Model UN Gives Future Leaders Opportunities to Excel

Valparaiso University’s Gregg Johnson, Ph.D., professor of political science and international relations, is giving students a chance to experience the world of international discourse and global politics with the Model United Nations course. Students in this program step into the shoes of real governments, debate real-world issues, and learn about the complexities of negotiation, diplomacy, and seeing hot-button topics from the perspective of others.

Thanks in large part to generous support from the College of Arts and Sciences Dean’s Fund, Valpo students have the opportunity to put these skills to use at the annual American Model United Nations conference in Chicago at the end of the course. One such participant, Abby Zombik ’20, an Outstanding Delegate Award winner, hopes to take the passions she discovered taking part in Model UN to make a difference with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

“Learning the proper way to act in a diplomatic setting while engaging with others and working through disputes is an incredibly important skill for anyone with aspirations towards working for any form of international body,” Abby says.
The American Model United Nations Conference in Chicago takes place annually in late November. For students, the event is four long, hard days of making connections and engaging in debate with fellow Model United Nations participants from across the country and around the globe. During the 2021 event, Valparaiso University students represented Greece.

“The students were excellent representatives of our assigned country and of Valparaiso University,” Professor Johnson says. “They debated, negotiated, organized, lobbied, and occasionally even slept during four days of intense diplomatic discussions. It was an absolute pleasure to teach them.”

While Professor Johnson was not the first professor to bring Model UN to the University, it was he, along with Amy Atchison, Ph.D., an associate professor of political science and international relations, who realized how a revived program could benefit Valpo students.

“We went through the process of looking through the catalog, asking ourselves what we were missing and what students weren’t getting now,” Professor Johnson says. “One of those things was Model UN.”

Valpo’s Model UN course consists of three major components. During the first third of the class, students learn how the United Nations functions as an organization, including the role of international law, treaties, and how the UN influences, or fails to influence, the behaviors of countries and non-state actors. Second, the class researches the country they will be representing at the Chicago conference. The potential countries for a class to represent can vary wildly in terms of political stances and global prominence, ranging from powerful western European nations to smaller, more obscure countries, and countries whose ideologies may seem completely alien or even uncomfortable to a western observer.

“Probably the most interesting years are the ones where we represent what I would call international pariah states,” Professor Johnson says. “We represented Iran and Syria a few years back, so students have learned about the politics of those countries. When they were in the role of Iran they had to represent the Iranian government, so it’s really an opportunity for students to put themselves in the shoes of another country, to learn the finer points of diplomacy.”
Brianna Ares ’22 noted how learning to work with others and appreciate their perspectives in Model UN has helped her academic growth.

“I learned how to take in others’ ideas, even if they might not be ideas I would agree with,” Brianna says. “Model UN showed me how sometimes it is not only what one personally thinks about a choice, but also how choices can affect more people than one originally expects.”

In the last third of the class, students prepare to apply what they have learned about the United Nations and international policy by preparing to serve on specific committees at the conference. These can vary from committees dealing with international peace and security issues, to committees discussing the global energy problem and the international economy.

In addition to learning about diplomacy and different perspectives, students gain insight into the practicalities of politics. William Bakke ’23, a double-major in political science and physics, had the opportunity to participate in the Model UN’s International Atomic Energy Agency, an experience that gave him a unique insight into the role of subject experts when it comes to policy-making.

“When it comes to politics, people often seek the advice of experts so they can say ‘the expert told me these things, and I plan on following what the expert told me’ when they want votes,” William says. “However, once they get those votes, they immediately ignore the experts and get a lot of things wrong, which is what happened to me once we were at the conference.”

The practical skills and insights students gain through the course is one of the main factors that has kept Professor Johnson passionate about the program.

“Political science can be a little bit nebulous,” Professor Johnson says. “The courses where I’m teaching students clear and concrete skills that will help them later in life are my statistics class, which is pure math and numbers, and on the clear other end of the spectrum is Model UN, which is pure diplomacy.”

Preparations for an event later this year are underway, and Valparaiso University has already been assigned a country to represent.

“We are excited to represent Germany at the next event” Professor Johnson says. “A special thanks to the Dean’s Fund, Dean Jon Kilpinen, and our alumni who help fund the program. The students and I truly appreciate their support.”
The Model UN course is just one of the many opportunities for students to bring their skills and knowledge to a broader experience. To learn more about how Valparaiso University’s program is giving future leaders the opportunity to excel, visit valpo.edu/political-science.