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by JACKSON LEVER
Intern News Reporter
Most Appalachian State University students saw President Barack Obama take the oath of office through a regular television screen.
For sophomore political science major Paul E. Woods, his viewing of the inauguration was a bit different.
The University Presidential Inaugural Conference (UPIC) provided Woods with the opportunity to see the inauguration amidst a crowd of two million in Washington, D.C.
“The [conference]
will provide students with an opportunity to take part in historic
events that coincide with the inauguration of the President of the
United States,” Dean of Academic Affairs for UPIC Marguerite Regan said.
While Woods was much closer to President Obama than the majority of Americans, he was still far from the Capitol Building.
“We were nowhere close actually,” he said. “We had to watch the actual inauguration on one of the huge screens.”
Woods
was also able to attend other inaugural events, including seminars and
the Black Tie Gala Inaugural Ball during his weekend stay in
Washington.
Woods saw former Secretary of State Gen. Colin L. Powell and former Vice President Al Gore speak.
In addition, he heard political pundits James Carville and Tucker Carlson, among others.
“The
seminars were really great to go to since they had so much to do with
my major,” Woods said. “They were mostly about foreign policy which is
what I’m focusing on.”
Aside
from seeing President Obama’s inauguration, Woods was also chosen to
attend the inauguration of former President George W. Bush in 2005.
“I call it luck really,” Woods said. “[The UPIC] has come to me and given me invitations both times.”
Woods said the crowd of two million was a formidable one.
Once President Obama took the oath, the people surrounding Woods made their feelings clear.
“They were very hyped up, very excited,” he said. “The chants of ‘Obama’ were extremely loud.”
Matthew
Robinson, government and justice studies associate professor at
Appalachian was also fortunate enough to hear those chants in person.
“The
most moving part of the day for me was standing shoulder-to-shoulder
with diverse Americans from all over the country,” he said. “I saw
small black children holding the hands of their parents, being there
for the swearing in of our nation’s first black president.”
Robinson
was in line for tickets at 4 a.m. on Inauguration Day. The wait paid
off, as Robinson and two other colleagues were standing just beyond the
pool in front of the Capitol Building during the event.
“I
overheard an older black woman reporting to the press that to her,
Obama’s inauguration meant that all that she had taught her children as
they grew up really was true,” he said. “Anyone could be president if
they work hard enough.”
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