This past weekend, George Mason hosted its 14^th annual Model United Nations conference. The conference, which included 268 students from 11 different schools, was one of the largest ever. The conference lasted from 6-9 PM on Friday night and resumed from 9-4 PM on Saturday.

Secretary General Christina Christianson opened up the conference with a bang of her gavel after a speech by new Assistant Superintendent of Schools Dr. Gloria Guba. The Secretary General, along with Under-Secretary General John Tonkowich and the rest of the club, organized the entire event, further aided by co-sponsors Mrs. Chinchek and Mr. Pikrallidas. 

This year’s conference included a number of familiar committees, such as World Health Organization (WHO) directed by Juliana Pearson and Michael Welsh, as well as a new committee directed by Katie Davis called Russian Cabinet. Topics ranged from computer virus terrorism in the Commission on Science and Technology headed by Megan Baer, to missile defense systems in the Disarmament Committee, directed by Evan Cunningham. In Rahoul Gupta’s committee, the Unitd Nations Environmental Programme, the debate was centered around global warning and sustainable development.

Highlights of the event included a major conspiracy developed by James Dzierwa with help from club president Liz Twentyman who was the director of the Security Council. Further aide came from the director of the National Security Council, Josh Singer, who was arrested and forcefully ejected from his committee by the stage crew doubling as military police. 

Other assistance for this conference came from new and old club members alike. Those who were new to the club acted as pages, carrying notes from delegation to delegation and swamping the computer lab with new resolutions to be typed and copied. Kaitlin Bottock, Arya Namboordiri, and Brandon Greene were only a few of the pages who worked most, if not all, of the conference. In addition, stage crew members Teddy White, Ben Welsh, and Liz Torla helped keep the auditorium open for the novice committee, the Social, Cultural, and Humanitarian Committee, which was co-directed by Tammy Ashworth and Jonathan Costa. 

The conference raised over $4,000 for the club, which plans to attend a conference at McGill University in Montreal, Canada in November. "It was very successful. The only complaint we got was about one crowded room, and if that’s all there was to complain about, then that’s great," said Mrs. Chinchek. 

There were awards given to schools based upon knowledge of the students’ assigned country and their ability to stick to the country’s policy on each issue. After individual awards were given, awards for schools were given on the overall performance of their delegation. Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology took away the Secretary General’s award for best large delegation, with Yorktown High School right behind them with the Under Secretary’s award. South Lakes High School left with the award for small delegations, having only about five members with them. 

It was a very hard-working and yet rewarding weekend for participating members of the club. As club member and committee director Jonathan Costa said, "I learned a lot about how to interact with other delegates. Also, the club has grown immensely from last year, it seems we have a lot more people interested. It was an enlightening experience."

The Model UN club, along with AIDS awareness sold refreshments during the conference. The club donated a total of $100 to an AIDS in Africa fund and an additional $100 to a fund for the victims of the attack on Sept. 11. From left to right: Josh Singer, Teddy Smith, Ben Welsh, James Dzierwa, Liz Torla, Galen Messing, Mark Williams, Maggie Davis, and a friend.	Things got a little crazy towards the end of the conference. Here, techies Ben Welsh and Teddy Smith arrest the head of SOCHUM (the Social, Cultural, and Humanitarian committee) while director Tammy Ashworth laughs after a long days work. Students from that committee who attend other schools watch as the GW student is escorted from the auditorium.