Successful strategies to incorporate and highlight your Model UN experience into your professional résumé.

The following article was written by Frank Pobutkiewcz, a Model UN veteran of Boston University and founder of College Apprentice (http://collegeapprentice.com), a study-travel company that organizes honor delegations to international conferences. He can be reached at moc.ecitnerppaegellocnull@knarf.

The experience Model UN can provide a student, in high school or college, is invaluable.  Soft skills such as time management, leadership, flexibility, and adaptability are complemented by a range of hard skills that could include commercial printing, management budgeting, graphic design, curriculum design, and research. After reading, reviewing, and writing more résumés and applications than I can remember, I’m struck by how many Model UN alumni find it difficult to translate their experience effectively into a résumé.  Here are some quick, actionable suggestions to make sure your résumé or application properly conveys your experience.

Avoid jargon whenever possible.

Model United Nations has a language onto itself.  While it is important for you to use terms such as Secretary General, draft resolution, background guide, and crisis director in the world of Model UN, it is almost more important to effectively translate MUN-lingo into understandable language. You may be extremely proud of your time as Secretary General, but the title generally confuses people outside of the world of Model UN.  You do not want people to think you were the head secretary.  Go through your résumé and replace any of the following terms or words; I’ve provided substitutes that I have used in the past:

Do not abbreviate.

Similar to the first point, it may be very tempting to include abbreviations such as SG, GA, ECOSOC, DISEC, EU, MUN, or even Model UN. Don’t.  You will either confuse your reviewer or come off as pretentious by assuming your reviewer understands what your abbreviations mean.  If you cannot avoid Model United Nations jargon all together, have the courtesy to spell out the terms you do use.  Most likely, the words “Model UN” will appear on your résumé, but don’t assume people know what that means.  Always use Model United Nations and be prepared to explain the nature of the activity during an interview. When describing Model UN, use phrases such as “simulation based education,” “active learning,” or “experiential learning.”

There is one exception to the above rules and that is when you are applying to a position that involves Model UN and you are 100% confident your reviewer will understand Model UN terms. In this case, it is probably preferred that you use Model UN jargon.

Position Your Experience under “Experience” or “Academic Projects”

The experience you gain during your Model UN career may be your strongest personal selling point.  Don’t undersell yourself by listing your Model UN experience under “co-curricular activities.” Sections like this are usually glossed over or, at best, used as interview conversation.  Be proud of your accomplishments and highlight them in the proper résumé sections.

For chairs, moderators, crisis directors, or even delegates, the most applicable section for you to describe your experience is under an “Academic Project” heading.  USGs of Committee can also highlight their work here, depending on the remainder of their résumé.   If you do not have one, an Academic Project portion of your résumé emphasizes the scholastic elements of Model UN and is particularly helpful if your “Experience” section is already heavily padded.

Describing Your Experience Effectively

Now that you’ve removed Model UN jargon from your résumé and positioned it correctly, it is time to review the content and description of your experience.  Very often, résumé statements are called “Accomplishment Statements” or “S.T.A.R. statements.”  (I won’t go into how to construct these statements in detail but I encourage you to research them if you have never heard of them before.)

Make sure to write effective accomplishment statements for your Model UN experience, just as you would any internship or job-related work. Here are three quick tips:

• Stress improvement, especially year-over-year, by incorporating the appropriate figures and percentages.  For example, if you are a head delegate (write: Debate Coach or Captain) you may write something like this:

Coached 24 undergraduate students in advanced debate rhetoric by holding weekly training sessions resulting in a 250% increase in individual awards compared to previous year;

• Use appropriate numbers to stress the scale of your operation.  Annual revenue, profit margins, and number of participants give employers and schools a better sense of your experience.

Implemented marketing and recruitment procedures that streamlined registration online and increased revenue 20% to $200,000 for 2013 conference;

• Remember to include the hard skills you have obtained.  Most résumés boast soft skills such as time management and leadership skills.  Complete a skills inventory and you may be surprised of your own talents. Match skills that relate to the position for which you are applying.  Here are some common hard skills many people overlook when reviewing their Model UN careers: budgeting, financial projections, staff and volunteer management, graphic design, publication design, commercial printing, website design/programming, copywriting, research, document preparation, proofreading/editing, event management, public speaking, email composition, and presentation skills.

Hopefully now you can review your résumé, translate it for the rest of the non-MUN world, organize it to showcase your talents, and effectively describe your experience.  Avoiding simple and common pitfalls will go a long way towards improving whatever application you are working on, whether for college or employment.  Remember to be proud of your Model UN experience! You’ve acquired a broad range of skills, the difficult part is to condense it into one page and hopefully this guide can help.

¡Felicidades! Nos emociona que estarás iniciando tu experiencia con el Modelo de las Naciones Unidas por primera vez. Estás a punto de embarcarte en una jornada que cambiará tu vida por siempre y que te ayudará a desarrollar tu confianza en cuanto a tus habilidades de liderazgo, tu conocimiento de asuntos globales y tu afán por conocer a nueva gente de distintas partes del mundo. El MNU es una experiencia invaluable que te puede ayudar en el proceso de solicitar a universidades, encontrar tu primer trabajo e inspirarte a cambiar el mundo. ¡Lo más importante es que te divertirás en cada paso del camino!

El MNU suele ser intimidante o confuso al principio, pero estamos aquí para echarte una mano. “El MNU hecho fácil: Cómo empezar con el Modelo de las Naciones Unidas” es divido en cuatro secciones:

1. ¿Qué es el MNU y cómo se apunta?
2. ¿Cómo se prepara para la primera competencia?
3. ¿Cómo es una conferencia típica?
4. ¿Qué puedo hacer para mejorar?

Esto debería ayudarte en preparar para tu primera conferencia. Es importante que te metas de lleno desde el principio porque el MNU es una actividad que se puede aprender solamente por participación directa. También hemos proveído recursos al final de este artículo para que puedas practicar y mejorar cuando hayas participado en tu primera conferencia y estés listo para llevar tu experiencia al siguiente nivel.

¿Qué es el MNU y cómo se apunta?

El Modelo de las Naciones Unidas es un simulacro académico de la Organización de las Naciones Unidas donde los estudiantes juegan el papel de delegados de diferentes países e intentan resolver problemas reales, tomando en cuenta las políticas y perspectivas de sus naciones asignadas. Por ejemplo, se puede asignar a un estudiante el Reino Unido y este tendrá que abordar temas globales como la no proliferación nuclear o el calentamiento global desde una perspectiva británica.

Estudiantes pueden asistir a conferencias del Modelo de las Naciones Unidas alrededor del mundo. Estas conferencias son organizadas por universidades, escuelas secundarias y organizaciones sin fines de lucro, entre otros grupos educativos. Se ofrece conferencias para diferentes niveles académicos: universitario, escuela secundaria, escuela intermedia e incluso escuela elemental. No hay ninguna organización central para el MNU—cualquier institución académica puede crear un equipo del MNU y registrase para cualquier conferencia que desee asistir.

Una vez que un equipo se haya inscrito en una conferencia, recibe una nación para representar. Cada estudiante en el equipo representará ese país en un comité diferente con temas de discusión completamente distintos. Por ejemplo, Colegio Best Delegate puede recibir China como su delegación y tener diferentes estudiantes representando a China en el comité de desarmamiento, el comité de derechos humanos, el comité de desarrollo, etc. Colegios con equipos más grandes pueden recibir países adicionales.

Cuando uno esté empezando su experiencia en el MNU, es necesario que escoja una conferencia adecuada. Visita nuestra página web de  Conferencias del MNU (en inglés) para encontrar la mejor conferencia para tu club. Las conferencias más extensas son eventos de cuatro días, hospedados en hoteles con más de 3,000 delegados, con alrededor de 300 delegados en los comités más grandes. Cuando todavía estás empezando, sugerimos que encuentres una conferencia de uno o dos días dirigida particularmente a los novatos para que puedas aprender de una manera más fácil cómo funciona el MNU.

¿Cómo se prepara para la primera competencia?

Una vez que te hayas inscrito en una conferencia, recibirás tu asignación de país y tu comité (y sus temas). La mayoría de las conferencias proveen un Documento de Trasfondo o un Sinopsis del Tema que introduzca los asuntos que se deben discutir—lee esto primero.

Los documentos que, típicamente, se debe preparar antes de que entres una conferencia son: un Documento de Posición (a veces se conoce como un Declaración de Política o “policy statement”), tu discurso de apertura y una carpeta de investigación (“research binder”). Algunas conferencias dirigidas a los novatos suelen requerir que los delegados produzcan un Perfil Nacional de sus países. También se debe aprender cómo escribir una Resolución, ya que es la meta principal de casi todos los comités.

1. Documento de Posición (Declaración de Política)

El Documento de Posición es un documento de uno o dos páginas que es, esencialmente, un resumen de tu conocimiento del tema y la posición que tu país va a tomar en cuanto a cómo lo abordará. Suele contener tres secciones: trasfondo del tema, acciones internacionales ya-realizadas y política nacional/soluciones viables. Normalmente se debe entregar el Documento de Posición antes de que comience el comité.

Incluimos las fuentes clave para empezar tu investigación. Te ayudarán a empezar participando en MNU, pero vas a profundizar tus métodos mientras adquieras más experiencia.

• Trasfondo del tema: El Documento de Trasfondo, Google, las noticias, Wikipedia (para conceptualizar el tema)
• Acciones internacionales ya realizadas: El sitio web de la ONU, el sitio web de tu comité, tratados claves o resoluciones mencionadas por el Documento de Trasfondo, la ONU o una Organización No Gubernamental
• Política nacional y soluciones viables: CIA World Factbook, el sitio web del ministerio de relaciones exteriores de tu país, programas domésticas en tu país, el historial de votación de tu país en los órganos de la ONU, recomendaciones de Organizaciones No Gubernamentales… ¡y tu propia creatividad!

