MIAMI, June 10, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- For the first time in program history, FIU's Model UN team has been named the top team in North America by Best Delegate, the organization that ranks Model UN teams based on performance.

The university beat out last year's #1 team, the University of Chicago, by sweeping the collegiate circuit at a record 14 competitions and winning the most student awards (more than 120) and the most overall delegation awards (nine) of any team.

"No other college MUN team came close in any of those measurements,'' noted Best Delegate in its announcement. "Widely respected across the circuit for the training and hard work that the team puts in every year, FIU demonstrated this year that any university — including public schools outside of the elite Northeast — can become the #1 team in college Model UN."

The FIU team, founded in 1988, has advanced steadily in the past decade, placing in the top 5 since 2012. FIU has been the highest-ranked team in Florida and the highest from any public university in the country for more than a decade.

"Awards are great but Model UN is not defined by the awards,'' said Daniel Sixto, an international relations and history major who will lead the team as head delegate in the fall. "It's the experiences you have and the sense of community and support everyone brings to it. We are able to thrive in the most difficult situations and always, always work as a team and think strategically."

This year, the team received Best Large Delegation at Harvard University National Model UN, considered the most competitive event on the circuit.

"This is an incredibly proud and gratifying moment for everyone involved with the program – from our many successful Model UN alumni around the world to the students who have led this team with grace and dignity this past year,'' said John F. Stack Jr., founding dean of the Steven J. Green School of International & Public Affairs and faculty advisor for the program. "This is an academically rigorous program that provides our students with unparalleled experience in critical analysis, public speaking, negotiations and research." 

FIU Model UN is a course in the Department of Politics and International Relations that provides an interactive environment engrossing students in different aspects of political and international affairs. It is funded by the Student Government Association and has been since its inception.

Former head delegate and current program director Michelle Rosario said she was proud of how the team has grown in the past year.

"Since the start of the season, we wanted to emphasize diplomacy in every facet, from how we treat our peers on the team, to other delegates on the circuit, to the character that we strive to uphold day to day,'' she said. "This year we were so delighted to find out what could happen if we came together collaboratively."

Amy Ellis
352-999-0577
amy.ellis@fiu.edu
news.fiu.edu

SOURCE Florida International University

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