Connaissance to raffle off Hillary Clinton tix

The speaker group will use a lottery system to distribute its 300 tickets to the first lady's speech. Quelling rumors that there will be "no boys allowed" to hear first lady Hillary Clinton speak next Wednesday, Connaissance is using a simple lottery system for distributing its 300 student tickets for the event in the Annenberg Center's Zellerbach Theatre. The group will distribute lottery tickets tomorrow from noon to 4 p.m. on Locust Walk. "We have 600 [lottery tickets] for tomorrow, and if we need more Friday, we'll print out some more," College junior and Connaissance Co-Chairperson Carter Caldwell said. For the honor of attending the first lady's speech, students will have to divulge some personal information -- their e-mail addresses, Social Security numbers and years of graduation, for starters -- so that the United States Secret Service can conduct background checks on speech attendees. In contrast, preparation for President Clinton's speech in the CoreStates Center last week was much more lax. Students attending needed only to write a $25 check to the Democratic National Committee and include their addresses and phone numbers. Secret Service presence during the first lady's speech has limited Zellerbach's capacity for the event to 900 from its usual 975. Of the seats available, Connaissance will distribute 300 tickets to lottery entrants. After names are drawn, "winners" should be notified via e-mail this weekend, according to Caldwell, who said Connaissance will pick guests -- randomly, of course -- either late Friday or early Saturday. But members of the Trustees Council of Penn Women, who are hosting Clinton as part of their 10th Anniversary festivities, emphasized that student representation is not limited to the 300 Connaissance tickets. According to Sharon Hardy, a former council director who is assisting with next week's celebration, 200 additional tickets will go to specially selected students. "We're giving [Connaissance] 300 tickets for the lottery, another 200 to various other constituencies and there will be at least 500 allotted to students," Hardy said. All 139 members of the Trustees' Council of Penn Women were invited last summer to the celebration. Along with guests and faculty, staff and city representatives, they will make up the non-student audience. Any empty spots from cancellations will be given to Connaissance, who will keep a waiting list for ticket-less students. Although Clinton must return to Washington immediately following her 1 p.m. speech, other events celebrating the anniversary will be open to students from Wednesday to Friday. University President Judith Rodin will speak in College Hall's room 210 Thursday afternoon. And Washington Post assistant managing editor Mary Hadar, a 1965 College for Women graduate, will lead a panel on future women trailblazers.

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