Global Relations Groups Elect Officers

Harvard National Model United Nations (HNMUN) and Harvard Program for International Education (HPIE) elected new leaders Monday evening.

Both HNMUN and HPIE are under the umbrella of the larger International Relations Council (IRC).

Christiana Briggs '99 was elected Secretary-General of HNMUN 1999. She will be in charge of organizing the annual college Model United Nations conference.

Carey E. Schwaber '01 and Sarah E. Wood '01 will lead HPIE, an IRC program that teaches international relations to high school students.

Deepti Choubey '98, IRC president, had nothing but praise for the newly elected program officers.

"It's leading one of our largest programs within the International Relations Council," Choubey said of Briggs' appointment as secretary-general.

"It's a hell of a job. I'm sure she'll put in the requisite amount of hard work to lead these people," she said.

Choubey was equally enthusiastic about the idea of Schwaber and Wood directing HPIE. Few first-years have headed the program in the past, and Choubey said she is confident the two co-directors will do an excellent job.

"These two ladies are phenomenal, and they are going to be leading the program to some extraordinary places over the next year," Choubey said.

All three women have ambitious goals planned for the coming year.

Schwaber and Wood plan to improve the way HPIE trains tutors.

"We want to give them more materials so that they teach better, and we want to give them more feedback," Schwaber said.

Although Briggs said she has no plans to alter HNMUN drastically, like Schwaber and Wood, her main goals also involve better organizing those who work under her.

"What I would like to do as a secretary-general is have a very well-trained, well-motivated and efficient staff," Briggs said.

Ensuring a good time at the conference for both staff and delegates is also one of Briggs' concerns.

"I feel it is very important to balance the business and social side of the conference so that the delegates and our staffers will want to come back year after year," Briggs said.

Briggs emphasized the centrality of staffers to the HNMUN experience.

"I came into the program because of the people and who I interacted with," she said. "I want to inspire others to stay with our program."