Model Students
Ursuline students make their mark at Model UN Conference

Abby Hevert (left) led Team Ursuline at the event

Abby Hevert and Victoria Sitcawich like politics.

So when senior year rolled around and they recognized that Ursuline did not offer many opportunities for students to explore and discuss global affairs outside of the classroom, the girls teamed up to initiate Ursuline Academy's very fist Model United Nations Team.

"We know that a lot of girls at Ursuline are interested in politics, but there wasn't an outlet for open debate or discussion," said Hevert, who recently signed up her newly formed team to participate in the 10th Annual Boston Invitational Model United Nations Conference at the fancy Park Plaza Hotel in Boston. The two day conference, sponsored by Boston University, welcomed over 1,300 high school students from around the world to discuss civics, economics, diplomacy and globalization.

"We got to meet lots of new people, from many different countries," says Hevert, who was assigned to represent the country of Norway during the event. "It was really fun."

Twenty Ursuline students were divided into committees and represented a variety of countries. Their research and preparation was conducted prior to the event, so that they were prepared to offer probable resolutions to current issues. Abigail Sullivan '13 represented Bulgaria and discussed the peaceful use of outer space and the possibility of utilizing satellites to monitor natural disasters.

Victoria Sitcawich gets right to business

"Bulgaria tends to cooperate with surrounding countries," said Sullivan, who agreed with Hevert that the forum was a perfect opportunity to practice public speaking skills.

Though it was their first year as a club, Hevert says that Ursuline's inaugural UN team made a strong first impression at the annual invitational conference.

"We learned a lot. Even thought it was our first time, we definitely made our mark."