2. Discurso de Apertura

El Discurso de Apertura típicamente dura alrededor de un minuto a un minuto y medio; es el primer discurso que darás al comité. Es la oportunidad ideal para explicar la política de tu país e identificar los asuntos claves que te gustaría que abordara el comité. Muchos delegados prestan atención a estos discursos para discernir con quiénes quieren trabajar, así que es importante preparar un discurso que capte el interés del comité (y la mesa). Hay muchos trucos y estrategias  que pueden ayudarte a dar este discurso, pero deberías usar tu Documento de Posición como una guía cuando todavía estés empezando. Lo más importante es ser valiente y simplemente hacerlo.

3. Carpeta de Investigación

Es opcional hacer una carpeta de investigación pero sugerimos que lo hagas para tu proprio bien y porque muchas conferencias prohíben el uso de la tecnología durante sesión. Una carpeta organizada sería un recurso de valor incalculable si encuentras durante comité términos, acrónimos o tratados nuevos. Aquí encontrarás una lista de quince ítems que cada delegado debería colocar en su Carpeta de Investigación (en inglés).

4. Cómo escribir una resolución

En cada comité, habrá una (o varias) coalición(es) de delegados que estarán escribiendo lo que se llama una Resolución. Es importante conocer el formato de la Resolución y las frases pre-escritas. Aunque se puede copiar estas frases (Ej: “Reconociendo la importancia de” o “Sugiere que”), no se permiten resoluciones enteras que sean pre-escritas ya que la mesa y los organizadores de la conferencia quieren que los delegados colaboren entre sí. Por favor lee este artículo sobre cómo escribir una resolución (en inglés).

5. Perfil Nacional

El Perfil Nacional es una serie de preguntas que te ayudarán a entender tu país y que no necesariamente se tendrá que entregar a tu conferencia. La mayoría de la información que se necesita para llenar el perfil se puede encontrar en el CIA World Factbook (en inglés). Si la conferencia pide un Perfil Nacional, deberías entregárselo a la mesa con tu Documento de Posición.

¿Cómo es una conferencia típica?

Ten en cuenta que no existen estándares comunes en el MNU y que las diferentes conferencias pueden correr el flujo de debate de maneras distintas. Los dos procedimientos parlamentarios más comunes son los procedimientos UNA-USA y THIMUN; la mayoría de las conferencias utilizan estos procedimientos o variaciones de los mismos. Algunos comités de crisis pueden utilizar una serie de reglas particularizada pero probablemente no vas a encontrar esto en tu primera conferencia. Casi todas las conferencias de MNU usan alguna forma de procedimiento parlamentario que se distingue dramáticamente del procedimiento empleado en la verdadera Organización de las Naciones Unidas.

Procedimiento UNA-USA

Aquí encontrarás una versión simplificada del procedimiento desarrollado por la organización UNA-USA.

1. Cada comité es dirigido por un miembro de la mesa (“chairperson”) que facilita de discusión del comité. El comité comenzará con un miembro de la mesa pasando asistencia. Después, el comité votará para determinar qué tema se discutirá primero. Después de que se seleccione el tema, el comité empezará el debate.

2. Hay tres formatos de debate. El formato por defecto se llama Lista de Oradores (“Speakers’ List”). Aquí los delegados van uno por uno dando sus discursos al frente del comité en el orden que aparezcan en la lista, determinado por la mesa al azar. Los discursos suelen durarse alrededor de un minuto a un minuto y medio, pero esto se puede cambiar a votación.

3. Después de un cierto número de discursos, los delegados pueden votar para cambiar el formato del debate o a un Caucus Moderado o un Caucus No-Moderado. Los comités suelen votar para iniciar los Caucus Moderados cuando quieren enfocarse en un subtema en particular y empezar un estilo de debate más dinámico. Delegados alzarán sus carteles (“placards”) a fin de que la mesa los llame. Los delegados seguirán este formato hasta que se expire el tiempo del debate.

• Durante los Caucus No-Moderados, los delegados pueden pararse y hablar entre sí libremente con el propósito de trabajar con países que compartan las mismas políticas. Los primeros Caucus No-Moderados se usan para encontrar aliados pero después se utilizan para escribir proyectos de resolución (“draft resolutions” o “working papers”) con tu bloc (grupo de aliados). Sugerimos que trates de ser un auspiciador (autor) de una resolución.

El estilo de debate cambiará hasta que todos los proyectos de resolución pasen a votación.

4. Las resoluciones de proyecto se presentarán o cuando estén listos o todos a la vez al final de la conferencia (a veces conocido como un Caucus Formal). Algunas conferencias permiten un periodo de pregunta y respuesta después de las presentaciones además de dar tiempo para unir ciertos proyectos de resolución y/o añadir enmiendas.

5. Finalmente, todos los países en el comité votarán a favor o en contra de los proyectos de resolución. Después, el comité repetirá el proceso para el segundo tema, si queda tiempo. Si no, ¡ya terminaste!

Procedimiento THIMUN

La siguiente descripción es una versión simplificada del procedimiento utilizador por la conferencia THIMUN. También se utiliza en la mayoría de los colegios internacionales en Europa, el Medio Oriente, Asia y África.

1. Cada comité es dirigido por un miembro de la mesa que facilita la discusión del comité. El comité comenzará con el miembro de la mesa pasando asistencia.

2. Entonces, el comité entrará en un día entero de Sesiones de Cabildeo (“Lobbying Sessions”). Los delegados pueden caminar libremente por el salón con el propósito de trabajar con otros delegados. Los delegados que trabajan juntos se llaman Co-Remitentes (“Co-Submitters”) y típicamente hay un Remitente Principal del proyecto de resolución. Uniones de proyectos de resolución se llevan a cabo durante este periodo. Los proyectos de resolución serán enviados a un Panel de Aprobación para ser corregidos antes de que se presente al comité.

3. Cada resolución que se entregue será discutido una a la vez; se suele asignar una cierta cantidad de tiempo para discutirlas. El Remitente Principal presentará el proyecto de resolución. Los delegados tienen la opción de ceder su tiempo para contestar preguntas. Es posible que un miembro de la mesa entretenga mociones para una discusión adicional.

4. Cada delegado puede entregarle a la mesa sus enmiendas. Un proceso parecido al anterior sucede hasta que se vote a favor o en contra de todas las enmiendas propuestas.

5. Después de que se discuta todas las enmiendas, el comité votará por los proyectos de resolución. Se repetirá este proceso para cada uno.

Nota Final

Ten en cuenta que las descripciones arriba caracterizan un día típico. No explican el flujo entero del debate y las reglas de procedimiento, ya que varían por conferencia. También excluimos muchos de los Puntos y Mociones utilizados durante los comités. Lo más importante es que un novato participe activamente. Utiliza un Punto de Información, pregúntale a un veterano o simplemente copia los otros delegados cuando tengas una duda.

¿Qué puedo hacer para mejorar?

1. Adquirir experiencia es lo más importante. ¡Asegúrate de asistir a muchas conferencias! Aquí encontrarás una lista global de conferencias.
2. Best Delegate provee una plétora de recursos (en inglés) en nuestro sitio web, y continuamos produciendo muchos artículos y guías a lo largo del año escolar. Si necesitas un tipo de consejo más adelantado, puedes comprar la guía How to Win Awards in Model UN (será disponible en español en una fecha posterior) que contiene nuestras estrategias avanzadas.
3. Best Delegate ofrece programas de verano, talleres privados, entrenamiento privado y “webinarios”. También proveemos sesiones de entrenamiento gratis para moderadores. No dudes en contactarnos a moc.etageledtsebnull@ofni o a moc.etageledtsebnull@rpnailuj si quieres que te contestemos en español.

¡Mucha suerte y que te diviertas!

Ever since its inception last year, the Lithuanian International MUN project was known for its eagerness to spread MUN culture in Lithuania (and greater region) and for its prolificacy – during its 13 months of existence, LIMUN project organized two national conferences, 3 regional conferences, an international MUN summer camp and several lectures on international politics and its whereabouts. It has never been afraid of doing MUN its own way – LIMUN project is one of the few European MUN movements that organize crises-focused conferences (rather than resolution-orientated THIMUN approach to MUN).

The first LIMUN international conference was no exception – this conference consisted only of crises-committees, all inter-linked with one another, and all discussing different aspects of one general topic – our nuclear world.

The conference was relatively small – just under 100 delegates. It was, however, highly diverse in terms of nationalities of the delegates – the conference was attended by Chileans, Latvians, Poles, Indians, and Belarusians.  The conference had three interconnected committees – IAEA, DISEC, and UNSC. Each had two running topics, yet from the very first hour of committee sessions, all committees were drawn into an elaborate crises simulation.

This presented the conference staff with a unique situation: on the one hand, delegates, unaccustomed to crises simulations had a difficulty coping with some of them. Their old habits of searching for consensus and passing resolutions as soon as possible led to many crises being solved too quickly, not reaching their full potential. On the other hand, it was this precise thrill the delegates got from something so unusual, challenging, and highly involving, that made them value the conference’s program so much more.

One aspect of this crises-intensive MUN conference was the many ways the crises were presented to the delegates. Each crisis had an initial video, filmed in advance, to set the basic background for the crisis. The videos were contained usual mock news announcements, interviews with ‘representatives’ from various international organizations, but there were also videos filmed on a train (‘special on-the-spot news announcements’), on the streets of Lithuanian cities, and many other locations in Lithuania to create a strong feeling of extreme authenticity. There were, of course, the usual articles prepared for the conference specifically, guest speakers coming to committees to describe the situation, and other usual ways of coming up with the simulations.

