Model (UN) Students

Organized by high school students for their peers, the Southeastern High School Model United Nations Conference is a unique model: teenagers run the conference by writing topic papers and chairing their own committees. Known for its well-developed topics and comprehensive debate platform, SHSMUN features delegates who participate in debates in more than 10 committees, ranging from Disarmament to SHSMUN’s own General Committee.

 

SHSMUN is held annually during the weekend before Thanksgiving, this year at the Marriott and Convention Center. This year’s conference hosted over 20 schools from Chattanooga and the surrounding area, including teams from Memphis, Murfreesboro, and Alabama. Over 70 countries (delegations) were represented by 640 delegates during the three-day conference, held November 18-20.

 

SHSMUN’s delegates are expected to “bring their best game by researching their countries’ positions, delivering speeches, and writing thorough resolutions that deliver solutions to their committee’s issues," according to SHMUN.org.

 

GPS sent 32 delegates representing three nations: Kazakhstan, Senegal, and Djibouti. Seventeen of the 175 (10 percent) draft resolutions submitted before the conference and put on the docket were from GPS, even though the school represented only five percent of the delegations participating.

 

Winning the Best Delegate Award for her committee from the Kazakhstan delegation was senior Ritika Modi (Social and Humanitarian Committee). As a result of her Best Delegate designations, Modi is eligible to attend the National High School Model UN (NHSMUN) conference in New York City in March.

 

Awarded Honorable Mentions from the Kazakhstan delegation were juniors Olivia Combs (Special Political Committee) and Amal Ali (Legal Committee) and sophomore Kamal Patri (UNESCO). Advisor Glen Vey was especially enthusiastic about the number of freshmen who participated in the conference, as this bodes well for future conferences.

 

Senior Meher Memon served as the Editor-in-Chief of the Digital Press Corps (DPC), the journalism arm of the conference. Komal Patri will serve at next year’s conference as the Chair of the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) committee.

 

Several Middle School students from GPS assisted as pages during the weekend, delivering notes between delegates and committees to assist in the business of the conference. Many of these students will go on to join Model UN in their high school years.