[ot-caption title=”The seniors of Pine Crest’s International Relations Club pose outside the United Nations building in New York City. (via Mrs. Sollitto)” url=”https://pcpawprint.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/2015-03-06-23.18.37.jpg”]

On March 4^th, twenty-two seniors of the Pine Crest International Relations Club and three social science teachers, Ms. Alexanderson, Mr. Snyder, and Mrs. Sollitto, departed from Fort Lauderdale to New York City. The reason for their trip, aside from an exciting Senior trip to the Big Apple, was to take part in the 42nd annual National High School Model United Nations (NHSMUN), held at the New York Hilton Hotel. An hour and a half delayed flight did little to dampen the spirits of the delegation, set to represent the country of Algeria at the four day conference, which included over 3,800 students from over twenty different countries.

While New Yorkers were lamenting their terribly cold winter, Pine Crest students were relishing their opportunity to experience actual winter weather, with heavy snow and temperatures in the lower 20’s throughout the trip.

NHSMUN is a part of the International Model United Nations Association, which organizes numerous Model United Nations conferences around the globe. The purpose of these conferences is to give high school students interested in a career in international relations an opportunity to live a few days in the shoes of real life delegates. Schools are assigned to represent countries, and their students must research and present position papers at the conference that are indicative of their country’s position on the topics being debated.

The students from all the schools are divided into the specialized committees that comprise the real United Nations and work together for several days through committee sessions to pass resolutions meant to rectify a current problem in the world.

Committees can often run overtime, as debates are especially heated between eager students determined to represent their countries correctly. This year’s NHSMUN was no exception as many committees were locked in stalemates until the very last day, when compromises were reached and resolutions were passed.

The PC delegation from Algeria was placed into thirteen different committees and enjoyed its time debating issues in the world from deforestation and women’s rights to refugee crises.

Senior Marissa Radensky had a memorable experience: “The trip was a lot of fun. We got to meet people from other states and countries, and I learned a lot about how global affairs are run, which was really enjoyable.”

Aside from the conference, highlights of the trip included: trips to the Museum of Modern Art and Broadway to see the Tony awarding winning musical A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder, a puffy white Central Park, and numerous other tourist attractions around the city.

The trip culminated in the closing ceremony hosted in the General Assembly Hall of the United Nations Headquarters.

The return trip was slightly more difficult for our PC delegation. The flight was delayed more than four hours; the Algerian delegation headed home exhausted but proud of their hard work. Next year’s seniors have big shoes to fill!