ST. LOUIS _ The return on investment on hosting a presidential debate doesn't come in dollar form, despite the steep cost.
Hosting the Oct. 9 event alone costs Washington University $1.9 million. The cost of supplies, security, technology and labor bring the total tab upwards of $5 million.
It's a massive expense and enterprise _ complete with a temporary construction blitz that includes hundreds of feet of perimeter fencing _ for 90 minutes in the spotlight.
"It's short lived, all in all. It's a bit like asking who hosted the Super Bowl four years ago," Washington University debate chairman Steve Givens said. "But, having done it this many times gives us an advantage. It's a tradition and people remember that. For us the real return on investment is the experience that we are able to give our students."
There are other measurable payoffs. And the national attention on the university can't be discounted. That's especially true this election year, as evidenced in the first debate between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump at Hofstra University. Audience levels reached new heights with more than 80 million viewers.
"Ever since the first debate ended with, 'we'll see you at Washington University in St. Louis,' our name has been repeated quite a bit," Givens said. "Media arrive next week and CNN, MSNBC and Fox News will set up on (campus). Some of them will meet our students, faculty doing research in political science (and other disciplines). We certainly get a bang for our buck."
This is Washington University's fifth time hosting a debate. Most recently, in 2008, the school hosted the vice presidential debate between Joe Biden and Sarah Palin.
Each time, the campus transforms, Givens said. And when the show picks up and leaves, remnants remain _ not unlike an Olympic village.
At least one of the five debates hosted on campus included building bathrooms for candidates and their staff in their makeshift private suites in the athletic complex. To this day, some coaches have bathrooms in their offices because of it.
Givens said the true lasting value comes from the student and faculty experience.
Student groups host debates, art exhibits, debate-themed events and more. Almost two decades' worth of alumni still talk about their experiences during debates past and how that molded them to be a more engaged citizen.
This debate doesn't feel any different than the last, Givens said. This is his fourth debate, so he jokes that he is "not surprised by anything anymore."
"I have said over and over that I'm really glad I'm not doing this for the first time," he said. "You don't know what you don't know and you go crazy wondering what it's going to be like. Then it happens."
Givens makes a point of saying they're not complacent _ just prepared.
A senior official with the Commission on Presidential Debates said that's one of the aspects that sets Washington University apart.
"These are not easy events," the official said. "They're high-wire acts. You cannot do these without A-plus teams."
In the coming days, crews at Washington University start construction on an 8-foot-tall fence that will be part of what Givens calls a "secure perimeter." This spans not just around the athletic complex where the debate is held, but around Francis Field and a few neighboring campus buildings, including some fraternity houses.
The plastic fence signals to the outside world that access to Washington University is largely closed.
Starting Saturday, Oct. 8, through the completion of the debate, only university students and employees, as well as media, vendors and other people with credentials are allowed on campus.
It's more trouble and expense than Wright State University, a public college, was willing and able to engage. The school raised about $3.5 million toward the estimated $8 million cost for the event. In the end, the first debate went to Hofstra.
But Washington University stuck with it, as have Longwood University in Virginia, which hosts the vice presidential debate Tuesday, and the University of Nevada-Las Vegas which hosts the third presidential debate Oct. 19.
Fraternity members were given a heads-up from Washington University that the Secret Service will be walking through their houses next week when the fence perimeter is secured.
"They told us in an email that they're coming in with dogs, looking for hidden persons and any hidden explosives or things of that sort," said sophomore Gordie Rohrbach, a member of Kappa Sigma who lives in the fraternity house.
Rohrbach said despite the looming cluster of heightened security, he's excited about the debate.
"This is really a once-in-a-lifetime thing," he said. "Hopefully one of us from Kappa Sigma will be chosen to get in."
Those could be tough odds, but it's impossible to know how many tickets Washington University can dole out until the day of, according to Givens. He guesses it will be at least 100.
Out of the thousands of students who submitted their names into the university's lottery system for the chance to get a ticket to the debate, several hundred who are chosen at random will be told sometime next week that they should show up on the day of the debate because they have a shot at getting a ticket.
The day of, Givens said however many tickets they get is how many they pass out to those students chosen at random, and the students go straight to the debate hall from there _ another security measure.
"People assume I'll be there, but not even the chancellor will get a seat in the hall _ it's students only," he said.
Interested in a ticket? Washington University can't help you there, but Givens did say that local Democratic and Republican parties receive an equal number of tickets to distribute to members of the party.
Gallup, a national research company, is also calling St. Louisans to identify people to participate in the town hall debate and ask a question.
"If you get a call from someone asking you (what party you identify with), I'd take that call," he said.
