Forty-five junior high students from Greenville and Pocahontas Middle Schools attended a two-day competition held at the Southern Illinois University Edwardsville campus in February. Led by the Triad High School Model UN team, the match was the first either school has participated in since COVID shut down many extracurricular activities.
Greenville Jr. High teacher and Model UN coach Kendra Sigafoos said, “Even though it was the first time the kids and I had participated in this event, I was pleased with how quickly they were able to acclimate themselves to the competition. They each presented resolutions on a variety of world topics, ranging from science and technology to humanitarian issues, and then those resolutions were debated and amended in breakout committees throughout the two-day event. Many kids expressed interest in participating again next year or at the high school level.”
Several students were honored with individual awards at the close of the competition, including Wyatt Orender, Christian Swalley, Justice Vallery, Ceagan Slater, and Ben Wittig.
Kenzi Stefanison, a 7th grader from Pocahontas, said, “I was amazed at how well the experience went and so happy that we were able to participate.” Pocahontas coach and teacher Don Smith added, “For these students, participating in parliamentary procedure, following decorum, and interacting with students from other schools in a professional setting is a life-changing experience.” Both schools have plans to attend again next year.