However, two aspects of crises stood out in particular: one was the usage of real life events in the crises simulations as they happened (for example the news that Russia has been providing Syria with missiles, or that N. Korea recently tested its short-range missiles, causing concern in the South), that delegates could solve. Thus, it was not a MUN-universe that the delegates were acting in: real life events were interpreted by the delegates, which, as the delegate of India to the UNSC said after the conference ‘helped them to grow not only as MUN delegates, but also as people well versed in the affairs of the day overall’.

The second interesting idea the LIMUN staff used in their conference was to allow the delegates themselves to propose crises. To achieve that, committee discussion boards were set up on the LIMUN website, which enabled both public and private communications to go happen between delegates, which added another level of dynamism of the simulations.

In the end, DISEC had to solve crisis of escalation in illegal arms trade between China and South Africa, and Russia and Madagascar, IAEA had to decide what to do with Venezuela’s ambitions to build a nuclear power plant, and the UNSC solved crises all over the globe – from rising nationalistic sentiments in the Korean Peninsula to troubles with drones in Pakistan… The main theme of the conference – nuclear world – was not forgotten too – UNSC adopted a balanced, dialogue-seeking stance with North Korea, DISEC updated the NPT, and IAEA set new guidelines for development of nuclear energy in the developing world.

It seems that LIMUN has figured out its direction concerning the academic side of MUN. Yet, some organizational issues still need fixing. Possibly because of the lack of experienced MUNers, the chairs were sometimes struggling with engaging with the delegates, and, while the logistical side (venue, coffee breaks, accommodation) was adequate, it was not shining. That may have come from a relatively small staff – LIMUN has to expand its organizational core before they can enlarge their conferences and hope for more international recognition. However, as these problems are more circumstantial than systematic, it should not deter any prospective delegates from attending future LIMUN events.

For Europeans (and not only them!) looking for a unique, academically strong, engaging, and overall fun approach to MUN in their continent, LIMUN has a product to offer that is tough to match. As the project matures and more responsible preparation eliminates its organizational flaws, LIMUN will be definitely an attention-worth MUN movement.

Article submitted by: Anatol Klass (Secretary General of the Dalton Model UN team)

OpeningCeremonies-A representative from the Mount Sinai Global Health Initiative speaks at opening ceremonies.

After several years of planning and false starts the Dalton School hosted its first Model United Nations Conference On Saturday, April 27th.  The conference was organized by the two Directors General (DGs) Harriet Fisher and Aiden Slavin.  They took on the incredible challenge of putting together an inaugural conference, and organizing a massive event with no precedent to work from.

They worked tirelessly to reach out to other schools in the area and make sure that there would be enough delegates in attendance to make the conference a success.  A few months before the conference they went so far as to personally visit schools in Manhattan, and hand deliver invitations.  The Dalton School administration was also incredibly helpful in working with us and allowing us to rent out the school building and building services for the day. Close to 300 delegates attended DMUN, and Dalton upperclassmen chaired 9 separate committees, including three specialized crisis committees.

After several years of attending college conferences as delegates, all of the chairs were incredibly excited to translate their MUN experience into running a committee of their own.  Everyone tried to bring the elements that they liked best to their own committees, and make the conference maximally enjoyable and educational for the students in attendance.  The chairs of the Joint Crisis Committees spent several weeks planning out intricate crises to make the simulation of the Battle of Waterloo a success.

We also felt it was essential that charity be a large part of our first DMUN.  To that end we partnered with the Mount Sinai Global Health Initiative to raise money for an important cause.  The initiative raises money to buy ambulances for impoverished communities in third world countries.  Every committee raised money individually, and in addition DMUN will be donating 10% of its proceeds to the cause leading to a grand total of almost 1000 dollars.

The Horace Mann School brought a delegation of 8th, 9th and 10th graders to the conference and put on a dominant performance, winning best delegate on 8 committees and taking home numerous other individual awards.  The Dalton School had a delegation of 8th and 9th graders, and while they were ineligible for a school award they took home numerous individual awards.   Several other schools took home awards and the conference overall was a great success. We want to thank everyone who participated in DMUN I and helped to make it such a success, and we can’t wait to start planning DMUN II.   DMUN I

Delegation awards:

• Best Large: Horace Mann
• Outstanding Large: Spence
• Best Small: Brooklyn Friends
• Outstanding Small: Browning

Photos from DMUN I:

SPECPOL- Delegates in SPECPO

Logistics-Logistics Staff hard at work

DGS- Aiden Slavin and Harriet Fisher pose for a picture

ChechenDais- The dais of the Chechen Cabinet crisis committee

This guest post was provided by Neil Malani, Under-Secretary-General of the McKennaMUN Conference that took place from April 13-14, 2013, at Claremont McKenna College.

The inaugural session of McKennaMUN brought together 280 delegates from 11 high schools for two days of intense debate. Topics ranged from the Berlin Blockade to gender violence to non-state military actors, and delegates had the opportunity to compete in 11 committees, including two General Assemblies, two ECOSOC bodies, three regional commissions, two Security Councils, and two crises.

Held from April 13th to 14th at Claremont McKenna College, the conference featured former European Commission Deputy Director General Karel Kovanda as its keynote speaker. Ambassador Kovanda spoke about the continued relevance of the United Nations, offering delegates firsthand insight into the operations of the Security Council. Each committee also featured a guest speaker from the Claremont Colleges’ faculty, each of whom gave delegates a glimpse into college-level instruction, while adding perspective to the debate.

Ambassador Karel Kovanda Speaks at Opening Ceremonies

In committee, delegates were guided by Claremont McKenna values. Embodying the mission of the college, chairs emphasized pragmatism and leadership for all proposed solutions. Delegates were well researched and fostered a high-level of debate. Indeed, debate was so advanced that committee chairs routinely compared it to college-level conferences. Given the quality of debate and the emphasis on pragmatism, it is little wonder that delegates passed 3/4ths of all resolutions.

Delegates Discuss Solutions to the Black Market Trade in Arms

Outside of committee, delegates had the opportunity to attend the Claremont Colleges’ International Festival, which features food, performances, and other cultural events coordinated by students and community members from around the globe. In the evening, they were invited to a casino-style delegate social, where they mingled with chairs, fellow delegates, and the secretariat over roulette and blackjack.

Delegate Social

The conference was highly competitive, with awards shifting until the end of committee. Listed below are the delegation awards given out at the conference:

• Best Small Delegation: Edison High School
• Best Large Delegation: Mira Costa High School

Congratulations to the staff of McKennaMUN on hosting their inaugural MUN conference!

Delegates at HNMUN

Which college Model UN teams are the best in the world? There are many definitions of success in Model UN, and awards are not the purpose of Model UN. Nevertheless, they are given at MUN conferences to recognize teams for their accomplishments.

There are three internationally prominent university-level conferences that each draw over 2,000 delegates and feature teams from around the world: Harvard National HNMUN in Boston, Harvard WorldMUN which was hosted in Melbourne this year, and the two-part National NMUN conferences in New York City. These three conferences are very different from each other in terms of philosophy, culture, and awards system, and most participants would not classify the three into one circuit. However, using our methodology for guidance, we can determine what some of the best teams in the world were for this season and we wanted to recognize them here.

Changes and Disclaimer:

• We decided to re-define “International” to mean all teams participating at these three international conferences. The old definition of “International” meant teams outside of North America. 
• We decided to tier it instead of doing a numerical ranking since the three conferences have drastically different awards systems and most teams do not attend more than one conference. We also decided to use their one highest score instead of aggregating the scores for the same reasons.
• This listing is not meant to capture all Model UN delegations around the world but rather a subset of those teams that perform at the three largest college conferences in the world. Note that due to different conferences being included in the methodology, the North American schools in Best International University Delegations list may not necessarily correspond with the schools or placement on the North American rankings.
• In the future, we may consider doing more regional rankings (similar to the current North American college rankings) or integrating a regional conference component in addition to these three conferences to more accurately reflect performance throughout the year, particularly in Europe which has an active regional circuit.

2012-2013 Best International University Delegations

The Best International University Delegations were distinguished by finishing among the top teams in terms of weighted score at HNMUN, receiving the most Diplomacy Awards at WorldMUN, or were recognized for multiple Distinguished Delegation awards at NMUN. Harvard was also included in this list for playing host to two of the three conferences which it could not participate in as a delegation; Harvard was ranked in the top five in the North American rankings. Delegations are listed in alphabetical order.

• Alma College (United States)
• Brigham Young University (United States)
• California State University, San Bernardino (United States)
• Claremont McKenna College (United States)
• College of William & Mary (United States)
• Florida International University (United States)
• George Washington University (United States)
• Harvard University (United States)
• MUN Society Belgium (Belgium)
• Peruvian Universities (Peru)
• Sciences Po (France)
• Texas Christian University (United States)
• Universidad Católica Andrés Bello (Venezuela)
• Universidad Católica Andrés Bello, Guayana (Venezuela)
• Universidad Central de Venezuela (Venezuela)
• Universidad Simon Bolivar (Venezuela)
• United Netherlands (Netherlands)
• United States Military Academy at West Point (United States)
• University of Chicago (United States)
• University of New South Wales (Australia)
• University of Pennsylvania (United States)
• University of Wisconsin, Oshkosh (United States)
• Yale University (United States)

2012-2013 Outstanding International University Delegations

The  Outstanding International University Delegations were distinguished by winning multiple awards at HNMUN, receiving the multiple Diplomacy Awards at WorldMUN, or were recognized with a Distinguished Delegation award at NMUN. Delegations are listed in alphabetical order.

