The University of Nevada, Reno Model Arab League received two honorable designations and was named the Overall Outstanding Delegation during the Model Arab League conference earlier this month at Notre Dame de Namur University in California. University students Adam Sanders and Tylo Ward received designations of Outstanding Chair and Outstanding Delegate, while many other teammates received “distinguished” designations.

“For the Model Arab League conference teams are challenged to represent a mock delegation,” said Ward, university student and recipient of Outstanding Delegate. “This year our team’s country was Kuwait. We had to learn their role in order to understand what they would agree or disagree with on a national scale and who their allies were in order to create resolutions.”

Through the Model Arab League program, students learn about politics and history of the Arab world, and the art of diplomacy. The program is designed to give students insight into the Middle East and Arab countries as well as build critical leadership skills from public speaking to negotiation compromise and helps prepare students to be knowledgeable, well-trained and effective citizens as well as civic and public affairs leaders.

“This is just the second year the University’s political science department has been officially involved with Model Arab League,” Eric Herzik political science professor and chair of the political science department, said. “It is clear that Eliot Assoudeh, a political science graduate student and director of the University’s team, has done a great job preparing the students for this project.”