as students sporting blue-and-white "We're Great for a Debate" stickers welcomed her with cheers. "I love marching bands," she said. "I think this is great stuff. I just want to know, if we come here, do I get to take them home with me?" Attendance at the rally was hurt by low post-Thanksgiving Break publicity, organizers admitted, but helped by the unseasonably warm and sunny weather. College senior Eric Tienou said he was pleased with the turnout, considering that the event was scheduled for 10:15 a.m. -- a time when most students are either still asleep or in the middle of class. And College senior Lance Rogers, chairperson of the Undergraduate Assembly, said he thought Brown's visit went very well. "I don't want to get anybody too excited yet, but our chances from what I saw look very good," he said. Rogers added that Brown seemed to really appreciate the enthusiasm students displayed at the rally. Before the rally, Brown met with University President Judith Rodin. Brown had lunch with a core group of administrators, including Provost Stanley Chodorow, Public Safety Managing Director Thomas Seamon, University Secretary Barbara Stevens and Vice President for Facilities Management Art Gravina. During her visit, Brown looked at the two possible campus sites for a debate -- the Zellerbach Theater, with nearby Gimbel Gymnasium designated for the national press corps, and the Palestra, with Hutchinson Gymnasium being used for the press. Yesterday afternoon, at an on-campus reception planned for Brown's benefit, Philadelphia Mayor Ed Rendell proclaimed November 28 "Janet Brown Day" in the city. "Debates have become a perennial part of ascension to the presidency," he said, adding that he is confident Philadelphia has the facilities needed to impress the commission. Rodin said that having the debate at Penn would put the University "on a roll for the year 2000." "It's a good thing for the region and a terrific thing for the country," she said. "We hope together we can accomplish this." Brown also received a call from Pennsylvania Governor Tom Ridge, who urged the commission to hold a debate at Penn. Ridge sent his deputy chief of staff to read a proclamation to that effect in person yesterday. Ten schools and cities are in the running for the four commission-sponsored events, and Brown's site visit yesterday was only her third of this season. Brown called Penn's facilities "impressive," and said she appreciated the kind welcome and wealth of information she was offered. Stevens said she provided a CD-ROM with virtual, three-dimensional pictures of the campus and possible debate sites to Brown to share with her executive producer. But Brown said she does not yet know how Penn will ultimately stack up. The final decision, which will be made in January, will depend on both the available facilities -- including nearby hotel space -- and the attitude of the groups promoting each site. But administrators do not seem worried about the outcome. "The whole day was enormously successful," said University spokesperson Barbara Beck. "We knew what all the questions were going to be and we came up with all the answers well before she got here." Vice President for Government, Community and Public Affairs Carol Scheman agreed. "I was really thrilled?and more importantly, Janet was thrilled," she said. "She just thought it was a really special visit."

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