UI staff lend a hand to candidates' campus campaign visits

When presidential candidates come to campus, University employees have the opportunity to learn more about individual campaigns, perhaps even meeting the contenders face to face. But for some UI staff members, political visits also mean taking on additional duties, from preparing a fruit platter to assisting the Secret Service in security sweeps.

	University of Iowa Police Officer Mike Smith shakes hands with Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama earlier this fall on the University of Iowa campus. Photo by Tim Schoon.

The campaign stops must be sponsored by a recognized student organization, but helping to coordinate them are several UI departments, including the Division of Student Services, the Department of Public Safety, and Iowa Memorial Union Event Services.

“We’re a public university, so faculty and staff are not in a position to sponsor a particular candidate or campaign. Our concern is for students to get experience organizing these events,” says Phillip Jones, vice president for student services and dean of students. “This year we’ve had everything from a Barack Obama rally on the Pentacrest with 10,000 people to Ron Paul sliding in under the radar at the union. The students involved learn about organizing, working in teams, abiding by a set of guidelines, decision making, dealing with security considerations, trying to get support. And many of them get to meet the candidates before the event.”

Since the IMU plays host to most of the University’s campaign stops, especially as the temperature drops, Cory Lockwood often is one of the first UI employees to help with logistics. As manager of IMU Event Services, he supervises setup and custodial crews and works on events ranging from weddings to lectures to concerts.

For political visits, Lockwood meets with representatives from the sponsoring student organization and from the campaign to address room preferences and scheduling, seating, security, wiring needs, motorcade and parking logistics, transportation routes, hospitality suite requests, and more.

“We also help with food arrangements,” says Lockwood. “That might consist of a sit-down meal—Senator Obama had lunch down at the IMU when he was on the Pentacrest—or it may be a boxed lunch that the candidate eats in an SUV on their way out of town.”

The finishing touches are applied to the stage prior to an October campaign event for Republican candidate Rudy Giuliani on the University of Iowa campus. Photo by Tim Schoon.

The IMU requires that any rental fees for political events be paid by the campaigns up front, so that student organizations are not left with a bill, Lockwood says.

Regardless of venue or audience size, the Department of Public Safety always sends at least one officer to provide security and, if necessary, crowd control, says Bill Searls, associate director of public safety. Depending on candidates’ security needs and whether they are under Secret Service protection, the department may also help sweep buildings, determine travel routes, and offer patrol escorts.

“We treat political stops similarly to sports events and concerts, but if there is Secret Service or other security concerns, we might take a different spin. No two visits are the same,” Searls says. “When Rudy Giuliani came, he pulled up to the southwest corner of the IMU and walked right in through the Iowa House. If he’d had Secret Service, we might have had to clear a particular area before his arrival.”

When Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton and former president Bill Clinton made a joint appearance on the IMU River Terrace last summer, UI officials had another factor to consider: soaring temperatures.

“If an event is outdoors and it is hot, like it was for the Clintons, then we might have an ambulance on standby,” Searls says. “Although rare, it could be that all the ambulances are busy on calls—so it’s good to have one there, just in case someone needs it.”

One thing UI departments usually can count on is having little lead time to prepare for a visit—often only a few days. Jimmy Centers, a junior political science major from Peoria, Ill., and an intern with the Giuliani campaign, orchestrated an IMU visit in October by the former New York City mayor. Help from experienced UI staff members, he says, alleviated the anxiety created by several last-minute scheduling changes.

“The original date was the Sunday after the Illinois football game—we were excited and talked about doing a noon event on the Pentacrest. We started the paperwork, but then the date changed to the following Wednesday and we had to start over again getting the necessary signatures,” Centers says. “The staff at IMU was just great. Everything I didn’t think of doing, they suggested—like having some fruit and water available for Rudy.”

The short notice can be nerve-racking at times, Lockwood says, but it is worth it.

“The political events are a fun break from the normal routine. They give students good experience and us a sense of pride in the IMU,” he says. “At the end of the day, though, everyone breathes a sigh of relief.”

Searls says he enjoys the perks of the political assignments, like shaking Obama’s hand and chitchatting with the Clintons.

“It’s exciting for me,” says Searls, who joined the UI police a year and a half ago, after serving in Coralville’s police force. “It’s an opportunity to meet the individuals running for president. Not many people get to do that. I think most officers here are excited with these assignments, especially now that things are so politically charged. We can listen to the speeches and become more familiar with the candidates.”

Ultimately, Jones says, one of these campus visitors will be president of the United States.

“We want all of them to have a good experience here and to have equal treatment.”

by Sara Epstein Moninger