Bridgewater, Va. – Model UN and Virginia 21 are both active at Bridgewater College this semester with annual conferences and regular meetings, along with state-wide events on the horizon. 

The Model UN club meets weekly on Thursdays at 6 p.m. in Bowman room 109. The club had their second meeting on Sept. 16. 

“Today we’re just gonna go over what the UN is, the body,” said club president and senior Kyana Chery. “Then we’re gonna go over what we do in conferences and also the advocacy that goes behind our club and the United Nations in general.” 

“Next semester we have plans to go to New York City for a conference,” said Chery. “As of this semester we’re planning on doing some stuff on campus, probably do a regional conference with JMU, Mary Baldwin or some school like that.”

To join Model UN, contact Beth Gaver at [email protected] 

Virginia 21 is a state-wide organization that has student leader representatives from multiple colleges. 

“Virginia 21 is a nonpartisan political organization that advocates for student rights,” said Virginia 21 student leader and senior Kylee Lorio. “So that includes lobbying experience, mentoring experience, and you get campus and state wide engagement.”

Virginia 21 as an organization hosts annual events including regular meetings for student leaders on a monthly basis. The big event for Virginia 21 is its annual survey that determines what the group will lobby for during the next election cycle. 

“The annual survey determines what we lobby for in February when the election legislative cycle begins,” said Lorio. “So last year we did G3, which was passed and is basically two years of free community college for students who qualify that are doing high demand fields and also have to meet a couple eligibility requirements and then we also lobbied for broadband expansion and got that passed as well.” 

Contact Kylee Lorio at [email protected] to connect with the deputy director of Virginia 21 to become a student leader for the organization.