Winning tickets selected for Gore's speech

Connaissance Co-Director Richard Archer selected last night the series of raffle numbers that can be redeemed for tickets to Vice President Al Gore's speech tomorrow in Irvine Auditorium. Gore's speech will honor of the 50th anniversary of the creation of the ENIAC computer. The winning ticket numbers are 4165729-4166000, 4366144-4366244, and 4366506-4366585, according to Archer, a Wharton junior. According to Vice Provost for Government, Community and Public Affairs Carol Scheman, students holding raffle tickets within these sets of numbers can go to Connaissance's booth on Locust Walk today to pick up their tickets. "If students see their names on the list, they just show their ID and pick up their tickets," she said. Approximately 500 students, staff and faculty won the raffle for seats at Gore's speech. And according to Archer, about 900 students picked up raffle tickets yesterday on Locust Walk. "The doors will be opening tomorrow at 10:45," she explained. "There will also be two to four overflow sites, where video cameras will be set up so people can watch from there." The locations of the overflow sites will be posted where the tickets are handed out on Locust Walk, she added. Archer said the Secret Service has requested that no backpacks or cameras be allowed into Irvine Auditorium during Gore's speech. While approximately 500 students will be in attendance, Irvine Auditorium has a capacity of 1,800. According to Scheman, Gore requested that blocks of tickets be set aside for specific groups of people. "The Vice President really wanted to have a special block of tickets for the Engineering faculty," she said. "He also wanted a block of tickets for people in Philadelphia." But Scheman emphasized that the largest block of tickets went to Penn students. And she hopes to make 100 to 200 more tickets available to students this morning, she added. "Basically, we want to make sure that everyone who wants to get in can," Scheman said. "But the Secret Service will not allow any standing room." Archer said he will have more winning numbers available today at the Connaissance booth across from Steinberg-Dietrich Hall.