Presidential debates do not just happen. They require effort and planning and cooperation, all of which surged on campus leading up to the debate.

Kathy Gates, UM’s chief information officer, said the debate would, for the first time, be broadcast across the Internet and seen on high-definition televisions, meaning there were many unknowns. The work to create a functioning media filing center also was daunting. The hundreds of telephone lines and miles of network cable installed there were just the tip of the iceberg in terms of work done to ensure everything would be functional during the debate.

And for every plan, there needed to be a backup plan.

“Even when you do all of the right things, there can be unexpected events that adversely impact service,” Gates said. This was the case when Internet services to the media center, located next to the Ford Center, went down the morning of the debate, but disaster was averted through a secondary connection.

Additional challenges faced the Physical Plant Department, which received numerous compliments on its transformation of the campus.

“The media were so impressed with what they saw that several interviews were conducted just focusing on the facilities and the work required to host an event such as the debate,” said Ashton Pearson, the department’s associate director.

Cleveland, Ohio-based EventWorks, a media event specialist, and The Cirlot Agency, a Jackson, Mississippi-based public relations firm, signed on to help work out logistics and planning.

“I’m very, very, very pleased with the logistics of it,” Vice Chancellor for University Relations Gloria Kellum told CNN the morning after the debate. “It took thousands of people to make this happen.”