As Thanksgiving break approached, members of CMC’s Model United Nations (CMCMUN) team had a lot to be thankful for, after achieving an unprecedented winning streak this fall semester.
The team brought home their fourth Best Delegation award from the Santa Barbara Intercollegiate Model United Nations competition Nov. 17-20. With this victory, CMCMUN team reached an unprecedented four out of five Best Delegation awards at the conferences they attended this fall semester.
Earlier this semester, the team completed a sweep of the East Coast, earning the Best Small Delegation Award from Boston University’s BarMUN Conference, the University of Pennsylvania’s MUN Conference, and Georgetown University's National Collegiate Security Conference – beating out other West Coast rivals at the University of Southern California; University of California, Los Angeles; and University of California, Berkeley.
"Winning four delegation awards in one semester is an unheard-of accomplishment for our team,” said CMCMUN Vice President Nicole Jonassen ’24. “As leaders of this team, we are overjoyed because this level of competitive success signals to us that all of our hard work to create a supportive and inclusive community on our team has paid off.”
Key to the team’s fall semester triumphs, according to CMCMUN President Jon Joey Telebrico ’23 was a robust recruiting cycle in September, which added 13 new first- and second-year members to the team.
“This year's leadership set out on an ambitious task to transform CMCMUN from the bottom-up, recruiting diverse talent, revamping the training regimen, and reminding our members that culture lies at the heart of any of our competitive successes,” he said.
In addition, Telebrico said, “CMCMUN held an Open Academy-sponsored joint Public Speaking and Argumentation workshop in conjunction with the Claremont Colleges Debate Union and Claremont McKenna College Mock Trial, where student leaders (myself, Maya Kurkhill ’23, and Desmond Mantle ’23) from each of the prominent public speaking activities on campus were able to collaborate on various approaches to appealing to audiences and developing argumentation.”
As the fall semester wraps up, Telebrico reflected on the team’s winning streak. “I am incredibly proud of our team of 30 for continuing to adapt to the changing dynamics of the competitive circuit while prioritizing our team motto of 'Team Comes First,'” he said. “I am confident that we will continue to bring the same fiery drive into the spring semester in the hopes of pushing our competitive boundaries and creating a legacy to remember, as I conclude my final year of CMCMUN. We are immensely grateful for the continued support from President Chodosh and the Dean of Students Office that allows us to travel and compete at the level we do."