SOUTH BEND — Sen. John McCain picked Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin as his running mate, and there's mixed reaction to the choice. There's no doubt people are surprised by the Palin pick; but there's also a lot of excitement.

The "Writing on the Wall" project at IU South Bend invites students and residents to express their thoughts about democracy on 20-foot long mural walls.

"I'm in here the whole day so I've gotten to watch it grow the whole time,” said IU South Bend student McKenzie Sanders.

The project gives students like Sanders an opportunity to share their ideas about democracy — something she calls exciting.

"I always hope with each four years that it can draw people closer," said Sanders.

But that's not all she's excited about. While Sanders is still undecided, she's happy McCain picked a woman as his running mate.

"I actually think that when there's a mixture of the two that it can actually help things. Because women are going to look at one situation one way and men will look at it differently. And they'll think of different ways they can handle it," said Sanders.

And Republicans like Michigan Congressman Fred Upton say it's about time.

"To have a woman on the ticket on our side for the very first time, it's about time that glass ceiling got shattered. She looks to be a remarkable woman," said Upton.

But with all the excitement comes a whole lot of surprise. Political science professor Peri Arnold says Palin lacks the one thing McCain consistently attacks Obama about — experience.

"She was mayor of a little town in Alaska for awhile and then has been governor for two years. I mean, this is really somebody with no national experience, no position on most of the national issues or international issues and there are big risks in that pick," said Arnold.

While Palin comes as a surprise, Arnold thinks she's a safe bet. He also says she solves a problem for Republicans.

"Every time that a potential vice presidential name was mentioned who was pro-choice that name was shot down by religious conservatives. She's a religious conservative and so it is a very safe pick in terms of what Republicans call their base,” said Arnold.

Arnold says the McCain camp may think Palin will help win over people who voted for Hillary Clinton. But Arnold and other political experts don't think that will happen because the two women are so different.