• American University in Cairo (Egypt)
• Austin College (United States)
• Australian National University (Australia)
• Boston University (United States)
• California State University, Chico (United States)
• California State University, Los Angeles (United States)
• California State University, Northridge (United States)
• Carleton University (Canada)
• Clark University (United States)
• College of Wooster (United States)
• Columbia University (United States)
• Emory University (United States)
• Erasmus Universiteit Rotterdam (Netherlands)
• Georgetown University (United States)
• Georgia Southern University (United States)
• Georgia State University (United States)
• Hood College (United States)
• Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey (Mexico)
• Irvine Valley College (United States)
• Lahore University of Management Sciences (Pakistan)
• Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München (Germany)
• Marianopolis College (Canada)
• New York University (United States)
• Pace University – Westchester (United States)
• Patrick Henry College (United States)
• Rider University (United States)
• Riverside Community College (United States)
• Royal Holloway, University of London (United Kingdom)
• Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg (Germany)
• Rutgers University (United States)
• Sapienza – Università di Roma (Italy)
• Sciences Po Lille (France)
• Universidad del Rosario (Colombia)
• Universidad Metropolitana (Venezuela)
• Universidad San Francisco de Quito (Ecuador)
• Université de Sherbrooke (Canada)
• Université libre de Bruxelles (Belgium)
• Université Paris-1 Panthéon-Sorbonne (France)
• University of Adelaide (Australia)
• University of Melbourne (Australia)
• University of Miami (United States)
• University of New Orleans (United States)
• University of North Carolina, Charlotte (United States)
• University of West Virginia (United States)
• University of Western Australia (Australia)
• Victor Valley College (United States)
• Vrije Universiteit Brussel (Belgium)
• Wright State University (United States)

Congratulations to all the delegations!

The University of Pennsylvania after an emotional victory at HNMUN

Which college Model UN teams are the best on the circuit? There are many definitions of success in Model UN, and awards are not the purpose of Model UN. Nevertheless, they do tell us which teams are doing well and our rankings are meant to recognize teams for their accomplishments at conferences throughout the school year. Please note that rankings are relative to other teams’ results, and it is also best to compare year-over-year rankings with last year’s (Spring 2012) final rankings rather than the mid-season Fall 2012 rankings.

Methodology: The methodology is the same as last year with minor modifications in weightings to reflect attendance this year. Notably, BarMUN was weighted slightly higher than last year and WorldMUN received a full weighting in the “Large” tier. The average number of conferences won per team has increased from 5.32 to 6.04 this year; the average top-25 team won awards at about six conferences this year. The article above also provides insight into the purpose and philosophy behind the rankings.

Disclaimer: Only teams that participate at university-hosted conferences that emphasize awards are included in the dataset, and we can only use data that is available to us. This ranking is not meant to capture all of college MUN as many good teams participate at conferences that do not value the competitive aspect of Model UN.

2012-2013 Final College Rankings

1. University of Pennsylvania

The University of Pennsylvania is the #1 team on the college Model UN circuit this year after winning an impressive collection of Best Large Delegation awards. UPenn attended a circuit-high tie of ten conferences and brought home the Best Large Delegation at eight of them: HNMUN, ChoMUN, NCSC, SCSY, VICS, NYUMUNC, WPSC, and DISCon. That could be the record for most Best Large Delegation awards won by a team in a single year ever, and their triumph at HNMUN was an emotional affair that was a testament to all the hard work that everyone put into the team. In addition to those eight, UPenn also won the Outstanding Large Delegation award at BarMUN and won awards at CMUNNY with a split team that weekend (the other half at SCSY). All-Star Head Delegate Alex Haber led UPenn and its team included All-Stars David Schwartz, Arka Mallela, Yadavan Mahendraraj, and Jocelyn Perry. Other top delegates included Bianca Faccio, Hirsh Shah, Akhilesh Goswami, plus a very deep bench of underclassmen.

2. Georgetown University

Georgetown had a very successful year in terms of winning awards, but the bigger story was their investment in the future by expanding their schedule to include conferences on the West Coast and outside of North America for the first time in team history. Georgetown won the Best Large Delegation award at McMUN and BarMUN and won the Outstanding Large Delegation award at UPMUNC and SCSY. It also finished third at ChoMUN and second at NYUMUNC. Finally, Georgetown took home the Best Small Delegation award at its first-ever visit to UCBMUN and in the top-10 overall (tied for third among American universities) at its first-ever visit at WorldMUN, a conference that it hopes to continue attending in the future.  All-Star Head Delegate Dane Shikman led Georgetown and its team included All-Stars Anais Carmona, Jeff Caso, Sam Brothers, and Theresa Lou. Other top delegates included Nicholas Bellomy, Isobel Blakeway-Philips, Samantha Lin, Andrea Cohen, Neil Christy, and Pavan Rajgopal.

3. University of Chicago

UChicago had some of the highest quality performances this year and finished third in aggregate rankings primarily because it attended half as many conferences as UPenn and three fewer than Georgetown. Nevertheless, UChicago gave both a run for their money – UChicago won the Outstanding Large Delegation at HNMUN but had a higher raw score than UPenn, and UChicago could arguably be a better team than Georgetown as it won the Best Large Delegation at both head-to-head matchups at UPMUNC and UCBMUN. In addition, UChicago also won a Best Large Delegation at CMUNNY and finished in the top 10 at NCSC. All-Star Head Delegates Mark Mahvi, Parvathy Murukurthy, Susannah Wang, and ChoMUN Secretary-General Daphna Gall led the UChicago team. Other top delegates on the team included Adam Stevenson, Apratim Gautim, Eric Wessan, and Alex Novet.

4. Harvard University

Harvard had its best season in recent years as the long-term development of its younger members has paid off this year. Harvard won four Outstanding Large Delegation awards this year at ChoMUN, NCSC, UCBMUN, and CMUNNY. In addition, it finished third at UPMUNC, NYUMUNC, and WPSC (winning the Schwarzkopf Award at the latter). Harvard won or contended for a delegation award at every conference it attended this year, and Harvard should continue to contend for large delegation awards next year as many of those younger members are now moving into leadership roles within the team. All-Star Head Delegates Timothy Tsai and Rodolfo Diaz led the Harvard team, and its top delegates included All-Star Keshava Guha as well as Nina Chen, Richard Ebright, and Katherine Ebright.

5. United States Military Academy at West Point

West Point maintained its top-five status despite a serious challenge by other rapidly improved small delegations due to its ability to win at the most competitive conferences – it is the only small delegation to attend all four of HNMUN, UPMUNC, McMUN, and WorldMUN. West Point won the Best Small Delegation award at three conferences: HNMUN, NCSC (where it finished second overall), and SCSY. It also finished in the top five at McMUN and had strong performances at UPMUNC and WorldMUN. West Point gained further prominence in Europe by winning Best Small Delegation at OxIMUN. The West Point team featured Head Delegate Will Dickson, All-Stars Warren Geary, Ross Boston, and Ben Ketchum as well as other top delegates such as Patrick Brown and Brendon Moore.

6. The George Washington University

GW continues to rise in the rankings now that it has two classes of Colonial Cadets on its roster, and it is beginning to contend with other top-five powerhouses. Most notably, GW tied with cross-town rival Georgetown at WorldMUN and finished second overall at McMUN behind only Georgetown. GW also had top-five finishes at competitive conferences such as HNMUN and UPMUNC and even managed top-five finishes when splitting its large team at both SCSY and CMUNNY. In addition, GW won the Best Large Delegation at the inaugural &MUN conference and got on the scoreboard while training its freshmen Colonial Cadets at NCSC. All-Star Head Delegate Max Sanders led GW, and the large team also featured All-Stars Chris Longman, Jeremy Illoulian, Mari Manoogian, and Jared Greenspan. Other top delegates included Amy O’Halloran and Grace Mausser.

7. Florida International University

FIU had a powerful fall season competing as a small delegation and went undefeated during that run with Best Small Delegation awards at UPMUNC, CMUNNY, and BarMUN. But perhaps more impressive than the delegation awards is the team’s continued rise at HNMUN as a large delegation where it finished fourth overall this year behind only UPenn, UChicago, and Yale. FIU also had a top-ten performance at ChoMUN and won a Distinguished Delegation award at NMUN in the spring. This was supposedly a rebuilding or transition year at FIU, but one would not be able to tell with all the awards they have won and the team has potential to be even better in the near future. FIU was led by Head Delegate Mark Hodgson.

8. The College of William & Mary

William & Mary is back in the top 10 after one of its most successful seasons ever. The highlight of the season was winning the Best Small Delegation award at WorldMUN. Other highlights included a third overall finish at McMUN, winning awards with a split team at both SCSY (top five overall) and CMUNNY, and a top-ten performance at ChoMUN. The team also received awards at HNMUN, VICS, and DISCon. One final long-term highlight is that W&M successfully hosted its inaugural &MUN college conference. All-Star Head Delegate Zann Isacson led the W&M team this year. The team also included All-Stars Connor Smith and Jeff Rohde, and other top delegates included Abhi Goyal, Iman Shakeri, Katie Mitchell, and Lucas Leblanc.

9. Boston University

BU had one of its most successful seasons ever to establish itself this year as one of the elite small delegations on the circuit. That’s backed up by a Best Small Delegation award at McMUN and Outstanding Small Delegation awards at a strong set of conferences: UPMUNC, ChoMUN, and NCSC. In addition, the team finished fourth overall at NYUMUNC and won awards at HNMUN despite hosting their BosMUN high school conference the following week. Perhaps due to the growing quality of its team, their BarMUN college conference has also continued to grow and attracted many ranked teams this year. Head Delegate Travis Cunningham led BU, and its top delegates included All-Star Katrina Trost as well as Sam Leone, Samantha Weinberg, and Colin Rosenow.

10. Yale University

Yale had to develop a very young team this year, but it got progressively better during the season and by its last conference started to look like the elite Yale team of the past few years. Yale started off with awards at NCSC, improved to a top-ten finish at UPMUNC, and then came out in full force to place third overall at HNMUN. The team managed to maintain a top ten ranking despite attending only three conferences this year, half the average number of conferences attended by the top 25 teams, due to the high quality of its win at HNMUN. Head Delegate Lizzie Hylton led the Yale team.

