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Don't fret, readers: you now have a chance to get tickets for the McCain - Obama forum! In an email sent just before noon, President Bollinger officially announced the details for the event and ticket process behind it. All one has to do is register online here between 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. tomorrow (Friday). Winners will be notified on Monday.

As for the odds, it appears that almost every Columbia student is eligibile, and preliminary reports indicate that, this time, all the schools have actually recieved the email before tickets disappear. Furthermore, a senior administration official tells Bwog that not all the remaining tickets will go towards students. In other words, the percent chances are almost certainly in the single digits.

For those of you who don't get a ticket, "alternative viewing options for those unable to attend are being arranged." Full email is below the jump.

President Lee C. Bollinger is pleased to announce that on Thursday, September 11, at 7:00 p.m., the "ServiceNation Presidential Candidates Forum" will be held at Columbia University in the Roone Arledge Auditorium of Alfred Lerner Hall as part of the ServiceNation Summit 2008. New York Governor David A. Paterson will open the program, followed by remarks by Senators John McCain and Barack Obama. Moderated by TIME Magazine Editor Richard Stengel and PBS NewsHour Anchor Judy Woodruff, the forum will offer both candidates a national stage to discuss the role of service in America.

The limited available seating will be open only to Columbia University students through a lottery system. Alternative viewing options for those unable to attend are being arranged. Please continue to check the University homepage for updates.

In order to register for the lottery, you must be a current student at one of the following schools: Columbia Business School; Columbia College; College of Dental Medicine; College of Physicians and Surgeons; Barnard College; Graduate School of Arts and Sciences; the Journalism School; Mailman School of Public Health; School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation; School of Continuing Education; the Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Sciences; School of General Studies; School of International and Public Affairs; Columbia Law School; School of Nursing; School of Social Work; School of the Arts; and Teachers College.

Students must register for the lottery online on Friday, September 5, between 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. at: https://calendar.columbia.edu/sundial/webapi/register.php?eventID=25241.

The subsequent drawing for the lottery will be monitored by students and lottery winners will be notified via email on Monday, September 8. Students must pick up tickets in person with a valid student ID card. Tickets are non-transferable. Please be aware that on the day of the event, doors will open at 4:30 p.m. and close at 6:30 p.m.

The ServiceNation Summit is co-chaired by Caroline Kennedy; Alma Powell, chair of America's Promise Alliance; Richard Stengel, editor of TIME; Vartan Gregorian, president of the Carnegie Corporation of New York; and Bill Novelli, chief executive officer of AARP. The summit is underwritten by a grant from the Carnegie Corporation and presented by TIME, AARP, and Target.

Please visit www.columbia.edu or call 212-854-7328 for event details.

See also: Barack Obama, Extensions, John Mccain, Lotteries, Servicenation Summit

September 4, 2008 @ 12:41 PM | Comments 25 comments | Add comment Post a comment | Link to this article | | | Share on Facebook

Posted by ...great: #1 · reply · track
September 4, 2008 at 12:59 PM (from campus)
...at least it's somewhat fair
Posted by almost...: #2 (in reply to #1) · reply · track
September 4, 2008 at 1:04 PM (from campus)
except that Barnard and TC are included. what gives? and the Business School should be excluded for shunning the rest of us.
Posted by seriously: #3 · reply · track
September 4, 2008 at 1:11 PM (from campus)
why are they taking chances away from students who actually go to Columbia? and Business school should not be allowed to get any tickets.
Posted by agreed: #4 (in reply to #2) · reply · track
September 4, 2008 at 1:12 PM (from campus)
the business school can go only if they host the session in their exclusive library study rooms....
Posted by jesus christ: #5 · reply · track
September 4, 2008 at 1:18 PM (from campus)
columbia is a university, which means that all of its graduate schools and undergraduate schools are part of it. get over yourself.
Posted by are you for real?: #6 (in reply to #3) · reply · track
September 4, 2008 at 1:21 PM
Do you really think that undergraduates are the only students that "actually go to Columbia"?

I am an undergraduate and I think you should shoot yourself.
Posted by fsdfsd: #7 · reply · track
September 4, 2008 at 1:36 PM
I'd rather pay 50 bucks for a ticket so that I didn't have to be in a lottery with the commoners...
Posted by judith shapiro: #8 · reply · track
September 4, 2008 at 1:37 PM
hey guys. i have a great idea.

let's turn this into pissing match #57245243 between columbia college and barnard students.

and stop throwing your apples at graduation!
Posted by the real problem: #9 · reply · track
September 4, 2008 at 1:43 PM (from campus)
is that Columbia has a laughably-sized auditorium for the total size of the university. Seriously - Roone Arledge fits 1500 for 25,000 total students. If only the Morningside Stadium had been built..
Posted by haha: #10 · reply · track
September 4, 2008 at 2:00 PM
Instead of hating Columbia you guys should just hate me for bypassing the lottery. I already have my tickets.

