Five UCA students – Willis Arnold, Ecehan Bayrak, Joseph Walsh, Juan Mayen, and Logan Spurlock – will be participating in the annual National Model United Nations (NMUN) conference in New York City from March 17 to March 21, 2013.
The delegation of UCA students will represent the country of Tuvalu at the conference. Located in the Pacific Ocean between Hawaii and Australia, Tuvalu achieved its independence from the United Kingdom in 1978 and has been a member of the UN since 2000.
Approximately 2500 delegates representing universities in more than 40 countries around the world will attend the 2013 NMUN.
The members of the UCA delegation representing Tuvalu each have many years of experience competing in Model UN conferences, as well as staffing the annual Arkansas Model United Nations (AMUN) Conference held at UCA. Willis Arnold, a graduate of Conway High School, served as Secretary-General of the AMUN in 2011, and Logan Spurlock, a graduate of Valley View High School, is the current Secretary-General of the AMUN. Juan Mayen participated in high school Model UN in his native country of Honduras before coming to UCA as a student in 2011. Along with the other three students, Ecehan Bayrak and Joseph Walsh both served on the staff of the AMUN in November 2012.
Delegates will attend the Plenary Session of the General Assembly and the Closing Ceremony will take place in the General Assembly Hall at the United Nations Headquarters in New York City. Most of the other activities will take place at the Sheraton Hotel in New York City.
The UCA delegation is sponsored by two UCA student organizations – the UCA Model United Nations organization and the International Studies club. Departing for the trip on Saturday, March 16, the UCA students will be accompanied by Department of Political Science professors Dr. Mark Mullenbach, faculty adviser for the UCA MUN student organization and coordinator of the AMUN and Dr. Gizachew Tiruneh, faculty adviser for the International Studies Club. The group returns on Saturday, March 23rd.