Twenty-three Acera School students participated in the United Nations Association of Greater Boston Middle School Model United Nations Conference held at Northeastern University on Nov. 23. After months of rigorous preparation, four of the Acera middle school students, including one from Waltham, received the Outstanding Delegation Award, the highest award given at the conference.
Each student was assigned a country to represent, a committee and a topic for debate. The students learned the rules of debate, practiced public speaking, negotiating and writing resolutions. Throughout the daylong conference, students debated a wide range of topics including climate change, cultural extinction, youth unemployment, crime prevention and criminal justice, and the rise of slums.
Two local students brought home top awards. Thomas Mayer of Waltham and Max Paul of Medford received the Outstanding Delegation Award for their representation of France on the Security Council.
“Taking the perspective of other cultures, engaging in meaningful questions about real world problems, and envisioning the impact you can have to make a positive difference are critical capacities,” said Acera founder Courtney Dickinson. “Model UN is a core part of Acera’s middle school program because it fosters this growth for our students.”
Acera students are now preparing for the Boston University Academy Middle School Model United Nations Conference in February. United Nations Association of Greater Boston is dedicated to building a strong network of global citizens in the Boston area by informing, inspiring and mobilizing members of the community to engage with critical global issues, according to the organization.
Acera: The Massachusetts School of Science, Creativity and Leadership in Winchester was founded in 2010 as an independent STEM school to meet the needs of high ability students.