When senior Daniel Poole decided to come to Oakland University, volunteering for a GOP presidential debate was the last thing he ever expected.

However, when David Dulio, director of the political science department, sent out an email informing majors of the opportunity, Poole was quick to respond.

“I knew at the time that the debate was coming up in just over a month, but I didn’t know about volunteer opportunities,” he said.

According to Garry Gilbert, director of the journalism department, the volunteering opportunity arose after Piskulich, senior vice president for academic affairs, asked the political science and communication and journalism department directors to get involved.

Gilbert said that around 180 students have been selected to be involved with myriad opportunities, including directing traffic, working on the main floor during the debate, personally helping candidates and even working as technical interns for CNBC.

“The university has become pretty well-known for sports, but this opportunity reaches an entirely different audience,” Gilbert said. “It also fits perfectly into our branding goal, at the exactly the time we’re trying to show the opportunities OU has … this has opportunity written all over it.”

Dually majoring in political science and history, Poole said he hopes to use this experience, along with his interest in politics, as a starting off point for his future.

“I’m hoping that by being a volunteer on the day of the debate, I will be able to rub elbows with like-minded people who are famous,” he said.