Students and local community members gathered in John Paul Jones Arena yesterday between the hours of 10:30 a.m. and 2 p.m. to celebrate and watch the inauguration of President Barack Obama.
Leonard Sandridge, executive vice president and chief operating officer, said the University made the decision to open JPJ for the event several days before releasing the notice of class cancellations between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. To accommodate anticipated attendance at the event, the University considered Newcomb Hall among other location options. Eventually the arena was picked because “for the first time [we have] the technology to be able to stream the event live in a facility that could accommodate large numbers of people,” University spokesperson Carol Wood explained, adding that the University entered an agreement with C-SPAN to give audience members the most uninterrupted coverage.
Neither students nor other community members had to pay to attend the viewing.
“We wanted all students and staff who wished to attend to have a chance to view the official events of the swearing-in ceremony,” Sandridge said. “It was not planned as a money-making event.” He explained that the time devoted to the project was minimal and the cost of staff and services at JPJ was $3,100.
“The event was by-and-large met with positive reviews from members of the University,” Provost Arthur Garson said. “The turnout was tremendous. I was seriously moved at students, faculty and members of the community acting as one in their enthusiasm.”
University Democrats President Megan Durkee said she was excited about the viewing and the Charlottesville community’s turnout but also said she wished that more students would have attended the event.
Some students appreciated the opportunity, though; fourth-year College student Charquea Tiggle, for example, noted that she enjoyed the viewing “for the simple fact that it brought members of the Charlottesville community and students together.”
Other students expressed similar sentiments about the presence of local Charlottesville residents at the event.
“It was great to have a place to be with a lot of people from the community,” first-year Nursing student Kendra Gaarder said, noting that there were many children present in addition to students and adults from the local community.
Some University instructors also attended the event. Charlottesville resident Jocelyn Johnston came with her husband Daniel Lefkowitz, an associate anthropology professor, and their children Andrea and Aaron, who sported Obama T-shirts.
“Their Dad really wanted [the kids] to be in a big group,” Johnston said. “We thought this would be more memorable.”
The crowd at JPJ even included some attendees from outside of the immediate University and Charlottesville communities, such as Doris Scott Crawford, a Farmville resident.
“We saw so much more here than we could have in [Washington,] D.C.,” Crawford said. With her was Newstell Dowdell, who came all the way from Birmingham, Ala. Praising the University for making the event available to the community, Dowdell said, “It was worth it to be here.”
One fourth-year College student expressed similar sentiments about her trip to the actual Inaugural Parade in Washington, D.C.
“Everything that I saw at the parade was just fantastic,” Bonnie Carlson said. Though Carlson and her party were “waiting outside for at least three hours in our bleacher seats before it started” because of a delay caused by Massachusetts Sen. Ted Kennedy’s seizure, the experience was worth the wait, Carlson said.
For students and community members who wanted a more intimate viewing experience than attending the ceremonies in D.C. or even at JPJ, many areas around Grounds also provided alternative means of watching the ceremony. The Harrison Institute, Fiske Kimball Fine Arts, Brown Science and Engineering, Alderman and Clemons libraries all broadcasted coverage from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. — with sound during the inauguration — and two screens were set up at 11:30 a.m in Newcomb Ballroom, Wood said.
After seeing the success of the event, Garson hopes that gatherings of similar nature will continue to occur at the University but with more advance notice of class cancellations.
“The idea of spending 3 hours every four years as a community, listening and speaking and reacting together to the next president of the United States is something that I believe should occur at U.Va,” Garson said.
Read More
Graduating students share their future plans as they enter the job market
By Nina Broderick | 17 hours agoMany students find the Career Center to be a valuable tool during the job search and application process.
U.Va.’s Finals Weekend spotlights the achievement and service of the Class of 2025
By Leigh Bailey | 2 days agoIn University President Jim Ryan’s welcome address, he acknowledged the support of family members and friends present in the audience and beyond that played supportive roles in these graduates’ lives.
Students reflect on the election of first American pope
By Bertie Azqueta | 3 days agoCatholic students on Grounds expressed surprise about Leo’s election.
