The Virtual Model United Nations Institute is off to a great start! With numerous high school, middle school, and elementary school programs throughout this summer, we are so excited to share Model United Nations with students around the world. Students will enhance their public speaking and debate skills, learn about world issues and different countries, make new friends, and gain the confidence to lead — all from the comfort of home.
One of the best parts of the Virtual MUN Institute is the MUN Mentors! To help students learn and connect with each other, students will be placed into breakout groups of 10 or fewer students where MUN Mentors will lead public speaking practice and provide personalized feedback. Our MUN Mentors are experts in Model UN who have experience teaching the fundamentals of the activity, as well as experience leading their own collegiate MUN programs. Check out our teachers this year!
Timur Saifaul
McGill University
Timur Saiful is currently at McGill University studying International Development and Economics. He has been a part of the MUN community since the very beginning of highschool and has taught at various Model UN tutoring centres across Toronto and has worked on Canada’s National Model UN Clubs networking group in the past. Timur was the Undersecretary General of Audeamus MUN that was held in support of Engineers without Borders and the Chief Financial Officer for one of Toronto’s leading youth-led non-profit organizations: Advocates of Tomorrow. He is a member of the McGill Delegations Team and is looking forward to the upcoming year.
Rebecca Pfieffer
Fordham University
Rebecca is a rising senior at Fordham University, Rose Hill, majoring in International Studies, minoring in French and Political Science. Last summer she worked as a Residential Counselor for the Model United Nations Institute. She served as President of Fordham’s team in her sophomore year and will be Secretary-General of Fordham’s high school conference, FORMUNC, for 2021. As a student in New York City, Rebecca enjoys being able to attend events and staff conferences at the United Nations and hopes to pursue a career in security and diplomacy in the future. At Fordham, she is a part of the Outdoors Club, President of the Running Club, and studied abroad in Strasbourg, France this past fall. She is looking forward to meeting her new students this summer and making the most of their time remote-learning!
Steven Vacnin
College of William & Mary
Steven Vacnin is a senior at The College of William and Mary majoring in International Relations and minoring in History with a focus on global health and hispanic studies. Throughout his time at William and Mary, he has been very involved in the William and Mary Model UN Team, having staffed nine conferences at the middle school, high school and College level, as well as having competed at fourteen collegiate conferences. He currently serves as the Head Delegate of the William and Mary College MUN Team. Other than Model UN, he is a member of Dad Jeans Improv, his collegiate improvisational troupe, and performs a variety of research on campus with AidData, an international relations think tank. He is beyond excited to work with everyone this summer to further our goal of making the world a better place!
Jasmine Ortiz
University of Miami
Jasmine Ortiz was born in New York City, but grew up in the Pocono Mountains of Pennsylvania. She is a rising junior at the University of Miami, majoring in Musicianship, Artistry Development and Entrepreneurship with minors in Political Science, Songwriting and Music Business. She has been engaged in leadership throughout many areas of campus, such as her work with the Butler Center for Service and Leadership where she served as an ambassador for young Americans in social advocacy and public policy; and as a senator for the Frost School of Music in student government. Having come onto the Miami Model United Nations Team her freshman year, Jasmine has worked as a coordinator for MUN conferences for underserved students in Miami-Dade County and is currently serving as Outreach Chair on the executive board of the team. She also works to serve these communities through her work with the Guitars Over Guns initiative, an after school mentorship program fostering community-building through music. She hopes to provide mentorship and accessible learning opportunities for students she works with, through constructive communication and skill-enhancing activities.
Richard Zhao
University of Toronto
Richard is a recent graduate from the University of Toronto and an aspiring law student. Having been a student himself at MUNI 2015, Richard assumed various roles within the Best Delegate ecosystem serving as the Editor In Chief of the website as well as being a diplomacy fellow in 2018 and the Program Manager of MUNI in 2019. Richard has attended more than 25 conferences notably winning top honors at conferences at Harvard, Oxford, McGill and Columbia. Beyond accolades, he believes that Model UN has left a lasting impact in his life and helped him become more confident, articulate and critical of the world around him. He is incredibly excited to be back in the classroom and cannot wait to meet students from all over the world!
Nicole Arski
McGill University
Having previously served as a diplomacy fellow for MUNI in 2018, Nicole is excited to return to the program for another great summer of teaching. Since her time as a mentor, Nicole has graduated from McGill University, and is an incoming law student at the Schulich School of Law at Dalhousie University. She hopes to one day work in international law, and can envision herself working overseas in Europe. With 10 years of Model UN experience under her belt, Nicole is ready and excited to help students discover their potential and leadership skills!
Naman Patel
Ohio State University
Naman Patel is a rising sophomore at the Ohio State University, double majoring in French and International Relations, with a minor in Philosophy. Having participated in MUN since 2013, he has traveled all over the country participating in Model UN conferences. As the former Head Delegate of his high school team and the current Head Delegate of the Ohio State Model UN team, Naman is passionate about teaching students about the world of MUN. Growing up in India, and moving to the United States in 2010, he has always been passionate about international affairs. In fact he is fluent in 5 languages!
Ashley Weathers
Florida International University
Ashley Weathers is a rising Senior at Florida International University pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Economics with a second degree in International Relations. Ashley is a traveling delegate on the FIU Model United Nations team, as well as a Campus Director for the United Nations Academic Initiatives Millennium Fellowship. With 3 years of Model UN experience, Ashley has attended a total of 12 conferences and has led 3 committees at the FIMUN Conference for middle and high school students. Leading committees on the topics of the Vietnam War, the autonomy of Hong Kong, and the Qatar Gulf Crisis, have allowed Ashley to instruct students on diplomacy and strategic thinking. Ashley’s main focuses within Model UN is fostering productive dialogue, creating genuine friends, and having fun! In addition to her interest in economic development and international relations, she enjoys violin, baking, painting, and cheering on the Tampa Bay Lightning. Ashley is looking forward to engaging with everyone this summer and hopefully making these quarantined days more interesting!
