This year, over fifty Fredonia students participated in the 70th Annual Gannon University Model United Nations Conference alongside hundreds of other high school students in this interstate simulation.
Each delegation wrote a position paper, and this year we submitted sixteen position papers. Since the first week of school, the Model UN team has stayed after school every Friday to work on their position papers. Their dedication has been exceptional and their hard work has certainly paid off. Only three awards are given in this category, and Jenna Truby and Patrick Cotter’s position paper was awarded second place. This is a major achievement.
Several Fredonia students were recognized for their outstanding effort in representing their countries at the conference. Ava Hartung, Andrew Cowan, and Luca Gullo won best delegate awards for their work in GA 1 (Child Labor). This is a back-to-back win, as they won best delegate awards last year. Ava Kehrer secured a second-place best delegate award for her work on the Crisis Committee. In addition to being recognized for their position paper, Jenna Truby and Patrick Cotter were recognized as third-place best delegates for their work on GA 3 (South American Economies). Rebecca Lash’s leadership on the Security Council was acknowledged, as she was awarded third-place best delegate. Greta Frerichs, Angelina May, and Joella Bauza received honorable mentions for their diplomacy and efforts in GA 2 (Wildfires).
Last year, Gannon added a new committee: the Press Corp. Students develop a pen name, attend committee meetings, post updates on social media, and write press releases and articles. Writing as a reporter for The New Yorker, Alex Weiss received a third-place best correspondent award.
Finally, Fredonia won second place for Overall Best Delegation. This award recognized the work of all the students who attend the weekly meetings here at school and performed at their best at the conference.
A big thank you to Lindsey Moon and Christina Donovan who served as chaperones at this year’s conference. We’d also like to recognize this year’s seniors, many of whom have participated in Model UN all four years of their high school careers. Their leadership, dedication, and determination were especially evident during the years when the pandemic affected how Model UN functioned. We are extremely grateful for all the support this organization receives from parents, students, and the community, and we are looking forward to next year when Fredonia High School will celebrate 30 years of Model UN participation.
Thank you,
Pat Newell & Tom Donovan
Model UN Coaches