By Maegan Rocio

Staff Writer

Baylor will experience international politics firsthand this weekend.

Baylor’s Model Organization of American States (MOAS) will participate this week in the 16th annual Ambassador Eugene Scassa Model Organization of American States competition that will be held for the first time at Baylor. The free event will take place from 8:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and is open to the public.

Joshua Hyles, a Baylor alumnus and the current head coordinator of the model at Baylor, said anyone interested in international politics should come to the event and learn more about MOAS.

“Baylor offers this as a class for course credit,” he said. “You’ll get a preview and you’ll see what you’ll be getting into. It’s definitely worth looking if you are in one of those fields.”

Hyles said the event will feature students from 20 delegations from universities in Texas, Louisiana and Mexico that will act as delegates for a country in the Western hemisphere.

“They will bring resolutions for issues their countries are facing,” he said. “It will be similar to the UN meeting but with a focus on Latin America.”

Moody, Ala., senior Cody Brasher, who is a member of MOAS at Baylor, said members of the team have been preparing for the competition since the beginning of the semester.

“We begin going over how to debate and the procedure and then into the semester are told which country we’ll represent and the topics we’ll be addressing,” he said.

Brasher said the Baylor MOAS team will be divided into two groups. He said one will represent Guatemala and the other will represent Chile.

Joan Suplee, Ralph Lynn Professor of History, said guests can look forward to five committee debates that will take place in the Bill Daniel Student Center. Four of the five debates will take place on the second floor and the fifth debate will be held on the third floor.

“They will be debating issues that range from hemispheric security, problems of malnutrition and poverty, promoting unity in the hemisphere, ecotourism, education and democracy, issues that are important in the hemisphere,” she said.

Hyles said participants will also have to respond to a simulated crisis that will be announced on Friday night.

Hyles said the two-day event will end with a dinner where participants will be given awards for their representations of their assigned nations.

Supplee said the dinner will also feature key note speaker Julie Connor, the diplomat in residence at University of Texas at Austin.

Brasher said the Baylor MOAS team would love for students to come to the event.

“The event brings Baylor a lot of attention,” he said. “We represent Baylor well. People in the organization are well respected. We would love to have support from students that are interested in the organization because it isn’t well known.”