Students Learn the Art of Negotiation

Dr. JoAnn DiGeorgio-Lutz, Professor and Head of the Political Science Department at A&M-Commerce is leading her students to experience and practice a real-world simulation of the United Nations and its subsidiary organizations.

In Model UN class the students form small groups to represent different states in the international system. Their training starts with solid research about the policies, the social-economic and political issues of those states they represent. They also practice the basics of formal parliamentary procedure in order to learn how to participate in formal debates, how to write statements and formulate resolutions to describe the position on a topic or issue that they will discuss in their committee.

The course, that has been put in place last fall with the financial support of both the College of Humanities, Social Sciences and Arts and the Provost, is a unique opportunity for students to learn how to immerse themselves in new perspectives in order to deeply understand a country's political point of view and cultural differences.

On October 22, the A&M-Commerce Model UN group participated in the National Model United Nations (NMUN) Conference held in Washington DC. In the spring 2013, A&M-Commerce is going to host the Southwest Regional Model Arab League Conference where universities from across the Southwest are invited to participate. Saudi Arabia and Palestine are the two countries that will be represented by the delegation of DiGeorgio's students.