11. New York University

NYU’s ranking derives from its ability to put on consistently strong performances at all the conferences they have attended even though they do not win a delegation award often, and their results show a clear improvement from last year. This includes a Best Small Delegation award at VICS and awards at HNMUN, UPMUNC, NCSC, CMUNNY, and WPSC. Head Delegate Akshay Anantharaman led the NYU team this year.

12. Claremont McKenna College

CMC retained its position as the top-ranked team on the West Coast – but now they are also showing that they can compete with top East Coast teams. On the West Coast, CMC won the Best Large Delegation at SBIMUN and a pair of Best California Delegation awards at UCBMUN and LAMUN, finishing second overall behind only UChicago at the former and finishing third overall at the latter. On the East Coast, they put in a top ten performance at UPMUNC. And in the world, they finished second among American delegations at WorldMUN behind only Best Small Delegation winner William & Mary by one Diplomacy Award. Head Delegate Daniel Shane led the CMC team.

13. Columbia University

Columbia may not win big at most of the conferences they have attended, but they do win often as they won awards at a circuit-high tie of ten conferences: HNMUN, UPMUNC, McMUN, ChoMUN, NCSC, VICS, BarMUN, NYUMUNC, WPSC, and FCMUN. Then again, Columbia had a very young team this year, and perhaps more important there seemed to be a focus on making sure the young delegates enjoyed their first college MUN seasons instead of stressing about awards. Outside of North America, Columbia also attended the University of Cambridge’s conference in the fall, giving them the distinction as the most well traveled team this year with 11 conferences on the schedule. All-Star Head Delegate Shunsuke Hirose led Columbia, and its other top delegates included Jorja Knauer and Michael Ying.

14. Emory University

Emory had a well-rounded season and consistently won awards at the conferences it attended. This included awards at HNMUN, UPMUNC, ChoMUN, NCSC, CMUNNY, VICS, and DISCon. The team’s closest finishes to a delegation award were in the South when it finished second overall at VICS and third overall at DISCon. One other significant note is that Emory launched its MUNE college conference this year. All-Star Head Delegate Pritika Gupta – who was named Best Head Delegate at VICS – led Emory this year, and the team featured All-Stars Katherine Bonner and Nicolette Kraska as well as top delegates in Orli Berman, Goldy Tenreiro-Braschi, and Kate Cyr. This makes Emory’s lineup notable for its inclusion and development of many top female delegates in the international relations field that is still relatively dominated by men.

15. Stanford University

Stanford is still in the process of developing depth in its team and did a great job strategically selecting conferences this year so that it could contend for small delegation awards. Those victories included a pair of Best Small Delegation awards at LAMUN and &MUN and another pair of Outstanding Small Delegation awards at CMUNNY and SBIMUN. The team also won awards at the more competitive conferences that it attended at McMUN, ChoMUN, NCSC, and UCBMUN. All-Star David Hoyt and Ian Chan served as Stanford’s Head Delegates, and the team’s top delegates included Sean Hiroshima and Elena Stephenson.

16. Rutgers University

Rutgers had a solid season overall including some strong performances at the smaller conferences. Their record includes top-five finishes at NCSC, a conference that the team has traditionally done well in, and at FCMUN. Rutgers also had top-ten results at McMUN and SCSY and won awards at competitive conferences such as HNMUN, UPMUNC, and ChoMUN. Head Delegates Danial Manzoor and Salman Khan led the Rutgers team this year.

17. Clark University

Clark rebounded nicely this year compared to last year, and that was in spite of a significant upgrade in competitiveness to its travel schedule. The team continued to demonstrate its ability to compete with the best by finishing sixth among North American delegations at HNMUN behind only UPenn, UChicago, Yale, FIU, and West Point. Clark also received the Outstanding Small Delegation at SCSY and won awards at UPMUNC, ChoMUN, NCSC, and FCMUN. Samer Said and Elena Stocchiero led the Clark team.

18. Florida State University

Florida State upgraded the competitiveness of its schedule this year and made sure to make the most of each conference, and the result is the team being recognized as the highest ranked team that attended only four conferences. FSU finished in the top five overall at ChoMUN, NCSC, and VICS. The ChoMUN performance was significant in that the team finished ahead of FIU, showing that FSU has the potential to reclaim its spot as the best team in the state of Florida. FSU also won awards at McMUN. Its top delegates included Melissa Giddings, Hillary Harlan, and Christopher Hansford.

19. University of California, Berkeley

Berkeley is narrowing the gap between its team and Claremont McKenna in its quest to regain the title as the top team on the West Coast. They split their head-to-head West Coast matchups this year – Berkeley won the Best Large Delegation at LAMUN while it won the Outstanding Large Delegation at SBIMUN. The team also maintained its national profile with awards at UPMUNC, McMUN, and ChoMUN. All-Star Shannon Thomas and Anirudh Garg were the Head Delegates, and the team also included a top delegate in Ravi Puni.

20. Tulane University

Tulane consistently won delegation awards at the conferences it attended. This included a thoroughly dominating performance at the inaugural MUNE en route to the Best Delegation award there, an Outstanding Small Delegation award at UCBMUN, and an Outstanding Delegation award at DISCon where it only finished behind UPenn. In addition, Tulane finished in the top ten at UPMUNC. Tulane may be ready for tougher competition after its strong performances at smaller and mid-sized conferences this year. Head Delegates Sophie Parker and Patrick Matthews led the Tulane team.

21. McGill University

McGill continues its steady rise up the rankings under the second year leadership of All-Star Head Delegate Keagan Tafler. The team won awards at HNMUN, NCSC, SCSY and VICS. The team also took home a Best Small Delegation award at CIAC and the Outstanding Delegation award at FCMUN. Now that it can win delegation awards at the smaller conferences, look for McGill to continue to improve and start contending for more awards at the mid-sized conferences. The team’s top delegates included Daniel Stysis, Sabrina Ostrowski, Alexander Taciuk, and Loreena Percy.

22. University of Florida

The University of Florida had another good season by winning awards at most of the conferences it attended. This included strong performances at VICS (third overall), UCBMUN, and CMUNNY. The team also got on the scoreboard at ChoMUN and CMUNNY. In addition, the team also won awards at SRMUN. Head Delegate Christopher Joyce led a team that included All-Star Troy Robinson as well as top delegates in Aaron Kalafarski, Fred Kolb, and Ashley Inman.

23. Carleton University

Carleton University breaks into the top 25 rankings for the first time, which gives Canada two teams in the top 25 again. Although Carleton does not attend many conferences, it competes well at the most competitive ones. The team finished fourth overall behind only Georgetown, George Washington, and William & Mary at McMUN and was just outside the top ten among North American delegations at HNMUN where it also bested McGill in the head-to-head matchup.

24. Michigan State University

Michigan State returned back into the top 25 with a solid performance in the spring to make it three straight years with such a ranking. The team started off with awards at UPMUNC and BarMUN but had a much stronger second-half of the season with top-ten finishes at McMUN and ChoMUN. Head Delegate Chris Bourdganis led MSU this year.

25. Cornell University

Cornell managed to navigate a challenging schedule – perhaps the most challenging it has ever faced – and the team was able to win awards at the most competitive conferences such as HNMUN, UPMUNC, and McMUN. Cornell also won awards at NCSC, SCSY, and WPSC. Alexa Bruer was Cornell’s Head Delegate, and the team included All-Star Ankur Bajaj as well as top delegates in Matthew Rosenspire, Brian Hui, Meril Pothen, and Conna Walsh.

Top 50 College Model UN Teams:

Notes: List is in alphabetical order. There are 26 teams in this tier due to a tie for 50th place. The five closest teams to the Top 25 are Elon, Miami, Vanderbilt, Queen’s, and SUNY Geneseo. 

• Bard College
• Boston College
• Colgate University
• Dawson College
• Duke University
• Elon University 
• Hofstra University
• Marianopolis College
• Mount Allison University
• Pennsylvania State University
• Princeton University
• Queen’s University
• State University of New York at Geneseo
• Tufts University
• Université de Montréal
• University of Calgary
• University of California, Los Angeles
• University of Delaware
• University of Miami
• University of New Mexico
• University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
• University of North Carolina, Charlotte
• University of Toronto
• Vanderbilt University
• Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
• Washington University in St. Louis

**

Congratulations to all the delegations for a successful 2012-2013 school year. Good luck to all the graduating seniors, and we hope to see everyone else back on the circuit next year. Have a great summer!

Purpose: The purpose of the College Model UN All-Star Team is to recognize exemplary individuals in the college MUN community who have made a difference inside and outside of committee. These could be but are not necessarily limited to just the best delegates or award winners; conferences already determine those. Rather, the College MUN All-Star Team should be representative of the best and most respected leaders in the community. They are diplomatic and skilled in committee, help strengthen the relationships between schools, provide thought leadership, and make the Model UN experience better for everyone.

Process: College students who participated in at least one college conference were eligible to submit one nomination form of up to ten students on the college circuit. Due to the All-Star Team’s emphasis on community, students were only allowed to nominate up to three delegates from their own school and were not allowed to nominate themselves. The nomination process took place from April 23-30. Each nominated name received one vote. Ballots were manually edited for spelling inconsistencies and manually checked for validity, and results were checked for accuracy. Delegates receiving the top number of votes were given All-Star team honors divided into three tiers: 10 for First Team, 10 for Second Team, and 18 for Third Team.

Credits: Thank you to Best Delegate Media Associate Amy O’Halloran for proposing the initial idea and for leading this project and sourcing all the biographies. Thanks also to all the individuals for contributing biographies and photos of their All-Star peers and to the rest of the Best Delegate Media Associate college team for spreading awareness of the nomination process. And thank you to everyone on the circuit for participating in recognizing their peers for their leadership in the community.

