By Christina Leslie | Correspondent

The Model United Nations club of Notre Dame High School continued its winning ways by taking home seven awards from the recent PhilMUN 2018 competition in Philadelphia. The competition, conducted by the student civic engagement organization IDIA (Institute for Domestic and International Affairs, Inc.) allowed the Lawrenceville teens to exercise their public speaking and arbitration skills against schools from around the region as they attempted to find solutions to real-world challenges.

The Philadelphia Model U.N., held March 1-4 in the City of Brotherly Love, had as its theme “Identity in the Global Age” and focused upon problems faced by the peoples of Latin America and the Caribbean. Club members represented different countries and were divided into sub-committees which examined such topics as politics, science and technology, small arms traffic, sustainability development and indigenous rights. Students wrote papers on the subjects, debated the topics with their fellow competitors and created resolutions shared with the entire body.

The club is moderated by Notre Dame history teacher, Courtney Ashe; psychology teacher, Peggy Wroblewski, and Cindy Bannon, English and media teacher. Ashe explained the value of the program to the students.

“It is a really great way to be exposed to different points of view,” she said. “Catholic school can be homogenous, and this contest gives them the chance to interact with different schools and students of different backgrounds. It also gives them experience in public speaking.”

Notre Dame students winners in the competition were: most improved delegation (Sweden, Commission on Science and Technology): Lucy Driscoll and Cate Buecker; outstanding delegation (Belize, Commission on Science and Technology): Alex Gruson  and Matt Dauden; distinguished delegation (Belize, U.N. Alliance of Civilizations): Seamus Meagher and Chris Kuran; outstanding delegation (Cambodia, U.N. Department of Political Affairs): Molly Hart and Grant Schwartz; best position paper (Sweden, UNESCO): Josh Kaduthodil and Zara Nelson; best proposition paper (Sweden, U.N. Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues): Ricky Suta and Sam Ferris, and outstanding delegation (Sweden, World Trade Organization): Evan Schlosser.

Student competitors reflected on the experience and realized the skills they sharpened would be used as they moved forward in college and life.

Grant Schwartz, a junior in Notre Dame, called the Model U.N. “a fun academic competition, but also a useful learning experience. I will carry the skills of public speaking, civil debate, compromise, and hard work that I have learned from the conferences I have attended for the rest of my life,” he continued. “Identity in the Global Age meant that while we all want the best for everyone in the world, we must also recognize that not everyone has the same culture and therefore, the solutions or laws that work in our home country may not work for everyone.”

NDHS Senior, Kara Yannotta, said, “The news portrays all of the negative aspects of society but it is important to remember all of the wonderful things occurring as well. Whether it’s helping provide education for refugees, achieving free and fair elections or helping to deter illicit organ trade, Model U.N. provides high school students a platform to become aware of issues in the world and collaborate with others to solve them.”

Junior Ricky Suta shared his global view of the event, saying, “Model UN offers an invaluable opportunity for me to have a deeper understanding of pressing issues and cultures throughout the world. Being immersed in different issues with a multitude of different opinions has increased my ability to work with others and to compromise. My participation in Model UN has largely led me to possibly pursue a career in human rights or cultural preservation.”