-undergraduate student
Posted by ...: #11 · reply · track
September 4, 2008 at 2:13 PM (from campus)
i don't really understand the hype, and i really don't understand the point of a jumbotron.

if you're going to watch them on tv, there are much more comfortable places than the south lawns from which to do so.

and if you get in, it's not like you'll be able to raise your hand and ask a question.

Posted by some schools have: #12 · reply · track
September 4, 2008 at 2:28 PM
football games and tailgating. We have jumbotrons and world leaders.

community baby! roar.
Posted by well: #13 (in reply to #5) · reply · track
September 4, 2008 at 3:34 PM (from campus)
no one is saying exclude the grad schools, just the Business School. They clearly have their heads up their asses and want to be exclusive douchebags, separate from the rest of the University.
Posted by Yalie: #14 · reply · track
September 4, 2008 at 8:39 PM (from campus)
Hey guys,

columbia is great, but did you know that Yale is hosting the actual presidential debate
Posted by I guess: #15 (in reply to #14) · reply · track
September 4, 2008 at 9:35 PM (from campus)
its their way of an apology for admitting that prick purely on legacy
Posted by .....: #16 (in reply to #14) · reply · track
September 5, 2008 at 12:07 AM
No. First of all, there is no such thing as "the actual" presidential debate. There are three of them. Secondly, I just checked the website of the Commission on Presidential Debates, and in fact, none of them are being held at Yale. They are being held at the University of Mississippi, Belmont University (Nashville, Tennessee), and Hofstra University (Long Island, NY). The Vice Presidential debate will be held at Washington University in St. Louis.
Posted by I guess: #17 (in reply to #15) · reply · track
September 5, 2008 at 12:09 AM
you are one of the pricks that were admitted on merit? (I couldn't resist.)
Posted by Disappointed: #18 · reply · track
September 5, 2008 at 10:01 AM (from campus)
The website seems to be down for me... I get this message when I try to enter the lottery:

This webpage is not available.

The webpage at [external link to calendar.columbia.edu] might be temporarily down or it may have moved permanently to a new web address.

Posted by umm yeah: #19 · reply · track
September 5, 2008 at 10:24 AM (from campus)
i have a bad feeling about this whole lottery thing... it's definitely not working at this point. we're all screwed.
Posted by Still nothing: #20 · reply · track
September 5, 2008 at 10:31 AM (from campus)
This was obviously going to crash some server, they should have gotten some experts to handle this thing.
Posted by TC Bitch: #21 (in reply to #2) · reply · track
September 5, 2008 at 12:39 PM
Thanks for making an exception for us second-class citizens over at the pit they call TC. This is (as I have come sadly to expect from this venerable institution) total bullshit. I have been trying to access the webpage all morning - no luck. How typical!
Posted by CUGirl: #22 · reply · track
September 5, 2008 at 7:08 PM (from campus)
Did anyone actually get into the website to register for the lottery or know what does the confirmation page look like? I can't tell if it worked. This whole thing is a mess.
Posted by new server: #23 · reply · track
September 5, 2008 at 7:41 PM (from campus)
They moved everything to a new server. Things are moving (albeit slowly).

unixxxx,

This confirms your entry in the student ticket lottery for the "ServiceNation Presidential Candidates Forum". An email has been sent as well.

If your name is chosen at random, you will be notified via email on Monday, September 8, 2008; this confirmation email will contain instructions for claiming your ticket, as well as admission requirements for the event.

Student status of all ticket lottery winners will be verified.

For more information, please call 212-854-7328.

Thank you.
Posted by consider: #24 · reply · track
September 7, 2008 at 10:17 AM (from campus)
Ahmadinejad came for the World Leaders Forum, hosted by SIPA.

McCain and Obama aren't here for poor undergrads, we're lucky they even told us.
Posted by as if: #25 · reply · track
September 7, 2008 at 7:00 PM (from campus)
they could not have told us...

"We're closing the gates, which never happens, and you have to show ID to get on campus. Oh, and the Secret Service is here. But there's nothing remotely out of the ordinary going on. Really!"

Seriously?
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