Without further ado, here are the delegates on the College Model UN All-Star Team!

College MUN All-Star Team (First Team)

Names are in alphabetical order. 

Alex Haber
University of Pennsylvania

Senior Alex Haber has made his mark on Penn MUN history, having led the team to eight Best Large Delegation awards out of ten conferences this year. He is widely regarded as the most successful and charismatic head delegate on the circuit. Haber truly serves as a role model for fellow students in the Penn International Affairs Association, and they thank him for a memorable 2013 season.

Anais Carmona
Georgetown University

Anais is a rising senior at Georgetown University. This past academic year, she served as the IRC’s Chief of Staff. This summer, she will be going to India this summer as the Georgetown/ Georgetown International Relations Association Inc. representative to teach Model UN and debate skills. Additionally, she represented Georgetown at WorldMUN this past year for the first time in Georgetown MUN’s program history. Outside of MUN, Anais has interned with the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life.

Chris Longman
The George Washington University

Chris has been an integral member of the George Washington International Affairs Society since his freshman year. Chris has served on the Executive Board in multiple capacities, including the Secretary-General of GWCIA, the IAS’ middle school MUN conference, and most recently as Chairman. Chris has been an outstanding member of our MUN team, bringing home the gold for all of the conferences that he has attended.

Dane Shikman
Georgetown University

Dane is a graduating senior at Georgetown University. He served as IRC Conferences Coordinator for the 2012-2013 term, and before this he served as Chair of the 2011-2012 term. He will be going to China this summer as the Georgetown/ Georgetown International Relations Association Inc. representative to teach Model UN and debate skills. He also represented Georgetown at WorldMUN this past year for the first time in Georgetown MUN’s program history. Outside of MUN, Dane has interned with the US Department of State and the US Senate.

David Schwartz
University of Pennsylvania

Senior David Schwartz has proven to be one of the most successful delegates on the circuit. A four-year competitor, he has helped cultivate a robust Penn team. Always known for his expertise on financial and business committees, Schwartz will go on to work for UBS in New York this fall.

Mark Mahvi
University of Chicago

Mark Mahvi served as President of the University of Chicago’s travelling team. With a decorated Model UN résumé including countless awards and experience as a Chair and Crisis Director, Mark led UChicago’s team through one of its most successful years. In addition to serving as President of UChicago’s team, Mark has served as a Chair at ChoMUN (UChicago’s college conference), MUNUC (UChicago’s high school conference) and WEMUN’s National Training Camp in Beijing. Model United Nations has been a huge part of Mark’s life at the University of Chicago, and he knows the skills he has honed and the friends he has made will stay with him when he graduates this June.

Parvathy Murukurthy
University of Chicago

Parvathy Murukurthy served as Vice President of the University of Chicago’s travelling team and Director General of ChoMUN. After seven years of Model UN as both a staffer and a delegate, Parvathy is one of the most experienced and successful delegates on the circuit. Her experience in Model UN has fueled a passion for international relations and education policy. This experience and passion guided UChicago’s travelling team through one of its strongest years and made ChoMUN XVI the best yet. While Parvathy will graduate from the University of Chicago this June, the leadership skills she developed and the friends she made will stay with her for life.

Rodolfo Diaz
Harvard University

Rodolfo has served as Harvard’s Head Delegate for the last two years. He is one of the most competent delegates on the circuit, gaveling nine times in his time at Harvard, and befriending delegates from around the world. Rodolfo helped to revamp the Harvard team, making it a cohesive and incredible family, and he has served as a mentor and friend to everyone who knows him. In addition to MUN, Rodolfo also serves on the staff of HACIA Democracy. Rodolfo will be pursuing a MPhil in Development Studies Program at the University of Oxford in the Fall.

Timothy Tsai
Harvard University

Tim has served as Harvard’s Head Delegate for the past year, and will serve as the President of the Harvard International Relations Council in the coming year. Tim is a great person with a ton of emotion – he is always there to help a fellow delegate out in or out of committee. Tim is also incredibly committed to making a tangible, positive change in the world, and he is already launching initiatives within the Harvard IRC to increase its positive impact.

Warren Geary
United States Military Academy at West Point

Warren Geary has been an integral part of the West Point Model United Nations team since he joined in the fall of 2010. He brings innovative thinking, a positive attitude, and one of the most diligent work ethics that you could ask for. He has served in many positions since his time on the team. Along with participating in the travel team, he has served as the Financial officer for WPSC 2012, the Chief of Staff for WPSC 2013, and next year he will serve as the Commander of WPSC 2014. He is pleasure to work with, and will continue to do great things both at West Point and once he is a commissioned officer.

College MUN All-Star Team (Second Team)

Names are in alphabetical order. 

Arka Mallela
University of Pennsylvania

Senior Arka Mallela, a molecular life sciences major, unexpectedly joined the Model UN circuit as a freshmen. Mallela, a versatile delegate, garnered tremendous success on the circuit and on the UPMUNC secretariat, later serving as Chief Operating Officer for the 45th annual conference. Arka recently finished his term as President of the Penn International Affairs Association and will attend the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine in the fall.

Connor Smith
The College of William & Mary

Connor, next year’s Head Delegate for the William and Mary team, already has a delegation award under his belt for this year’s ChoMUN team, which he trained and led before he was even elected to the official position for the 2013-2014 school year. However, an even more impressive feat is that Connor was the Secretary-General of William and Mary’s first collegiate conference, &MUN, this past April, building the conference from scratch for more than a year after chairing an exploratory committee for it over the course of yet another year prior.

Jeremy Illoulian
The George Washington University

Jeremy has been an integral member of the George Washington International Affairs Society since his freshman year. Jeremy served as the MUN assistant during his sophomore year as well as the IAS Chairman during his junior year. As Chairman, Jeremy played an important role in the creation and implementation of the Colonial Cadets program, GW’s freshman training program. Jeremy will be serving as the President of the United States delegation to the Y8/Y20 Youth Summit this summer.

Katherine Bonner
Emory University

Katherine is one of the most dedicated individuals to MUN on the circuit. She traveled to all 8 of Emory’s competitive conferences this year, while simultaneously serving on executive board, and Director General of MUNE I. She will be working for Global Classrooms and Best Delegate this summer, and will be the Secretary General of RCAMUN next Spring. Katherine has been involved in Model UN since the 9th grade, and her passion has only grown since. She contributes not only to the Emory Model UN team, but to the circuit as a whole with her charm, and infectious passion for all that is MUN.

Lwam Stefanos
Colgate University

Lwam Stefanos is a rising senior at Colgate University, double majoring in international relations and English literature. She is the current head delegate and Vice President of the Colgate Model United Nations team, and has done Model UN for seven years. Her MUN career began at a Best Delegate Top 25 school, West Windsor Plainsboro HS North. A true world traveler, Lwam has been to every continent except Antartica, and most recently studied abroad in London. Lwam’s attitude in committee embodies the true spirit of the UN; she works with everyone regardless of position, and works hard to show that even ‘non-P5′ colleges can have fantastic delegates.

Pritika Gupta
Emory University

Pritika is from Mumbai, India, and is currently the President and Head Delegate of Emory Model United Nations, while also serving as Under Secretary General for MUNE I. She has worked tirelessly to ensure that EMUN expands its presence on the circuit, in addition to at Emory. She has received awards and recognition at nearly every conference she has traveled to this past year, and carries the ideals of Model UN with her in her everyday life.

Ross Boston
United States Military Academy at West Point

Ross Boston is a graduating senior at the United States Military Academy at West Point. A team player, Ross is a straight-talker, and enhances committee with substantive knowledge above and beyond the typical delegate. Leading by example in crises and GAs, Ross can command a presence in the committee room and is among the circuit’s most respected and diplomatic delegates.

Shunsuke Hirose
Columbia University

Shunsuke Hirose is a senior at Columbia University graduating with a degree in Political Science, and served as Columbia’s Head Delegate for the 2012-2013 year. His passion for history and international affairs led him into Model United Nations and has inspired him to further his studies at Columbia’s School of International and Public Affairs for a Master’s degree in International Security Policy. This summer, he will be interning at the Asia Society doing policy analysis for security affairs in East Asia.

Susannah Wang
University of Chicago

Susannah Wang is a rising fourth year student at the University of Chicago, double majoring in Economics and East Asian Languages and Civilizations. Susannah has chaired committees at both ChoMUN and MUNUC, the collegiate and high school conferences that UChicago hosts each year. She also staffs American Model United Nations International in Chicago, and is an integral member of UChicago’s Top 5 travel MUN team. Outside of Model UN, Susannah is an Alpha Kappa Delta Phi sister, and loves to travel. Her enthusiasm and love of meeting new friends translates to the committee room, and is a testament to her appreciation of the art of diplomacy.

Yadavan Mahendraraj
University of Pennsylvania

Junior Yadavan Mahendraraj’s strong presence does not come from his stature, but from his strong leadership and quick-witted humor. Although Yadavan has one of the best track records on the circuit, he is better known as the Secretary-General of ILMUNC XXIX—the most successful high school Model UN conference in recent years. Yadavan currently presides over the Penn International Affairs Association as President.

College MUN All-Star Team (Third Team)

Names are in alphabetical order. 

Ankur Bajaj
Cornell University

Ankur Bajaj has served as a leader for the Cornell International Affairs Society (CIAS) since his freshman year at Cornell. While serving as the Cornell Model UN team’s consistent “gaveler,” he has also held the positions of USG of committees at Cornell’s first collegiate conference (CIAC), Vice President, and President of the Cornell International Affairs Society. His commitment to Model UN has continued past his Presidency as he now serves as the leader of alumni relations for the club. Ankur Bajaj helped get Cornell on the scoreboard at conferences and his intensive training sessions have helped to inspire the team’s younger members. Without him, CIAS would not be as large and successful as it is today.

