About

About the Debate

Belmont University is hosting the third and final presidential debate of the 2020 election cycle on October 22, 2020 from 8-9:30 p.m. Central. The debate, which will be moderated NBC “Weekend Today” co-anchor Kristen Welker, will be divided into six segments on major topics to be selected by the moderator and announced at least one week before the debate.

All three presidential debates as well as the Oct. 7 Vice Presidential debate are sponsored and produced by the Commission on Presidential Debates. The Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD) was established in 1987 to ensure, for the benefit of the American electorate, that general election debates between or among the leading candidates for the offices of President and Vice President of the United States are a permanent part of the electoral process. CPD’s primary purpose is to sponsor and produce the quadrennial general election debates and to undertake research and educational activities relating to the debates. The organization, which is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, 501(c)(3) corporation, sponsored all of the presidential debates in 1988, 1992, 1996, 2000, 2004, 2008, 2012, and 2016

About Belmont University

Belmont University sits on 93 historic acres two miles southwest of downtown Nashville, Tenn., a thriving metropolis known worldwide as Music City. In the mid-1800s, the land the university now occupies was known as Belle Monte, the Victorian home of one of Tennessee’s wealthiest couples, Joseph and Adelicia Acklen, but the property has been the site of higher education since the founding of the original Belmont College in 1890.

Since becoming Belmont University in 1991, Belmont has grown not only in size but in quality. The mansions, gardens and statues of Belmont’s antebellum past now sit side-by-side with state-of-the-art facilities equipped with the best technology and teachers to educate today’s students with the right tools for real world success.

Nationally ranked and consistently recognized as a “Most Innovative” university by U.S. News & World Report, Belmont University is home to more than 8,200 students who come from every state and more than 28 countries. Committed to being a leader among teaching universities, Belmont brings together the best of liberal arts and professional education in a Christian community of learning and service.

The University’s purpose is to help students explore their passions and develop their talents to meet the world’s needs. With more than 100 areas of undergraduate study, more than 27 master’s programs and five doctoral degrees, there is no limit to the ways Belmont University can expand an individual’s horizon. Continually reflecting its rich heritage, Belmont strives to be a place that enables students, faculty, staff and communities to achieve their greatest dreams, giving credence to its theme “from here to anywhere.”

Recent Accolades

• Included on U.S. News and World Report’s 2020 “Most Innovative Schools” List for the 13th consecutive year.
• Ranked No. 24 in the nation for “Strong Commitment to Undergraduate Teaching” by U.S. News & World Report
• On Princeton Review’s 2020 “Best Colleges in the Southeast” List
• Top 10 Most Beautiful Urban College Campus nationwide by BestChoiceSchools.com
• A 2019 Best Value by Kiplinger
• Named on MONEY Best College List in 2020
• Named by Faith on View as one of the Top 25 Christian Colleges students want to attend in 2018
• Recognized among the “50 Most Beautiful Colleges in America” by Architectural Digest
• Ranked from the Institute of International Education (IIE) No. 5 nationally among master’s level institutions for participation in short term study abroad programs and landed at No. 9 for overall study abroad participation (combined short term, semester, and year-long programs)

About Nashville

Travel guides and food critics can’t say enough good things about Nashville these days, and it’s no wonder with the city’s countless attractions and exploding cultural scene along with a reputation for being one of the nation’s safest and friendliest metropolitan areas. Without question, one of Belmont’s greatest assets is our great hometown. The rare place that combines small-town charm with big city possibilities, Nashville drew nearly 16 million visitors in 2018-19, a number that’s only anticipated to grow as more people discover its appeal.

Recognized as the Athens of the South for the number of colleges and universities in the area, Nashville’s most well-known nickname is Music City USA. Home to all genres of music, Nashville offers distinctive performance venues to appeal to every taste, from the grandeur of the Schermerhorn Symphony Hall to the historical holy ground of the Ryman Auditorium to the honky tonks on Lower Broadway. Moreover, there are countless studios, clubs and songwriter nights where aspiring artists—or anyone who simply loves great music—can discover new sounds.

But music is far from the only thing Nashville has to offer. Major industries in the Tennessee capital include finance, health care, higher education, insurance, publishing, technology, manufacturing and tourism. And since more than half of the nation’s population lives within 650 miles of Nashville, the city make an ideal location for business and travel.

Nashville Facts and Recent Accolades

• Forbes placed Nashville in their list of “Top 10 American Cities for Family-Friendly Travel”
• Nashville’s population = Approximately 693,000 (1.9 million MSA)
• Overall cost of living is 3.3% less than the national average
• Travel & Leisure recognized Nashville in the “Top 15 Cities in the U.S.”
• Nashville hit No. 6 on Cvent’s “Top 50 Meeting Destinations in the U.S.”

The Nashville Convention and Visitors Corporation can offer more information and details at VisitMusicCity.com. 

About the Curb Event Center

Funded in part by a $10 million donation from the Curb Family Foundation and well-known music executive Mike Curb, Belmont University’s Curb Event Center (CEC) is a 90,000-square-foot major sport and entertainment complex offering state-of-the-art facilities for athletics, concerts, speakers, trade-shows, meetings, conferences, dinners, receptions and consumer shows. The center is maintained and operated by fully digital, computerized systems and represents state-of-the-art production capabilities.

The Curb Event Center arena has 5,500 permanent seats in an oval configuration, and a permanent maple hardwood floor, with adjacent offices, locker rooms, training rooms, weight rooms and facilities for the Belmont Bruins athletics program. The Curb Event Center also includes space for student-run retail businesses, and houses the Curb Cafe (a restaurant and entertainment venue for students and the community) and the Vince Gill Room, a penthouse meeting room offering outdoor rooftop dining.

In addition to hosting the 2008 Town Hall Presidential Debate between Senators Barack Obama and John McCain, Belmont’s Curb Event Center has served as the venue for a wide spectrum of entertainment, athletic and convention events, including international Davis Cup tennis competition, taping in 2018 and 2019 of the nationally broadcast “CMA Country Christmas” special, and the Nashville premiere of new Ken Burns’s documentary, “Country Music.”