Model United Nations: An Incredible Experience

By Katie Curran, staff reporter

From March 6-9, 2013, 55 Sturgis students, 41 from Sturgis East and 14 from West, attended the 39th annual National High School Model United Nations (NHSMUN) Conference in New York City. MUN delegation leader Mr. Fetzer , hotel/transportation coordinator Mr. Hyer, and two Faculty advisors, Ms. Roselander and Ms. Cavanaugh, also went on the trip.  

Every March, NHSMUN hosts 3,000 participants from 150 schools from over 20 countries to represent certain countries’ delegations in the United Nations. This year, Sturgis East represented Sudan and Yemen.  During this conference, these delegates participated in simulated committee meetings and plenary sessions. During the course of the four-day conference, each committee debated and discussed solutions to topics that the actual UN was facing, and each country had to collaborate with other delegates to come up with a draft resolution to the topic.  

I personally represented the delegation of Sudan in the committee of the United Nations Industrial Development Organization, otherwise known as UNIDO.  

Each committee took part in high-level debates during the sessions, providing everyone with an unparalleled opportunity to experience the theory and practice of international relations first-hand. It was truly an eye-opening experience that gave me an insight into the United Nations.  

I also attended various committee sessions similar to mine, in which we discussed “Sustainable Development in Developing Sub-Saharan African Countries.”  During moderated and unmoderated caucuses, delegations worked together to create a resolution paper that would address the issues that their committee was working on.  

We spent 3 days in committee working together and finally came to a consensus on the final day.  All of the delegates went to the United Nations and voted on which resolution papers would be passed.  To conclude the conference, students spoke about the papers they had drafted and the countries voted on which resolutions the Model United Nations would pursue.  The opening and closing ceremonies were held in the UN General Assembly chamber, where actual UN diplomats convene every year.

In addition to the actual committee sessions, we heard a speech from Jim Ziolkowski, the founder, president, and CEO of “buildOn,” a non-profit organization that builds schools in developing countries while also running after school service programs in America’s toughest inner-cities.

On the last night, students were invited to the “Delegate Dance”.  Delegates dressed up and had one last hurrah with their new friends.  In addition to these events, Sturgis went out to dinner at Rockefeller Center. W had been staying at the beautiful Hilton Hotel on the Avenue of the Americas.  

In all, simulations such as NHSMUN are invaluable educational tools, as they teach our future leaders about the United Nations and the international community through intensively researched debate with their peers in a setting moderated by students from the most elite universities.

NHSMUN was an incredible experience, and I will definitely return next year.  If it wasn’t for Sturgis, I would never have been offered this valuable and rewarding experience.  

Girls' Basketball Benefits from Exceptional Captains

By Jacob Tobey, staff reporter

This basketball season was a tough one for the Storm in that they were in a stage of rebuilding.  With only two upperclassmen and six underclassmen on the varsity roster, it was certainly a challenge for Coach Henry Colon to help the Sturgis girls become a state tournament-calibre team such as the year before. The girls have yet to reach their full potential as they would have if they were a few years older, but the team tried its best throughout the season and most importantly had fun.  

The Storm finished with an undesirable record of  2-12, but these numbers do not quantify the level of hard work that the two Sturgis captains put in to make the team better. Junior captain Brittany Gayton and sophomore captain Meaghan Fitzgerald took the girls to the Hyannis Youth and Community Center for multiple preseason practices to try to get the team acquainted with each other and to see how much talent they had and what they could work with.  

At the practices, the squad did everything from drills to scrimmages, and the captains came very prepared to teach the girls as they handed out papers on how to do the drills and on what was expected for the season. Those preseason actions are important steps in being effective leaders on any team; taking it upon oneself to be a leader, working on one’s game, and making one’s teammates better were all actions exhibited by Gayton and Fitzgerald. 

In a preseason interview, Coach Colon had described his preseason goals for the season: “ The goal every year is to improve during the season and qualify for the tourney. Although we are very young that goal will not change. We will need to work very hard to accomplish it.”  

These goals were not accomplished of course, but with a young team, it was always going to be difficult.  

Here is a brief excerpt of my recent one-on-one interview with sophomore captain Meaghan Fitzgerald, which gives a little more insight on the season:

What are your overall thoughts on how the season went?
 
We improved as a team and got better each and everyday. All of the girls showed effort in every game and practice and we didn't give up on ourselves.  

Were your goals from the beginning of the season accomplished at the end of the season? 

Some of our goals were accomplished but a lot of the girls personal goals were achieved.

Were there any freshman girls or new sophomore girls that stood out and made varsity? If so, how did they do? 

Freshman Megan Borowski made varsity, and so did freshman Izzy Roberg and sophomore Emma-Kate Nemes.  They all were great, especially Emma as the post player.  

How was it being a captain this year as a sophomore? 

Being a captain was the best experience in my life, especially being a co-captain with one of my best friends (Brittany Gayton).

With a young team, great captains, and the established team chemistry, the future looks bright.  The Storm will try to improve next season, grow as players and teammates, and contend for the MIAA State Tournament, which is still the main goal, as Coach Colon stated. The Sturgis East girls clearly have the will to win more games next season, and they have the skill with that young nucleus and with the fact that they aren’t losing any seniors this year. It will just be a matter of time. Congratulations on your successes this season, girls, and best of luck next year.

STAGE Prepares "Hush": Keep Your Eyes Closed

by Sara Prygocki, staff reporter

From left to right: Meredith Sullivan, Geronimo Kelley, Julia Dillon, Robby Treichel, and Anna Panell

This spring’s stage production, Hush: Voices of America, written by James Still is being performed this year at Sturgis Wests’ amphitheatre on April 4th through 6th.
This play is about a young blind girl Maggie, performed by senior Shannon Lindlau, who goes on many wild adventures while living with her father, played by sophomore Dan Souza.
“I think this play is about the media and how it should all be taken with a grain of salt because things get misinterpreted,” Shannon explains. “It revolves around Maggie, and I adore her!”
Shannon and Dan are supported by a highly talented group of actors including freshman Anna Rohlf, sophomores Jack Watters, Dean Smith, Julia Dillon, Anna Panell, and Lily Paradise. Juniors Robby Triechel, Geronimo Kelley, Czarina Shartle, Meredith Sullivan, and Molly Brennan along with seniors Jackson Fryer, Curran Olsen, Anna Michael, and Brenna Joyce. Juniors Hannah McLaughlin and Olivia Milsted are Stage Manager and Assistant Stage Manager, respectively.
“A lot of things in this play are specifically made to be unclear. The audience should not know if imaginary creation or if Maggie’s actually met them,” Mrs O says. “This play is about learning that just because you can't see something doesn't mean it isn’t there.
“Being invisible is not the same as being unreal. It’s all about learning to trust the ones you love,” Dan remarks.
Hush will be performed in an entirely new space, literally - the audience will sit in what is normally the staging area at the West auditorium, while the steps which are usually seating become the stage. Anna Michael states that, “the change of scenery will really add to this performance because there are many scenes that happen simultaneously, so the different levels will do a lot to differentiate the space.”
Curran comments: “I have to act like someone who doesn't fall down the stairs, a great acting challenge for any clumsy thespian.”
The cast is truly excited to be sharing this experience with an audience, and with the combination of Sturgis West in the equation, it promises to be an unforgettable performance. The show promises to leave audiences with the message that if you want to see something, sometimes all you have to do is close your eyes.