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Case Western Reserve University and Cleveland
Clinic will host the first 2020 U.S. presidential debate this fall
at the Health Education Campus (HEC), a joint project between the
two organizations.
The debate, scheduled for Tuesday, Sept. 29, will be held in HEC's
Sheila and Eric Samson Pavilion.
The Commission on Presidential Debates (a nonpartisan nonprofit that
has sponsored and produced all general election presidential debates
for more than three decades) announced the new location for the
debate on Monday, July 27 — the same day that original debate host,
University of Notre Dame, withdrew, citing the constraints that the
pandemic put on the event.
Though CWRU is also deep in COVID-19 preparations, its partnership
with Cleveland Clinic along with the HEC's distance from the
university's main campus made co-hosting more feasible, according to
a news release.
Dr. Tom Mihaljevic, Cleveland Clinic president and CEO, and Barbara
R. Snyder, Case Western Reserve University's president, issued this
joint statement: "We are honored to host this presidential debate at
our shared Health Education Campus. This pandemic has highlighted
the critical importance of health care and scientific discovery in
unprecedented ways. To have the presidential candidates discuss
these issues in our innovative learning space represents a
tremendous opportunity for both institutions – and our entire
region."
The Commission on Presidential Debates also retained the Clinic
earlier this year to serve as its Health Security Advisor for all of
this fall's debates, according to the release.
The health system will establish risk-mitigation procedures within
Samson Pavilion. The specifics of such health/safety plans will
depend on the status of the pandemic as the event draws near but
will include considerations around whether to have an audience,
audience size, distance among seats and disinfectant measures.
"We are all challenged with adapting to a 'new normal' and safety is
key as we all face this pandemic together," said Dr. James Merlino,
chief clinical transformation officer at the Clinic and chief health
security advisor to the Commission on of Presidential Debates for
the 2020 general election, in a provided statement. "The Cleveland
Clinic has been focused on understanding, containing and preparing
for COVID-19. We are sharing our knowledge and advising various
industries to help keep our communities safe as we enter into this
next phase of COVID-19 response."
The HEC, a joint project between CWRU and the Clinic that opened
last year, features the 477,000-square-foot Samson Pavilion, where
students from the university's schools of medicine, nursing and
dental medicine (including those in Cleveland Clinic Lerner College
of Medicine) learn and study together.
In April, CWRU and the Clinic temporarily converted the Health
Education Campus into a surge hospital in case it needed more space
to treat an anticipated surge of COVID-19 patients. Last month, the
organizations began transitioning the building back to an
educational space to prepare for the fall semester. The Clinic is
prepared to care for patients in existing facilities if a surge of
patients with COVID-19 occurs and is continuing to adapt as the
pandemic evolves, according to a statement from the system.
The September event will be the second time CWRU has worked with the
commission. It hosted the vice presidential debate between Dick
Cheney and John Edwards in 2004 in the Veale Convocation Recreation
and Athletic Center. Roughly 43.6 million people watched that
discussion, according to the release, which noted that viewing
projections for this year's event exceed 100 million.
Frank J. Fahrenkopf Jr., Dorothy S. Ridings and Kenneth Wollack, the
commission's co-chairs, issued a joint statement, noting they are
grateful for the organizations hosting the forum: "Case Western
generously hosted our 2004 vice presidential debate, and we are
looking forward to working with university officials again.
Cleveland Clinic is advising the CPD on health protocols for all
four debates, and it will be most informative to team with Clinic
professionals on the Health Education Campus."
In a news release, University of Notre Dame president Rev. John I.
Jenkins called the decision to withdraw as the host site a difficult
one.
"Despite this decision, I hope we will all remain attuned to the
many important issues facing our nation during this election year —
and, please, let's exercise our right and privilege to vote on
Tuesday, Nov. 3," |
