Hoboken High School’s debate program takes home 12 awards at conference in Spain

Hoboken High School’s Harvard Model Congress Team took home 12 awards, the most of any delegation, at a recent conference in Madrid, Spain.

By John Heinis/Hudson County View

The team returned to international competition after a year of successful award-winning competition at the American Harvard Model Congress Conference in San Francisco.

Harvard Model Congress encourages young people to participate in public service and civic life.  Over the course of the conference, students were offered the unique opportunity to dive into the issues and debates facing International Governments today.

The approach, centered around small-group learning, inspired debate, cooperation, and legislation, while also forcing students to expand their own perspectives and to understand the issues at hand in a new, more comprehensive manner.

They dozen students who received awards are as follows:

Frances Michaels: Best Delegate for her work in the House Climate Committee

Sage Gurtman: Honorable Mention for her work in the United Nations World Health Organization

Julia Critz: Best Delegate for her work as a member of the World Bank

Kendall McDonough: Honorable Mention for her work in the House Climate Committee

Mara Reba: Best Delegate for her work in the European Union Honorable Mention

Daniel Weintraub: Honorable Mention for his work as the head of the CIA.

Jacob Linder: Best Delegate as a member of the House Intelligence Committee

Camilia Suarez: Best Delegate as a member of the House Science, Space and Technology Committee

Amalia Batlle: Best Delegate as a member of the House, Environment, Labor and Pension Committee

Genevieve Fink: Honorable Mention as a member of the UN Group of 20

Coby Kriegel: Best Delegate as a member of UN Group of 20

Juliet Hysen: Honorable Mention for her service as a member of the press in the Media Committee

Hoboken Harvard Model Congress team members challenged themselves and their peers to work together and devise feasible plans to mitigate or solve some of the nation’s and the world’s most pressing problems and issues.