A group of students from the University of the Ozarks’ Model United Nations Class had the opportunity to put their classroom lessons into practice recently when they attended the National Model United Nations Conference in New York City, April 10-14.
The students included, sophomore Gustavo Alejandro Lugo Medrano of Diriamba, Nicaragua; junior Paulina Lukini Magloire of Port-au-Prince, Haiti; senior Raquel Ramos Soriano of San Salvador, El Salvador; junior Mileidy Espinoza of Santa Cruz, Costa Rica; senior Colby Dorcély of Port-au-Prince, Haiti; senior Jose Arias of Perez Zeledon, Costa Rica; junior Christopher Perez Fallas of San Rafael Abajo, Costa Rica; and sophomore Marifer Mendoza of Danville, Ark. Dr. Chris Sarver, assistant professor of political science, led the group.
The U of O students were selected to represent the country of Bhutan. They wrote working papers in coordination with other students and also took part in forums and meetings addressing current global issues. They honed their skills in diplomacy, negotiation, critical thinking, compromise, public speaking, writing, and research.
The group also had the opportunity to meet the 77th President of the UN General Assembly, Csaba Korosi, and visit the UN National Headquarters.
During their free time, the students visited Times Square, Manhattan, the Brooklyn Bridge, the Empire State Building and Grand Central Terminal.
“This was my second time participating in a Model UN conference, however, it was the first time I was representing a country,” said Lugo. “I am happy I was able to meet different people from all around the world. It was a good networking experience, but also, a great time to practice my public speaking and conflict resolution skills. In addition to this, having the opportunity to be in the United Nations Headquarters was such a dream. Imagine getting to sit where actual diplomats make the world decisions. It was a priceless experience.”
The trip was funded in part by the Clayton G. Russell Memorial Endowment for Political Science. The Clayton Fund was established in 2000 by the Mary I. Rogers Trust to broaden the scope of the political science program.
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