Nov. 2, 2022

Two earn top honors at Model UN

Upper St. Clair High School students authored two of the top three Outstanding Position Papers within their respective committees at the 2022 Model UN High School Conference on Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2022, at the University of Pittsburgh. Junior Shiven Verma, U.N. Security Council (Sweden), placed first and freshman Sara Gillespie, U.N. Environmental Programme (Canada) finished second.

In total, 20 Upper St. Clair students were among the nearly 300 who participated in the Model UN Conference.

“Comprised mostly of freshmen and sophomores, Upper St. Clair's delegation had a fine showing and represented both themselves and the district quite well,” Tom Yochum, gifted education teacher, said.

Model UN, a simulation of the sessions of the United Nations, provides an opportunity for high school students to apply their studies to real-world contexts and practice diplomacy, negotiating, and resolution writing.

The 2022 Model UN competition included the following seven committees: Crisis; Ad Hoc; Security Council; U.N. Environment Programme; Disarmament and International Security; U.N. Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO); and North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).

Next up for the Upper St. Clair students is the 18th annual High School Model European Union on Wednesday, Dec. 7, 2022, at the University of Pittsburgh. Playing the roles of presidents and prime ministers, students spend a day engaged in intense negotiations over conflicting issues about the European Union. The objective is to simulate a specific European Council meeting that focuses on recent current events.