Model Delegation

For incoming Student Government Association (SGA) President Azell Francis, the Model United Nations (MUN) Program has “challenged her to think bigger” as she develops a deeper understanding of critical international issues that include environmental problems, economic plight, health conditions, humanitarian efforts, weapons proliferation and natural resources depletion.

Founded in 1972, the Georgia Southern Model UN provides students of all ages with the opportunity to emulate United Nations proceedings and to examine contemporary global concerns. Participants may represent one of more than 190 countries around the world as delegates to the UN or they may choose to represent a nongovernmental organization such as Greenpeace.

Department of Political Science Chair Barry Balleck, Ph.D., directs the program and says when students are assigned a country in order to learn about its foreign and domestic policies they “essentially become diplomats” to represent that nation’s point of view.

Francis, who is entering her sixth year at Georgia Southern, first participated in MUN in high school in Trinidad and Tobago and applied to join the program her first year in Statesboro. At the time it was unheard of for a freshman to make the team. “I was honored and graciously accepted the offer to be a part of the greatest MUN university delegation,” said Francis. “I haven’t looked back since… five competitions and counting.”

During its 42-year history, the University’s Model UN has created a legacy of excellence at the National Model UN Conference held each year in New York City. “In terms of longevity, Georgia Southern has one of the longest-standing programs in the United States,” said Balleck. “Through the past several years we have been recognized in the 40-Year and Above category and there are only about three or four schools in that category.”

The University’s program is also one of the most successful collegiate MUN programs, consistently winning top awards at the world’s largest Model UN conference. Competing against more than 5,000 students from schools in Asia, Europe, Latin America and Africa, the 20-member Georgia Southern delegation was among just 22 that earned the Outstanding Delegation rank at the national conference. That was the fifth time in six years that the University was chosen as an Outstanding Delegation. Georgia Southern won other top awards, including for delegate preparation, position-paper writing and individual committee participation.

“A secretary-general is chosen every year to the National Model United Nations Conference and among those thousands of students, I think one of the real points of pride is that two of the last six secretary-generals have been from Georgia Southern with the last one chosen this year,” noted Balleck. “I think that speaks very highly of our program. We have a rich history in New York and that gives Georgia Southern a lot of visibility both nationally and internationally.”

MUN at Georgia Southern is part of the Political Science and International Studies curricula but it is open to all undergraduate and graduate students, regardless of their major. Members of Model UN form committees, caucus and debate, and negotiate solutions to global problems. The program also enhances writing, research, public speaking and analytical thinking skills.

“Through MUN, you truly begin to recognize that many of today’s challenges can only be solved through global solutions… in so doing, you are elevated from being a citizen of your country and begin to embrace your call to be a citizen of the world,” said Francis.

In addition to preparing for the New York conference, Georgia Southern’s Model UN delegation conducts three conferences during the academic year, one in the fall and two in the spring. The conferences, two for middle schoolers and one for high schoolers, attract more than 1,200 students to the University.

As an Engineering Management graduate student, Francis said much of what she has gained in MUN will help her in her new role in the Student Government Association. “I think most importantly is the understanding that as SGA President, you serve as the voice of all students, which calls for you to do your best to represent that voice accurately. Similarly, as a delegate for MUN, once you have been assigned a State, you have to put aside your personal opinions and represent the opinions of the State, as if it were your own.” – Sandra Bennett