Tampa Prep’s Model UN Club members attended the National Invitational Model United Nations (NAIMUN) conference, February 13 – 16, sponsored by Georgetown University. This is the 62nd year Georgetown is holding the conference and it was an amazing experience for the students. The event drew 3,300 students from 40 different U.S. states and 30 different countries.
Our Tampa Prep delegation represented the Republic of Albania and the Lao People’s Democratic Republic in the General Assembly committees. We also had students participating in historical crisis committees as well as the International Court of Justice and the Press Corps. Here is a full description of all their roles and committees: NAIMUN Assignments.
Congratulations to the Tampa Prep delegation, who came away with three major awards!
Ryan Szymanski ’27 earned a Book Award for his excellence in research and writing, as well as his deep knowledge of the committee topics (in this case, taking the role of Germanus in the Justinian Roman Empire)!
Gabby Maxwell ’26 earned a Verbal Commendation recognizing her eloquence and outstanding communication skills in the Press Corps as an NPR reporter!
Noah Sparkman ’26 received second place in the Video Contest for his parody “UNited by Love.”
We are so proud of the entire Tampa Prep delegation for their tireless efforts in learning about the world’s problems, creatively thinking of potential solutions, debating with their peers, and ultimately negotiating resolutions to make a difference:
Ben Blunt ’25; Inaaya Firoz ’25; Muryum Firoz ’27; Nick Fisher ’25; Chloe Gallahan ’26; Natalie Hepscher ’27; Talia Johnsingh ’26; Max Karmazyn ’27; Emma Kunkel ’27; Sophia Lunsford ’26; Gabby Maxwell ’26; Charlotte Phillips ’26; Noah Sparkman ’26; Cole Steppacher ’26; Ryan Szymanski ’27; Alice Waldron ’27; Colin Walker ’26; Reed Wilson ’25; Natasha Wooley ’26
All students received very positive feedback from all of their committee chairs and received high marks for their position papers. They were in committees with students from some of the most well-known high schools across the country as well as with students headed to the most prestigious colleges in the fall. And our students received multiple accolades in this elite environment!
The students had a wonderful time exploring Washington DC and visiting the Albanian and Laotian Embassies in honor of their country assignments. They toured the US Capitol, courtesy of Congresswoman Kathy Castor, visited the Library of Congress, and attended a Supreme Court lecture in the Courtroom. They also visited George Washington University, Georgetown University, and American University. They also loved riding the Washington Metro and became experts in navigating the public transportation system of the nation’s capital.
But most of all, these Florida students absolutely loved the snow — they had lots of snowball fights and fun building snowmen!
