Issue date: 12/3/07 Section: Opinion

In the world of higher ed, hosting a presidential debate is like hosting the Olympics.

That's why many students on campus were disappointed a month ago when the Democratic primary presidential debate went to Drexel instead of Penn.

As for the reason why, the University continues to fall back on the Irvine excuse. Penn insists that hosting the debate in Irvine Auditorium would force them to close portions of surrounding streets, shutting off vital ambulance routes for the nearby hospital.

But no one's suggesting that the University jeopardize lives to attract Hillary and Obama. Instead, student political groups on campus have often pointed to Zellerbach Theater as a viable option.

And while some officials claim the space is too small, Zellerbach seats over 900. That's more than Dartmouth's Spaulding Auditorium, which hosted a Democratic presidential debate this past fall.

In short, it's time that University officials seriously consider Zellerbach the next time a debate comes to Philadelphia. Penn needs to pursue presidential debates with the same vigor and enthusiasm that it displays when launching a fundraising campaign or a capital project.

Because when it comes to trying to host a debate, effort counts. Take Drexel, for example. Even though their school's 842-seat auditorium was on the small side, Drexel's administrators wowed Democratic party officials throughout the entire process.

Among other things, school administrators extended the stage by 16 feet and temporarily removed some ceiling fixtures to accommodate media needs. When compared to Penn's own lackluster efforts, Drexel's work just goes to show that a school can host a debate if it really wants to.

Of course, such an operation takes a tremendous amount of resources. But if Penn is truly serious about providing its students with valuable opportunities for civic engagement and marketing itself as a world-class institution, it's worth the investment.

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