[Peace] News-Gazette clarification of Obama itinerary

[David Green]

X-PRESIDENT'S Ul VISIT

944 students win lottery to see Obama

22,000 signed up for chance at Huff Hall seat for speech

By JULIE WURTH jwurth at news-gazette.com

URBANA — Almost 950 students at the University of Illinois won the Obama
lottery Tuesday night.

UI officials notified 944 students, including 756 at the Urbana campus,
that they had been selected to attend Friday’s speech by former President
Barack Obama, who will visit the UI to receive an ethicsin- government
award. Another 141 are from the UI Chicago, and 47 are from the UI
Springfield.

A viewing party has also been scheduled at Huff Hall for Friday morning’s
speech, with room for about 4,000 students.

More than 22,000 students at the Urbana campus alone had thrown in their
names for a coveted seat at Foellinger Auditorium, which normally has a
capacity of about 1,300.

UI spokeswoman Robin Kaler said some seats have to be removed to
accommodate television cameras, and the bulk of the remaining seats will go
to members of the media. Others are reserved for administrators from each
campus and dignitaries, she said.

Students were notified about 7:30 p.m. Tuesday.

Kaler said tickets were given out to a randomized list of students who had
entered the lottery, the same way that lotteries for concerts and other
popular events are handled.

Obama is being honored the Paul H. Douglas Ethics in Government Award from

the UI’s Institute of Government and Public Affairs, a university-
system-level unit. He will be honored at a private ceremony following his
11 a.m. speech at Foellinger.

The former president opted to come to the Urbana campus to receive the
award, rather than Chicago or Washington, D.C., where he now lives. A
spokeswoman said last week he liked the idea of going downstate to meet
with students and to illustrate the need for Democrats to reach out to all
kinds of voters, not just those in major urban areas.

Some students who were not selected in the lottery expressed their
disappointment on Reddit and Twitter.

“Finding out President Obama is coming to campus only to not win a ticket
is the ultimate emotional roller coaster,” wrote Connor Durm.

The UI ticket notice, posted by one user on Reddit, urged those who did not
receive tickets to tune in to the livestream of the broadcast at
go.illinois.edu/live or attend the viewing party at Huff Hall Gymnasium,
1206 S. Fourth St., C.

Doors to Huff will open at 9 a.m. Space is limited, and there will be no
admittance after 10:30 a.m., according to the notice. Students also must
show a university ID to get in and won’t be able to bring backpacks, bags,
signs, megaphones, food, drinks or umbrellas inside, or “any other items
that university police determine pose a risk to safety or a disruption of
the event.”
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