Ben Ketchum
United States Military Academy at West Point

Benjamin Ketchum as always been an integral member to the success of the West Point Model United Nations team, and this year he continued his strong performance on the team and served as an inspiration and mentor to the younger generation of West Point MUN.  This year and last year he served as the social event coordinator for the team providing great opportunities for our team to celebrate conference performances, and for the veteran team members to mentor and develop the younger members of the team.  Ben also served as the Crisis Director for WPMUNI 2013 and put together a superb crisis that focused on a global issue requiring bureaucratic cohesion and integrated decision-making across various sectors of the US government (simulated).

David Hoyt
Stanford University

David Hoyt is a senior at Stanford University. Following his first MUN experience at NAIMUN 40 in 2003, Hoyt was forced to drop out of high school by a serious illness. However, through his later time at Mercer County Community College and Stanford, Hoyt remained interested in MUN; this year, Hoyt was the Co-Captain of Stanford’s traveling team; he has also previous served as Vice-President of the Society for International Affairs at Stanford. At Stanford, Hoyt majored in international relations, and wrote his Honors Thesis on the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. He credits MUN with having helped to prepare him for his job at the McChrystal Group.

Jared Greenspan
The George Washington University

Jared has been an integral member of the George Washington International Affairs Society since his freshman year. Jared came to GW not intending on joining the MUN program but after learning about the Colonial Cadet program and interacting with members of the Executive Board, quickly changed his mind. Jared is perhaps one of the friendliest and kind hearted people you will ever meet, a trait that has allowed him to develop his interpersonal skills and become well known throughout the circuit. Jared will serve as the IAS MUN Coordinator for the 2013-2014 academic year.

Jeff Caso
Georgetown University

Jeff is a rising senior at Georgetown University. He will serve as Chair of the IRC during the upcoming 2013-2014 academic year. He will be going to China this summer as the Georgetown/ Georgetown International Relations Association Inc. representative to teach Model UN and debate skills. He also represented Georgetown at  WorldMUN this past year for the first time in Georgetown MUN’s program history. In addition, Jeff is also involved with staffing the IMUNA conferences such as NHSMUN.

Jeff Rohde
The College of William & Mary

Jeff was so good at being the President of William and Mary’s International Relations Club – the largest student organization on the school’s campus – this past year that the club re-elected him to be President again for the 2013-2014 year! Because Jeff is a wonderful human being, he also participates in William and Mary’s Students for Medical Outreach and Sustainability (SOMOS), which takes him to the Dominican Republic to build community health care resources there, and has been a member of the Filipino-American Students Association.

Jocelyn Perry
University of Pennsylvania

Senior Jocelyn Perry joined the Penn International Affairs Association during her freshman year and instantly gained prominence as one of the most hard working and tenacious delegates on the team. She served as the Director-General of ILMUNC XXIIX, and her prominence in the Penn IAA will be greatly missed next year.

Katrina Trost
Boston University

Katrina Trost is a rising senior at Boston University studying Political Science, and is finishing up a study abroad at the University of Haifa in Israel studying Peace and Conflict Resolution. She is BU’s new Head Delegate has helped shape the future of Model UN at BU, as the team has risen to the Top 10 of Best Delegate rankings over the past two years. She is a force to be reckoned with in committee, and rarely goes home empty handed. Katrina is a great asset to her fellow delegates; her genuine spirit and love of diplomacy has made her a friend to many on the circuit. Beyond being a phenomenal delegate, Katrina is a dedicated student and will be graduating with her MA in Political Science in 2014.

Keagan Tafler
McGill University

Keagan Tafler has been McGill’s Head Delegate for the past two years. She pushed way beyond her duties and completely reformed the Canadian delegation’s team. Her passion and ambition have provided her with bragging rights for her MUN track record. Outside of McGill, Keagan has staffed for the Global Classrooms International MUN conference in New York.

Keshava Guha
Harvard University

Keshava served as Harvard’s Head Delegate from 2010 to 2011, helping to revitalize the team to bring it up to the powerhouse that it is today. Keshava is an incredible source of knowledge – he knows everything about everything, regardless of the time or topic. He also is very well known, and goes way back with members of every team. His wide expertise, substantive skill, and presence throughout the circuit make him a mentor for all.

Mari Manoogian
The George Washington University

Mari joined the George Washington International Affairs Society her junior year after transferring from Michigan State. Mari brought many talents and great knowledge of the circuit to the MUN program and it was not long before she became an integral member of the team. Mari will serve IAS Treasurer for the 2013-2014 academic year. Mari also serves as a Best Delegate Media Associate.

Max Sanders
The George Washington University

Max has been an integral member of the George Washington International Affairs Society since his freshman year. Max joined the MUN program without any prior experience and excelled beyond expectations. Max joined the Executive Board as the Freshman Representative and later as the MUN Coordinator during his sophomore year, helping expand the Colonial Cadets program. Max is one of the most driven and goal oriented people in the circuit, leaving a lasting impression on those he works with. Though it’s most likely his sneaky smile that you’ll remember.

Nicolette Kraska
Emory University

Last year, Nicolette Kraska was the President and Head Delegate of Emory Model United Nations. The club was founded in 2005, and Nicolette was one of the driving forces in growing the organization from 20 students to over 100. She has received countless gavels and awards, but above that, continues to contribute to Model UN at Emory and beyond. She has an incredible presence, and everyone surrounding her becomes a better delegate learning from her poise and skills.

Sam Brothers
Georgetown University

Sam is a rising senior at Georgetown University. He will serve as Conferences Coordinator of the IRC during the upcoming 2013-2014 academic year. He has currently spent the past semester studying abroad at King’s College London, an experience that he has thoroughly enjoyed.

Shannon Thomas
University of California, Berkeley

Shannon has served as head delegate of UCBMUN’s travel team for the last two years. Along with co-head del Anirudh Garg, she reshaped UCBMUN’s conference funding system to enable more delegates to travel to away conferences and revitalized delegate-training sessions. Shannon has applied skills honed through her participation in MUN to her work with the Olive Tree Initiative, a group which aims to promote education and dialogue regarding the Israeli/Palestinian conflict.

Theresa Lou
Georgetown University

Theresa is a rising senior at Georgetown University. She will serve as the Chief Executive Officer of the Georgetown International Relations Association Inc during the 2013-2014 academic year after having been appointed to the position by her peers. She also represented Georgetown at WorldMUN this past year for the first time in Georgetown MUN’s program history. In addition to traveling with the team, Theresa served as Secretary-General of NAIMUN 50 this year.

Troy Robinson
University of Florida

Troy is rising fourth-year Political Science and History dual-major with an emphasis on International Development. He has been involved with MUN since his junior year of high school and has had the pleasure of attending over 20 conferences. Currently serving as one of University of Florida’s head delegates, Troy has played a role in building stronger relations between this up-and-coming MUN team and more established schools on the circuit. While last summer Troy worked at the Department of State, he will spend much of this summer devoted to MUN. Not only will he work for Best Delegate as a Summer Program Counselor but Troy will also represent his team at all of their school’s orientation programs. Additionally, he plans on using summer down time to build stronger relations with other MUN programs in Florida.

Zann Isacson
The College of William & Mary

Not only did Zann led the William and Mary team to its first WorldMUN delegation award in several years, she did so while taking more William and Mary International Relations Club members to conferences over the course of the year than the IRC has ever taken before! The IRC also performed unprecedentedly well at CMUNNY, SCSY, and McMUN under Zann’s extraordinary leadership this year. When Zann is not plotting elaborate training schemes for the IRC, she can often be found listening to The National or talking about how much she loves Sheryl Sandberg.

**

Congratulations to everyone on the College MUN All-Star Team! We hope the College MUN All-Star team recognition platform will continue to help encourage delegates to engage their community and make it better.

This recap has been provided by Aniket Kesari, Executive Director, Rutgers Model Congress 2013,

This past weekend kicked of Rutgers Model Congress (RMC) 2013, and this was one to remember.  The conference brought over 400 high school students to New Brunswick, New Jersey to discuss various issues pertaining to American public policy.  All of the events at RMC were tied together with theme of “Constitutionalism in the Information Age.”  This theme challenged students to consider the fundamental purpose of government, and think about how the Constitution has to be reimagined and reinterpreted in an era increasingly dominated by technological innovations.

Opening ceremonies started with a bang as the keynote speaker, Congressman Frank Pallone from New Jersey’s 6^th congressional district, spoke forcefully about the role of the Internet in today’s politics.  He talked about the irony of enhanced communications technology actually decreasing the effectiveness of communication in Congress.  In an era where people could easily e-mail or tweet their views, members of Congress have failed to have face-to-face discussions with one another.  He also spoke about the importance of education, and inspired students to get involved with politics as he himself started as a high school student participating in Model Congress.  The opening ceremonies concluded with a thematic video introducing various topics at the conference, as well as the mysterious hacktivist group, “Anonymous.”  Students were intrigued by Anonymous, and it became a critical part of the ongoing crisis implementation throughout the conference. Watch the opening ceremony here.

Every RMC features educational workshops in between the second and third committee sessions on Friday afternoon, and this year we had some great ones to highlight.  As per the norm, we featured some skill-based workshops led by staff members, including “Public Speaking” and “Bill Writing.”  We were also proud to host two workshops conducted by outside organizations.  Trevor Burrus of the Cato Institute, the nation’s premiere libertarian think tank, led a workshop about the libertarian perspective on the Constitution.  As I walked in at the end of the workshop (having just finished up by own about the history of technology and democracy), I saw a student going up to Mr. Burrus and telling him, “You’re like a wizard! I learned so much, thank you!!”  Those words were music to my ears as these workshops were intended to help the students learn something beyond committee and by all means this one succeeded.

A delegate emphasizing a point in committee.

