IUPUI and the Super Bowl
Amanda Cecil
When Super Bowl XLVI kicks off in Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis on Feb. 5, 2012, it will cap months of preparation by the city and weeks of events and activities leading up to the game—all built with a lot of help from the IUPUI community, including alumni, faculty, staff and students.
Thousands of volunteers will help stage the event, many trained by the city’s “Super Service” effort through an online program. University Information Technology Services designed the “Super Service” website, based upon content created by faculty in the IU School of Physical Education and Tourism, Convention and Event Management at IUPUI, led by assistant professor Amanda Cecil.
Photo provided by the Susan G. Komen for the Cure® Tissue Bank at the IU Simon Cancer Center
After completing the program, IUPUI students, faculty and staff will join other volunteers hosting visitors and making them feel welcome in Indiana’s state capital. The campus will play a key role for one of the teams, too. University Place Hotel will host the American Football Conference (AFC) championship team, including family and friends during the week leading up to the game.
IUPUI also is heavily involved in one of the most crucial community initiatives launched in connection with Super Bowl XLVI: the fight against breast cancer. The Indiana University Melvin and Bren Simon Cancer Center is the host of the Susan G. Komen for the Cure® Tissue Bank, the world’s only repository for tissue specimens across the full continuum of breast development. Those specimens will serve as a foundation for ongoing research projects focused on combating the disease.
Another quality-of-life initiative is the “46 for XLVI” murals project, established by the city to enhance the appearance of downtown Indianapolis. Artists who graduated from or on the faculty of the Herron School of Art & Design are involved in the effort to produce 46 murals, one for each past Super Bowl, plus the Lucas Oil game. Most of the murals—such as those along the Downtown Canal—will be ready for public viewing by game time.