In November, 14 students from the University of Arkansas competed at the International
Model United Nations conference held in Erfurt, Germany, and left with five top honors.
The students, mainly from the Sam M. Walton College of Business and the J. William
Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences, are majoring in economics, international studies,
political science and biochemistry. At the conference, the Arkansas teams represented
the United Kingdom and Bolivia delegations and competed with 40 other colleges and
universities with some 450 students from around the world.
The conference features four committees holding proceedings. Students, awarded for
their efforts by these committees and their peers, may receive outstanding as the
top award, distinguished as second place or an honorable mention as third place.
Each student from the U of A was recognized! Of the 14 students participating, 11
were new to the competition, yet still earned five of the top awards at the conference.
- Outstanding Position Paper Award for Research:
- Mackenzie Mollner
- Sydney Kincaid
- Outstanding Delegate Award to Bolivia on the Human Rights Council:
- Sydney Foster
- Leen Samman
- Outstanding Delegate Award to Bolivia on the United Nations Environmental Assembly:
- Mackenzie Mollner
- Sydney Kincaid
- Outstanding Delegation Award for the United Kingdom team:
- Iana Ruheta
- Daisy Rehbock
- Lily Raccasi
- Sergio Lopez
- Nathan Martin
- Erica Jones
- Mackenzie Mollner
- Sydney Kincaid
- Outstanding Delegation Award for Bolivia:
- Brayden Hartwig
- Jackson Walton
- Steicy Lopez
- Brady Voss
- Sydney Foster
- Leen Samman
To prepare for the competition, students began researching in March of last year,
continuing through the summer. In the fall semester, students refined their research
eight times before finalizing it in October. Students also honed their public speaking
capabilities and networking skills needed for the conference and for their careers.
“Very few of our students have any experience in an endeavor such as the Model United
Nations nor have many of them travelled internationally. I teach this class as a personal
as well as professional development class. Their research, public speaking and networking
skills are greatly enhanced,” said Robert Stapp, professor of economics and the faculty
advisor for the IMUN initiative. “By the time the conference is held, our novices
have tremendous confidence and are ready for this daunting challenge. I have marveled
at their evolution from timid public speakers to confident statesmen capable of speaking
to an audience of over a hundred people articulating compelling and convincing speeches
without the use of any notes.”
The Arkansas group faced teams from elite schools including Stanford University, Pepperdine
University, University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth, Tel Aviv University and many
more. Students came from Europe, South America, Germany, Philippines and Japan.
The U of A has been represented at the International Model United Nations conference
since 2011 and has earned 89 of the top awards during this period.
“I am very proud to say that the students at the University of Arkansas are equal
to the best in the world. Since 2011, they have proven this every year in the NMUN
Conferences held not only in America, but around the world,” Stapp said. “Our students
have gone on to further their educations at the London School of Economics, Oxford,
Cambridge and Chicago while others have entered law schools such as Stanford, Virginia
and Duke among many others. The University of Arkansas can be justly proud of their
accomplishments.”