The other workshop that I would like to highlight was one on U.S. Foreign Policy and Media that was conducted by the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR).  The CCR is a non-profit litigation firm dedicated to fighting for civil liberties, and most famously it is currently litigating cases about drone strikes and detainees in Guantanamo Bay.  A panel of experts presented an excellent overview of U.S. foreign policy in the Israel-Palestine conflict, and explored new territory by connecting policy to technology and showing students how the two are interlinked even when the connection does not seem obvious.  At the end of the workshop, multiple students were asking about how they could get involved with the CCR and its mission.  This made me extremely happy because one of our goals at IDIA is to help students take what they learn from Model UN and Model Congress conferences and go make a difference in their communities; I am sure that after that workshop many of these students will become activists for these causes.

In committee, the students had an unparalleled experience.  The conference featured eighteen substantive committees.  The House of Representatives, Senate, and Advanced committees each had six represented, and each one featured its own unique topics and procedures.  All of the topics tied into the overall theme of “Constitutionalism in the Information Age” and the students explored several key ideas that emerged in the context of the theme.  Some students explored topics relating to consumer protection in the Information Age including “the Digital Economy” in Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation, “Consumer Credit Data” in House Financial Services, “Genetically Modified Organisms” in Senate Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, “Assisted Reproductive Technology” in House Science, Space, and Technology, and “Re-evaluating Federal Education Programs” in Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.  Others dealt with national security problems such as the “National Defense Authorization Act” in House Armed Services, “Disaster Preparedness” in Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, and “Information Assurance and Signals Intelligence” in the National Security Agency.  Still others answered questions about the nature of privacy and other constitutional rights in a digital era through topics such as “Copyright Law and Online Piracy” in Senate Judiciary, “Cloud Computing” in House Judiciary, and net neutrality in the President’s Technology Roundtable.  Each topic and committee was cutting edge and encompassed some aspect of the conference theme, making sure that every student left with an idea about the role of government in the face of a technological revolution.

Delegates raising their placards in committee.

Beyond just the topics, the staff at RMC 2013 ensured that the educational experience was top notch.  The Directors, who enroll in a class during the Fall semester, each produced two 25-page policy briefs to help the students prepare for the conference.  At the conference itself, the staff was trained to interact with students and act as teachers rather than as moderators.  I received endless praise from both advisors and students saying that the Directors engaged the students in a way rarely seen at conference.  Directors frequently took time out of debate to stop and answer any questions the students may have had.  They were active in editing bills and giving students feedback throughout their unmoderated caucuses to ensure that every bill was realistic and that the students were as specific as possible.

Crisis elements at this RMC went far beyond the norm.  The crisis staffers introduced two parallel storylines that ran throughout several committees at the conference.  One storyline focused on a national security crisis revolving around drone technology.  The National Security Agency (NSA) and Senate Foreign Relations committee investigated the theft of technology that could potentially disrupt U.S. drone strike capabilities.  After some investigation through warrantless wiretapping, the NSA discovered that the technology was sold by a Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) whistleblower to two U.S. citizens living abroad.  The House Armed Services committee then investigated the problems associated with “Information Sharing in the Department of Defense,” after it caught word about the NSA’s activities.  Afterward, the NSA had to decide on the best course of action to pursue the potential attackers, and decided upon analyzing full body scans performed in airports to get more information about the two cyber-attackers.  The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs committee debated the constitutionality of full body scans, and probed the NSA’s acquisition of these records.  Eventually, the NSA learned that the two perpetrators were being paid by Chinese officials, and were connected to Unit 61398, a suspected cyberattack command center in China.  The NSA launched a cyberattack on Unit 61398, and subsequently the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) debriefed and did damage control with Chinese businesses after the event.

A parallel storyline also occurred involving Anonymous.  Anonymous supported a fast food workers’ strike in New York City, and the House Education and the Workforce committee discussed the incident as it was debating “Union Democracy.”  Afterward, Anonymous leaked information that suggested that fast food corporations misrepresented the actual ingredients used in fast food during an ad campaign.  The House Energy and Commerce committee investigated as it was discussing “Misleading Advertising.”

The crises introduced throughout the conference culminated in the midnight crisis in the National Security Agency (NSA).  The NSA was suddenly confronted with all of the issues that arose throughout the conference, and the students were forced to deal with Anonymous among many other cybersecurity threats.  The drone storyline came to a climax during the midnight crisis as the NSA continued to pursue the two U.S. citizens who purchased the drone technology.  Having finally located the individuals, the NSA found that one of them maintained a website about drone activity.  Working with the CIA (played by crisis staffers), the NSA resolved to take the man into custody and shut down his website.  Although the CIA successfully took the suspect into custody, the NSA was unsuccessful as Anonymous hacked the website and posted a video saying that a U.S. citizen was being detained without charges.  Anonymous then threatened to hack the NSA and reveal its illegal activities.  A failure to do so would result in Anonymous hacking a San Francisco water plant and contaminating the water supply in the city.  Eventually the NSA decided to partially appease Anonymous by leaking some of its activities to the Press Corps.  The crisis concluded with the NSA locating the lost chip and working with the CIA to acquire it with a covert, on-the-ground operation.

RMC 2013 connected committees together in a way that conferences rarely accomplish.  The crises were meant to illuminate the challenges with upholding the Constitution in the face of cybersecurity and other digital threats.  The Press Corps committee dutifully followed all of the events at the conference and produced a “RMC Gazette” at the end of each committee session to summarize them.  Even in committees that did not feature in the overall storylines, students engaged with their topics and took away lessons about Constitutionalism in the Information Age that tied together with the overall conference.  On Sunday morning, each committee session debriefed with a “Sunday Activity” in which the Directors challenged the students to hold mini-constitutional conventions and rewrite the Constitution for the Information Age.  Some students saw fit to alter the language of the Constitution to explicitly recognize digital privacy, protect Internet free speech and privacy, and expand Congress’ powers to cyberwarfare.  Others thought that the Constitution was appropriate as is, and simply needed to be reinterpreted to remain relevant in the Information Age.

The Executive Board showing off their red, white and blue.

Students left RMC with a more thorough understanding of Constitutionalism in the Information Age, and a unique conference experience that I hope they never forget.  This year, RMC decided to go bold and do everything we possibly could to enhance the conference experience for students.  The unparalleled thematic focus guided the conference’s substantive development, and the students came up with innovative solutions to the nation’s most pressing political problems in committee.  The theme was also implemented outside of committee with the opening ceremonies video, a giant Constitution that hung from a hotel wall, posters displaying provisions of the U.S. Constitution in committee rooms, a live Twitter feed, and QR codes that linked to various online polls and websites relating to the conference theme.  Part of the conference experience is not just simulating Congress as it is, but also to give students the knowledge and skills they need to make the world a better place.  Overall, the conference was a tremendous success and accomplished its goal of educating students.  I would like to conclude by thanking Best Delegate for posting this recap.  We genuinely appreciate the opportunity to discuss our staff and students’ achievements this weekend, and are very hopeful that RMC and Best Delegate can work together to create the same online community for Model Congress that Best Delegate has done for Model UN.

A protest erupts in the FCC.

Frank Pallone speaking at opening ceremony.

Delegates raising their placards in committee.

In the End: When it’s time to say goodbye to High School Model United Nations (Gabriela Taveras)

“Tuesday evening: pack my bags, I’m heading out the door
I left a box of memories lying on the floor”

As the soothing notes of Evermore’s song course through my system, I find myself taking nostalgic glances at the many belongings I’ve collected in my bedroom: honor roll awards, stuffed animals, paintings… And then my eyes rest on a particularly cramped section of my crowded desk.

My Model UN awards. The diplomas and shiny glass trophies that are physical mementos of victory; yet, other than recall the apparent legendary moments of fame, some very different thoughts cross my mind: laughter, joy and a string of nostalgically good moments that get me teary-eyed in a matter of seconds.

I immediately go over a month back, to the end of my last conference as a high school student. A strong pang filled my heart as my team mate and I hastily ran out of the committee to get our luggages ready. As we made a dramatic race for the bedroom, we talked about how we were finally on the finish line, how years of passion had finally come down to those moments we could barely hold on to.

Her words sent fond flashbacks through my eyes: my selection as a model UN delegate, meeting my first crush, learning the heartbreaking truth about the situation in Palestine.. Too many life changing moments in just a split second were more than enough to bend me over, drop onto the bed and cry.

But not tears of sadness or fear.

No. These were tears of happiness, fondness and indescribable joy.

I admit it did feel like the end, but I could tell something else loomed just around the corner. I knew my decision to join Model United Nations almost six years ago would not end with me speeding in the JFK International Airport to catch a transcontinental flight. This was the beginning of the end of all I had known, but it was also the beginning of the real adventure those previous chapters of my life had prepared me for.

Becoming a true leader, beyond committee, beyond my school: I would become a leader for a cause. By studying International Relations, I’d become an advocate for my country’s initiatives, prove that the Dominican Republic is so much more than an attractive tourist destination with paradisiac beaches: I would, instead, set out to prove that my country is the result of the sacrifices of men and women like Juan Bosch, Francisco Caamaño and Minerva Mirabal.

And the friendships I’ve forged throughout these conference years: they are so much more than people to have a good laugh with. They have been and will continue being the people I’ll forever cherish along the road to what Model UN has turned me into: a catalyzer for change and a better person in a world that has the potential to be the living embodiment of justice and prosperity.

As I dry my tears away and the happy memories vanish, I smile and recall the lyrics with fresh resolve.

In less than four months’ time, I’ll be saying goodbye to my room, my safe haven for so many years. I won’t leave the box of memories; it’ll be tucked neatly into my heart as the aircraft takes me to my next stop, a stop that is exciting and overwhelming at once: college.

No, this is not the end; this is the beginning of the biggest wonder that Model United Nations has prepared me for: this is the beginning of life.