Faculty Spotlight: Kimberly Pace
Political Science Professor Kimberly Pace has been a member of the Department of Political Science at UAA since 2003, and the Chair of Women’s and Gender Studies at UAA since 2005. Professor Pace teaches a wide variety of courses including Introduction to Political Science, Comparative Politics, International Relations, Women in Politics, and Alaska Government and Politics, among many others. She has been the Faculty Director of the Model United Nations program for the State of Alaska since 2003. Model UN is a simulation of one or more of the bodies of the United Nations, including a variety of committees and nation-state delegations. High schools from across Alaska send their students to the conference, serving as delegations for other nation-states.
How has Model UN changed since you took over in 2003 as faculty advisor?
“In the last ten years, we have introduced three amazing additions to the program that allow for different ideas and voices to be heard. The first one we successfully integrated was the International Criminal Court. It is totally different from any of the other committees, but it's great for students who are interested in going into law or interested in how the international legal system works. Four years ago, we also added the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, which focuses on indigenous peoples. This is particularly important where we are in Alaska, where it is critical that we listen to the voices from the Alaska Native peoples. Just prior to COVID, we worked to add the Arctic Council to Model UN. Even though we live in Alaska, I don't think the vast majority of college and high school students think about how we are in the Arctic nation. I was thrilled and honored that Diddy Hitchins, the former faculty advisor for MUN, entrusted me with the program.”
How do you get students involved with Model UN, how do you depend on your students, and how are you connected to the students?
“Absolutely, the students are the backbone! I have been really lucky and have had tremendous leadership amongst students and they are leaders not just in Model UN, but across the campus as well. There is a Model UN class at UAA, offered in the Spring, where students act as nation-state delegates and debate topics of international concern, then participate in the annual conference. The students in the Model UN class at UAA, (in addition to the Secretariat), are the backbone of the conference every year. The Secretariat are students that have a particular affinity for this kind of work and that are really gun hoe about Model UN. They are at the heart of organizing and running the conference each year. Model UN is something that hooks students, and once they are hooked, they stay involved for years. It becomes this family. I have students that were a part of my very first secretariat who are still really good friends and still are hanging onto that bond, it's really remarkable.”
This past couple of years and in the fall particularly, you have done something new - a virtual Model UN. You also introduced the Fall Conference. How did the students help with both these efforts? How did you work together to make these two big changes to what sounds like a pretty established system?
"In the summer of 2020, we knew it was very likely that we were not going to have an in-person Spring Conference. We knew it was going to have to be virtual, and it was just a matter of figuring out how to do it. Over the COVID years, we’ve gotten really good at holding virtual conferences! It's a different feeling, but I will tell you we are getting really good at it! About the Fall Conference, I had the idea in May, and definitely wanted to be talked out of it. I contacted one of the Secretariat, asking him to talk me out of hosting a Fall Conference. He was supposed to talk me out of it and he didn't. We worked all summer, meeting every single week for several hours. We did outreach to the high school teachers and there were several of them who thought it was a great idea."
You mentioned that Model UN is a family, one that stays connected. Are you still in contact with Model UN alumni? Are they involved in the conferences today?
“Several of the teachers with the involved high schools were actually students of Diddy’s. They have their own Model UN teams and that's been great to be able to work with them and to learn from them. They are very supportive. Alumni, teachers and just the students who have graduated, they come back and they're eager to come back and help. This year I had 12 alumni, and it would not work without alumni, absolutely would not work. Model UN really takes a village. This is a true collaborative event, with involvement from high schools, universities, UAA admin, the Secretariat, and alumni. This is not me, it takes a village to make this happen. Not once but twice a year!”
Model UN was planned and everyone was ready with their different nation states. And then Russia invaded Ukraine. I heard that those at the conference had to deal with that in some manner. What happened? How did the students do with that?
“The Secretary General made the announcement about the invasion during our last class, and the Russian Federation delegation really had to re-group. They were concerned, specifically about how they would be treated personally at the conference. I had people standing by just in case there was any support that was going to be needed. Ultimately, everything was handled with absolute respect. I didn't get any feedback from either high school students who were portraying Ukraine or the Russian delegation. They kept in character, they did not vary at all. I was very impressed! In the end, the Russian and Ukrainian delegations ended up working collaboratively to thwart a common threat, and peace ensued. If only international leaders could take a page from Alaska’s Model UN!"
Thank you for all you do Kimberly, keep up the good work!