WSU Model UN | Photo provided by Dr. Vaughn Shannon, Faculty Adviser, WSU Model UN
At the 27th Annual Dayton Model UN Conference (DAYMUNC) eight Wright State students won top honors for Outstanding Delegates.
DAYMUNC was held on Feb. 7-8, hosting a number of different regional university teams. Students represented different countries in several simulated committees of the United Nations.
Team wins big
Isabel Pappaterra, senior, was awarded an Honorable Mention certificate as Mexico in Peace Building Commission (PBC).
“Receiving Honorable Mention was a privilege and helped affirm all of the hard work I had done over the last two months,” said Pappaterra. “Representing a state that doesn’t have a lot of policy on a specific subject can be difficult, which is why it’s important to look at the policy they do have with different perspectives. I loved collaborating with other students and essentially solving the world’s problems in the span of a conference. The need for world leaders to come together and work toward solutions to global issues is more important now than ever.”
Pappaterra is a major in rehabilitation services with two minors in Spanish and deaf studies. She is also working toward a certificate in geographic information systems.
Daniel Bowman, four-year member of Model UN, won as Russia in General Assembly (GA).
Bowman is a senior majoring in international studies with a focus on diplomacy and peace.
This was his first win since joining, according to Bowman, he is proud.
“To win in [GA] was my personal highlight to date. The Russian Federation is not an easy nation to represent, half of the delegates are trained not to speak or work with you. For two days I competed and was my best self, never tiring, never stopping. The conference was amazing and was one of my favorite moments [in] my life,” said Bowman.
Leah Dryden, senior in political science, won Outstanding Paper and Honorable Mention Plaque for her role as United States in Security Council.
“The issue we had to solve was a crisis between the United States and Iran. This could be very stressful at times and empowered me to become a leader in committee and be more assertive when I was brought up. Overall, this conference tested me as a delegate and I’m very thankful for the skills I took away from it,” said Dryden.
This is her second year in Model UN and fourth time at a conference, Dryden usually worked on humanitarian committees.
“My favorite part about Model UN [is] the knowledge I’ve gained, and the community we have built as a team. I’ve been able to represent different countries on a wide range of different topics and committees and this has furthered my knowledge a great deal. I’m very blessed to have the friendships Model UN has given me,” said Dryden.
‘Model UN is teaching young leaders how to respect each other’s differences’
Members also had the opportunity to work with high school students.
“They were all so excited, willing to participate and receptive to the advice the college students would give them; it was such a pleasure having them! I was extremely proud of my student, she accomplished so much in a day and a half and I’m excited to see what she does in the future. Model UN is teaching young leaders how to respect each other’s differences, but still cooperate in resolving pressing world matters,” said Pappaterra.
According to Bowman, the experience through Model UN helped in building skills in leadership and befriending people from Ecuador, Russia, Belgium, Serbia and Nigeria.
“The world may be big, but it’s also small. Even though we are all different, from different nations and have different languages, we are all human in the end,” said Bowman.
Other students’ accomplishments included:
- Gloria Pappaterra, who won as Iran in PBC
- Maribel Santoyo Ariza, who won Honorable Mention Plaque as Brazil in GA
- B Lenz, who won Honorable Mention Plaque as Egypt in PBC
Honorable Mention certificates were awarded to Connor Morrow as Saudi Arabia in GA and Amani Wilson as Russia in PBC.
- “‘Hunger Games’ Musical Parody” Set to be “Once-in-a-Lifetime”
- Alpha Xi Delta Hosts Yearly Roller Disco Event for the Children
- Wright Venture Allows Students to Present Innovative Ideas
