She spent past spring breaks taking students on a study abroad program to World Model UN conferences in Panama, Madrid, Brussels, and Melbourne. In 2019, she was the coach for NAU\u2019s squad in the Regents\u2019 Cup, a free speech and debate competition put on by the Arizona Board of Regents to highlight civil discourse at the state\u2019s three public universities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Gee finds that the club setting inspires some students. Out of the classroom, they find purpose among their peers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI can\u2019t tell you how many students tell me Model UN was the best part of their college experience,\u201d she said. \u201cWhat I love about Model UN is that I have everything from the tippy-top students to the students barely scraping by. They all talk about how important Model UN is to them because it\u2019s a place where they connect with other students. They are engaged with something bigger than themselves.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Gee has found that the Model UN is an opportunity to influence her teaching. She adapted simulations from club activities, such as a fake CNN clip about a terrorist attack. Students researched and took on various roles, from Islamist terrorists and Russian politicians to human rights workers and civilians.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
People grow when they’re pushed, so I push them.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThey all come to class and act like it just happened,\u201d Gee said. \u201cThey get into their groups and talk about why this happened and what should be done next. A representative from each group provides the explanation from their discussion. It\u2019s active learning. It\u2019s critical thinking. It\u2019s engaged.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Challenging students<\/h3>\n\n\n\n Tasauna (LaShae) Brown, a Gold Axe winner who served as president of Model UN, credits Gee for being a mentor who prompted her to find opportunities to get involved.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cShe\u2019s been encouraging me to take leadership roles and has been propelling me forward ever since my first day on campus,\u201d Brown said. \u201cShe really cares about her students and is dedicated to her work. She\u2019s also very compassionate, which makes it easy to communicate with her.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMy reputation is that I am a hard professor,\u201d Gee said. \u201cI totally revel in that. I tell my students straight up, I\u2019m hard not to be mean, but because I want to challenge you. This is higher education. It ought to be challenging. The brain is like any muscle. It\u2019s not going to get any stronger unless you push it. Our brains aren\u2019t going to get better unless we really push it. People grow when they\u2019re pushed, so I push them.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n