Here at Best Delegate, we are so excited for the Summer 2019 Model United Nations Institute! It’s going to be an incredible summer filled with diplomacy, learning, new friends, tons of fun, and so much more. Today, we’d like to introduce the staff of this year’s MUN Institute! They are the best and most inspiring MUN leaders, coming from some of the top MUN teams on the North American collegiate circuit. Read on to learn more!
Curan VanDerWielen is a student at Clark University. He decided to return for a second summer as a diplomacy fellow because one of his favorite things about Model UN is learning both soft and hard skills. They’ve helped him become a successful and driven student, and he feel it’s important to help others develop these skills so they too can succeed. As Curan puts it: “As a diplomacy fellow, I get a chance to help others develop, and I’m very excited to do so again this summer!” Curan is a Richard Traina Scholar at Clark and is the Secretary-General of ClarkMUN X.
Rebecca Pfeiffer studies at Fordham University. Her favorite MUN memory is competing at WorldMUN in Madrid, Spain. Rebecca met delegates from around the world and engaged in substantive debate to come up with the most effective solutions possible. Additionally, participating in an EU committee in Spain made the experience even more meaningful. Fun fact about Rebecca: she has been a nationally competitive fencer for 11 years!
Jamey Battle studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara. MUN has played an important role in Jamey’s college career. She has met some of her best friends and she has grown professionally and personally. As a residential counselor, she wants to help others who are interested in MUN to grow their abilities and their self-confidence. Jamey was the Secretary-General of SBIMUN X and helped to facilitate the conference’s move from campus to a beach-front venue.
Jillian Bendlak is a student at George Washington University. Jillian’s favorite MUN memory was chairing a committee on transnational organized crime this past March. She spent a lot of time working on the background guide and preparing for the committee, so chairing was a rewarding and fun experience. Jillian loves traveling so she is excited for the opportunity to teach across the country. She also trains the award-winning GWU Model UN team throughout the year!
Albert Gunnison attends McGill University. Albert’s favorite MUN memory is passing a resolution at his first ever MUN conference in Beijing. He hopes to become a better leader and team player through working with incredibly talented diplomacy fellows whose skills and interest overlap significantly with his own. While he knows a few diplomacy fellows already, he hopes to make some new friends and learn more about their perspectives on MUN, which will have a positive impact on him as a MUN leader in his community. In his free-time, Albert runs a movie review blog!
Nicholaus Griesemer studies at the Indiana University, Kelley School of Business. As a residential counselor he hopes to apply his skills in community development and leadership that he developed as a resident assistant at IU to a challenging and new environment. He is excited to connect with students from different backgrounds and grow as a scholar and leader alongside them. Nicholaus is a Provost Scholar at Indiana University.
Joshua Lewis is a student at the University of California, Berkeley. Joshua’s favorite MUN memory came after competing in his first conference. After finishing the last committee session of the conference, his delegation teammates met in their head delegate’s room for what was described as a “surprise secret ceremony.” When all of the new delegates arrived in the room, they were surprised with glasses of sparkling cider and participated in delegation toasts. Going around the room, every member of UC Berkeley’s delegation gave a speech on what the conference and the team meant to them. It was a memorable experience as it introduced Josh to a lot of delegation members that he now considers family. Fun fact about Josh: he is the youngest delegate to California’s Democratic Party.
Piper Womelsdorf studies at the Ohio State University. MUN has been the most fulfilling part of her college experience so far and the position of diplomacy fellow is a way for her to continue that involvement throughout the summer. She is excited to not only help teach others how to be better delegates, but also learn to become a better delegate and head delegate herself. Additionally, it has always been a personal goal of Piper’s to be able to work and travel at the same time so she’s really looking forward to that opportunity with MUNI! Fun fact about Piper: she speaks German!
Bob Brown studies at Michigan State University. This summer, he wants his students to feel comfortable and confident running their own conference or club. In particular he wants them to be able to trust others when they lead—and know when to ask for help. Bob was the secretary-general of MSUMUN XIX and has won awards for research and debate inside and outside of MUN. Fun fact about Bob: he studied abroad in Brussels, Belgium!
Alexis Knoebel attends Cornell University. Alexis’s favorite MUN memory is her first midnight crisis. As she puts it: “ it was so thrilling to be thrown from the order of debate into the heart of crisis itself—seeing, in times of great need and peril, countries can truly put aside their differences for the betterment of the world.” Alexis is also the captain of the the Cornell varsity polo team.
Dalton Liggett attends McGill University. He has always been passionate about both Model United Nations and about teaching. Working for MUNI is where these two amazing fields of involvement merge together. He started MUN at age 14, and he can’t wait to be able to pass on the mentorship that he received to the next generation of MUNers! Dalton has won an award at all but one of the many conferences he has attended, including 7 “Best Delegate” or first place finishes.
Madeleine Northfield studies at McGill University. Madeline was a diplomacy fellow at MUNI 2018 and found it uniquely rewarding. She worked with many amazing students and was able to help students develop their public speaking and MUN skills. She wanted to come back this summer to continue doing that and be able to offer even more experience to students this summer. Madeline is the head delegate of the McGill University MUN team.
Jack Korologos attends Georgetown University. Jack’s favorite MUN memory is his first time coaching a freshmen delegate and seeing them win best delegate for the first time in their college career. After the award was announced he ran down and hugged him right in the middle of the closing ceremonies. Jack once won $700 in &pizza credit each for accidentally showing up in the background of the Michael Cohen hearing eating their pizza!
Logan Smith is a student at the University of Miami. Logan wanted to return to MUNI as a Diplomacy Fellow because he loved the experience he had last summer engaging with students. Students who attend MUNI are among the best and brightest young people he has met, and he loves being able to see the shift in students from feeling lost in debate, to seeing them begin to express own their ideas and their skills. Logan has only visited one foreign country: Mongolia!
Mustafa Hassoun is an alumnus of Emory University. Mustafa’s favorite MUN memory is rather a collection of memories making so many different friends from a variety of schools across the country. His friendships have been formed, developed, and strengthened traveling to MUN conferences, hosting Model United Nations at Emory, and even as a Diplomacy Fellow for Best Delegate. Now, because of MUN, he has a network of friends across the world doing awesome work that he can rely on. Mustafa was a Dean’s Scholar at Emory University and, starting in September, he will be Gregoire Fellow at the University of Washington School of Law.
Saranyan Uthayakumar is a student at the University of California, Berkeley. He is an alumnus of the MUN Institute, and says that his time in the program before his sophomore year of high school was one of the most meaningful high school experiences he had. Not only did it help develop his skills in MUN, but it also helped him make friends from all over the country that he is still in touch with today! Saran is excited for this summer, saying that, “I’m looking forward to challenging myself and learn more about education, and I am looking forward to bringing out the best in others!”
