The Model United Nations (MUN) club attended the annual conference at Old Dominion University (ODU).
“Being part of a large MUN conference is an electric experience for everybody involved,” Director of ODU MUN Aaron Karp said. “Our goal is simple, but hard to achieve; to help students learn by participating in and by hosting a large event, through role playing and engaging, by pushing to achieve, often failing, but always learning.”
The conference took place from Feb. 14 to Feb. 16, 2025, at the Sheraton Norfolk Waterside Hotel. The students missed a day of classes and spent an intense 30-hour weekend of debates and negotiations.
“The energy in those committee sessions was electric from passionate debates on climate action to thoughtful discussions on global security,” MUN faculty advisor Lisa Gibson said.
The team consisted of experienced members and fresh faces. Although 920 delegates registered for the conference, the number dropped to 720 due to snow in Northern Virginia and Southern Maryland.
“[My favorite moment] has to be when our newest delegates, who were initially nervous about public speaking, delivered speeches in their respective General Assembly committees,” Gibson said. “The way the whole team supported and encouraged each other exemplifies everything Model UN stands for [which is] collaboration, growth and diplomatic excellence.”
The club also won its first award in the conference. Juniors Austin Stegerwald and MUN President Grace Kavanaugh received honorable mentions for their work in the Security Council as the Russian Federation.
“When I came to Ocean Lakes as a freshman, there was no [MUN],” Grace said. “This past weekend, Ocean Lakes won its first award. That is an amazing win for our school and it feels so wonderful to be a part of the growth of our club.”
The club is searching for new conferences next year at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, University of Virginia or Georgetown University.
“Next year I look forward to pursuing new adventures with MUN as well as continuing old ones,” freshman Rian Desai said. “I hope to be part of Academic World Quest, Euro Challenge and much more.”
