Honors students represent Lone Star College System at National Model United Nations conference

HOUSTON, TX -- Both delegations of Lone Star College System Honors College students received Outstanding Delegation Awards from the National Model United Nations (NMUN) conference held in New York.

“This is the conference’s highest overall honor at NMUN, the world’s largest, oldest and most prestigious Model UN simulation, drawing thousands of university students from more than 120 countries to debate the most pressing issues before the United Nations,” said Katharine Caruso, Ph.D., associate vice chancellor, Honors and International Education. “Lone Star College System students earned that recognition competing alongside institutions from across four continents—from a highly-regarded French law school to a German university founded in 1743 to one of South Korea's most elite universities.”

Student diplomats from LSCS represented The Holy See and Namibia, earning more individual committee recognitions than any other institution at the conference. In addition to the two Outstanding Delegation Awards, the teams earned four Outstanding Delegate in Committee Awards and five Outstanding Position Paper Awards.

“Winning stands as a true testament to the hard work, dedication and passion that our team has for observing diplomacy at the highest level in hopes of changing the world for the better,” said Lanz Caballero, LSC-Montgomery student. “There will never be any other experience like NMUN because to think that people who come from very different walks of life end up in the same room showed me a side of humanity that I’ve never seen before.”

At LSCS, the NMUN program consists of a dedicated honors seminar for first-year delegates to build foundational skills in research, diplomacy and debate. The following year, returning students will design lesson plans, mentor incoming members and lead preparatory simulations.

“In the National Model United Nations team, we are taught the skills and mentality needed to win the conference months before it even commences,” said Frank Atienza Coronado, LSC-Tomball student who plans to graduate this spring and pursue a career in computer science and research. “Through countless hours of hard work and commitment, we are set apart from others by taking the lead in diplomacy and collaboration. I thought nothing could topple my experience from last year, but the moments I have shared with old and new team members this last conference far exceeded my expectations.”

This year’s attendees included:

• Keegan Alexander, LSC-Montgomery
• Rowan Bancroft, LSC-CyFair
• Lanz Caballero, LSC-Montgomery
• Esteban Aguirre Chavez, LSC-Montgomery
• Cheng-Yu Chen, LSC-North Harris
• Frank Atienza Coronado, LSC-Tomball
• Abigail Crownoble, LSC-Montgomery
• Lucas Donoso, LSC-Kingwood
• Javon Gabriel, LSC-Montgomery
• Bryant Hernandez, LSC-CyFair
• Katherine Hodge, LSC-University Park
• Andrea Leon Justinek, LSC-Tomball
• Geo Kearny, LSC-Montgomery
• Madeline Lewis, LSC-Montgomery
• Mayli Marroquin, LSC-Kingwood
• Ivana Vilchez Montilla, LSC-Montgomery
• Roberto Portillo, LSC-Kingwood
• Emmie Quiroz, LSC-Montgomery
• Daniel Rebsch, LSC-CyFair
• Jacob Reneau, LSC-Kingwood
• Jeramie Thomas, LSC-North Harris
• Lindy Thompson, LSC-CyFair
• Naomi Trejo, LSC-University Park
• Cristian Vieyra, LSC-Montgomery
• Anna Webster, LSC-Kingwood

Casey Garcia, LSC-Online speech and humanities professor and head coach of the LSCS Model UN team, said students spend months preparing for the conference. In addition to learning about the global community in a new way, the program trains students in networking, public speaking, negotiation tactics, policy paper writing, interpersonal communication dynamics and other soft skills that they will carry into their careers.

“I’ve had students who have gone into law, creative writing and political science, who say they wouldn’t have done that without the program because it forced them to break out of their shell and realize how consequential someone’s voice can be,” Garcia said. “To me, that’s the greatest measure of success—beyond the awards at the conference—it’s the longevity of that connection that alumni tell us this was significant and meaningful.”

Learn more about the Lone Star College System Honors College at LoneStar.edu/HonorsCollege.