Anya Chew
Ohio State University
Anya Chew is entering her senior year at The Ohio State University where she will be graduating with degrees in Political Science and Security & Intelligence with minors in German and Military History. She served as the Director of Operations for OSUMUN 2020, Ohio State’s high school conference, and was formerly the Deputy of GA Training for the collegiate team. Anya has been a MUN delegate for the past ten years, and currently travels with the Ohio State MUN team to conferences across North America.
Dalton Liggett
McGill University
Dalton Liggett is a third-year History and Political Science student at McGill University in Montreal, Canada. He is very involved with the Model UN community there as a member of their competitive delegation team, and currently serves as the Under-Secretary General Committee Affairs of the McGill University Model United Nations Assembly. Having previously served as a Diplomacy Fellow at the 2019 rendition of the Model United Nations Institute and as a Chair for the Model UN Online Debates (MUNOD), Dalton is extremely excited to see how students will continue to adapt and innovate in an online format at VMUNI. In his spare time, Dalton is a total geek for things ranging from Star Wars to LGBT History to the Aviation industry. He’s passionate about engaging with students not only to improve their public speaking, but also to be able to have fun and learn new things amidst the pandemic! Don’t be afraid to reach out to him at VMUNI 2020!
Erin Lee
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Erin Lee is a rising junior at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill double majoring in Global Studies and Peace, War, & Defense. A Charlotte native, Erin’s MUN experience began in 2016, where she attended the MUNI Diplomat program and then went on to start a high school team. Erin has chaired five General Assembly committees at four different conferences, and at Carolina served as the Director-General of Model United Nations at Chapel Hill (MUNCH) XX. Although she no longer actively competes as a delegate, Erin is passionate about helping students reach their full potential, both in and out of committee. She is incredibly excited to be involved with MUNI and looks forward to meeting everyone this summer!
Stephen Hoffman
Seton Hall University
Stephen Hoffman is a rising senior at Seton Hall University majoring in Political Science and History with a minor in Middle Eastern Studies. He is currently the President of Seton Hall’s Model UN team, and has traveled to every conference the team has attended since his freshman year. In addition, he has staffed multiple conferences as both a chair and a crisis director. Despite not doing Model UN in high school, MUN has consumed all of Stephen’s time in college and he is very excited to work as a Diplomacy Fellow this summer!
Mona Maarabani
McGill University
Mona Maarabani is a student at McGill University studying Theatre, with minors in Indigenous and Medieval studies. As a Montreal native, she speaks both English and French, along with some Arabic, Italian and Spanish. She has been involved in Model United Nations for over five years, having experienced all that it has to offer, most recently as part of McGill’s Delegation Team. She is excited to return to Best Delegate to pass on her knowledge! Outside of MUN, Mona has been an active member in student politics and activities, while remaining particularly engaged in the arts. In addition to VMUNI, she will be spending the summer working on some music and other collaborative projects. In fact, she plans to pursue a career in the film industry, so don’t hesitate to ask her for some movie recommendations!
Anthony Perrins
Ohio State University
Anthony Perrins is a student entering his third year at The Ohio State University, double majoring in International Relations & Diplomacy and Economics, and minoring in Arabic. He grew up in the United Kingdom, where he discovered his passion for Model UN and started competing in conferences as a middle-schooler. Anthony currently serves as the Senior Head Delegate for the Ohio State Model UN team, and also works as the Chief of Staff for OSUMUN – Ohio State’s conference for high school students. Outside of MUN, Anthony enjoys volunteering his time with the Columbus Refugee and Immigration Services, playing Rugby for Ohio State, and working as a university tour guide.
Georgina Kenchington
Georgetown University
Georgina graduated from Georgetown University in May 2018, with Model UN sitting at the heart of both her collegiate experience and the opportunities she’s engaged in since! While studying at Georgetown, Georgina travelled to 25+ conferences as a member of the university’s travel team, and was proud to serve as the team’s Head Delegate her senior year. Georgina also staffed both NAIMUN and NCSC, Georgetown’s high school and collegiate Model UN conferences respectively, and a number of Model UN conferences abroad, including in India and China. Since her graduation, Georgina has actively engaged in both global Model UN and in the international development field, stemming from her passion for Model UN in both high school and college! Georgina spent a year working for a Model UN organization in India, and most recently was serving in the Peace Corps in Thailand. Having staffed MUNI in both 2017 and 2018, Georgina is beyond excited to be back with Best Delegate and to be able to share her enthusiasm for MUN, teaching, and international relations this summer!
Jillian Bendlak
George Washington University
Jill Bendlak is an incoming senior at George Washington University double majoring in International Affairs and Political Science. Jill has been involved in MUN since her junior year of high school. Previously, Jill was an Assistant Director, Director, and Under-Secretary-General at NHSMUN, the largest high school MUN conference in North America. Jill has trained high school and middle school MUN teams as Director of the GWU Program on International Education. Outside of MUN, Jill enjoys dancing with GW Balance and is a member of DPE Professional Foreign Service Sorority. This is her second year working as a Diplomacy Fellow and she is very excited to work with new and returning students at VMUNI.
Join these amazing Model United Nations Mentors at the Virtual MUN Institute, happening now!
