!!EXTRA, EXTRA!!

Please join me in congratulating six UCCS students who won awards at the recent 2005 Rocky Mountain Model United Nations conference held at the University of Denver, April 7-9, 2005.

Heather Mc Afee          Best Delegate Award                            Russia              United Nations Environment Programme           

Heather Mc Afee          Delegate's Choice Award                      Russia              United Nations Environment Programme           

Tisha Casida                 Commendable Delegate Award              Congo               United Nations Environment Programme           

Elizabeth Chapman        Commendable Delegate Award              Congo               General Assembly 1^st Committee

Rick Costa                    Best Country Research Paper Award     Russia              General Assembly 1^st Committee

Maggie Gewiss             Best Country Research Paper Award     Paraguay          Commission on Human Rights

Ken Houston                 Best Country Research Paper Award     Ukraine            General Assembly 1^st Committee

Over 100 students from ten colleges and universities participated in the 2005 Rocky Mountain Model United Nations conference. The competition included teams from University of Denver, University of Colorado – Boulder, Colorado State University- Pueblo, Metro State College of Denver, University of Wyoming, University of Utah, Knox College, University of New Mexico and the University of Tulsa. The UCCS team was comprised of 16 students representing seven countries (UCCS team assignments listed below).

Model United Nations is an authentic simulation of the United Nations (UN) General Assembly, UN Security Council, UN Commission on Human Rights, UN Environment Programme and other multilateral bodies within the UN system. Students step into the shoes of ambassadors of UN member states, from the Congo to Ukraine, to debate current issues on the organization's vast agenda. Students, better known as "delegates" in Model UN, prepared draft resolutions, plotted strategies, negotiated with supporters and adversaries, resolved conflicts, and navigated the UN's rules of procedure-all in the interest of mobilizing international cooperation to resolve problems that affect almost every country on earth. Before playing out their ambassadorial roles in Model United Nations conferences, students participating in P SC 453 Model United Nations studied the United Nations system, conducted extensive research on the particular global problems and their country’s position, and practiced speeches through in-class mock simulations of the conference. The course is taught by Professor Keilbach each Spring Semester. Model UN "delegates" look closely at the needs, aspirations, and foreign policy of the country they represent at the event and the problems were drawn from today's headlines. The issues debated in this year’s simulation included:

• Preventing terrorists from creating or acquiring chemical and biological weapons
• Disarmament of weapons of mass destruction
• Rights of refugees and internally displaced persons
• Implications of the struggle against terrorism on human rights
• Climate change
• Environmental trade-offs of nuclear power
• Reform of the Security Council

…and other related topics.

Successful delegates remained in character throughout the three-day simulation. Criteria for the in-conference awards (Best Delegate, Delegate’s Choice and Honorable Mention) included professionalism of the delegate, polished diplomatic skills, and a deep knowledge of the each country’s position on substantive issue areas -- the keys to top-level performance at the simulation. Criteria for the Country Research Paper Awards included accuracy in representing the country’s position on the designated issues debated during the session (Country Research Papers were submitted one week in advance of the conference). All sixteen participating UCCS students now join a prestigious list of diplomats who made their diplomatic debut at a Model United Nations conference including the current Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice, and former Secretary of State, Madeline Albright.

Please join me in congratulating our students for their success at this year’s RMMUN conference!

Sincerely,

Patricia Keilbach, Ph.D.

Faculty Advisor - UCCS Model United Nations Program

Patricia M. Keilbach, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor of Political Science

University of Colorado at Colorado Springs

1420 Austin Bluffs Pkwy COH1

Colorado Springs, CO 80933-7150

Tel: (719) 262-4043

Fax: (719) 262-4558

pkeilbach@uccs.edu

www.uccs.edu/pkeilbac/