Three St. Cloud State University students brought home honors from the Upper Midwest Regional Model Arab League conference this October.
In all 12 St. Cloud State students participated in the Upper Midwest Regional Model Arab League conference this October at the University of North Dakota in Grand Forks, North Dakota. Walid Issa ’13 ’15 gave the keynote address at the conference.
Related links
The participating students were from political science, mass communications and other disciplines. The St. Cloud State students represented Jordan, Somalia and Iraq.
Model Arab League is similar to Model U.N. in that students represent individual countries while meeting in committees and seeking to pass resolutions. The difference is that the students are representing Arab nations and seeking to pass resolutions relating solely to the Arab world.
The students attempted to pass resolutions while dealing with crises involving simulated political upheaval in the Arab world.
Mergentevne Narangerel represented Jordan and earned Best Delegate-Political Affairs. Adam Holte represented Iraq in the Council on Palestinian Affairs and received a Best Delegate Honorable Mention. Moheemed Al Waaly represented Iraq in the Council of Arab Social Affairs Ministers and earned a Best Delegate Honorable Mention.
Graduate student Michelle Hengel served as chair of the Political Affairs Committee.
Narangerel served as head delegate for Jordan, a position he was well suited for after he participated in a trip to visit the United Nations for a Leadership in International Public Affairs class this summer where he met Jordanian Ambassador Dina Kawar.
“The event was great, especially because of the students that we worked and debated with,” Narangerel said. “Everyone knew what country they represented, what their interests were and who they were allied with. This made our debates very heated and resolutions hard to pass.”
Holte agreed that the experience was a good way to meet students from other schools in the region and from diverse backgrounds as well as learning about the Arab countries.
“I think the biggest thing I took away from the Model Arab League was a better understanding of the dynamics of issues in the Middle East,” he said. “It’s a very complicated region, and few things help you learn more about it than debating issue-specific topics in great detail.”
The three-day simulation conference for students with an interest in the Middle East and global affairs introduced students to international diplomacy and policymaking.
Participants also learn public speaking, negotiation and coalition building skills and a global understanding. The event also introduces students to parliamentary procedure and helps them to prepare to participate in Model U.N. in spring.
“Students learn to look at different viewpoints of how other countries would want to handle things,” Hengel said.
St. Cloud State participants
- Moheemed Al Waaly
- Rebecca David
- Michelle Hengel
- Adam Holte
- Adeyemi Hounsou
- Landry Kabore
- Tsogtbilguundar Khishigbat
- Mergentevne Narangerel
- Oluwatobi Oluwagbemi
- Maricela Osorio
- Courtney Schmidt
- Riley Schumacher
