Johan Van Gorp ’04 Named Outstanding Commissioner at European Union Simulation

For the second straight year, Johan Van Gorp ’04 (Kaatsheuvel, Netherlands) has received a major award for his performance at the European Union Simulation held in Washington, D.C.

Among a group of 16 undergraduates from regional colleges and universities at last December’s event, Van Gorp was named Outstanding Commissioner. The prior year, he was elected Outstanding Prime Minister at the EU Simulation.

A double major in international affairs and history, Van Gorp’s latest role was EU Commissioner for the Environment, a position held by Margot Wallström of Sweden. Thirteen other Lafayette students took on the roles of Swedish government leaders and officials. For the first time, they prepared through a course, Politics of the European Union, taught in the fall by Katalin Fabian, assistant professor of government and law. Over three days in the nation’s capital, the students worked with peers from schools representing 15 other countries to hammer out a food safety resolution.

Accompanied on the trip by Rado Pribic, Oliver Edwin Williams Professor of Languages and chair of the International Affairs program, the students met with the director of information at the Swedish Embassy. They also took in a presentation by Tony Van der Haegen, minister-counselor for agriculture, fisheries, and consumer affairs in the European Commission’s Washington, D.C. delegation, who discussed the conflict between the EU and United States regarding genetically modified agriculture.

The simulation teaches valuable lessons, according to Van Gorp, including an understanding of how the EU functions and the distribution of power between different EU bodies.

“However, I’ve also learned that it is extremely difficult for those who grew up in a two-party political system to understand the intricacies of a multi-party political system,” he says. “People might know their position, but they do not realize the need to compromise. Furthermore, they often do not realize what issues are negotiable for their parties and which positions are non-negotiable: They simply try to get their way in everything.That being said, most enjoyable about the simulation is the feeling one gets after reaching a compromise acceptable to all after debates that often take hours — even though it all is pretend, of course.”

Van Gorp is writing an honors thesis analyzing the effects of Sept. 11 on Dutch foreign policy. He has participated in American University’s Washington Semester Program, studying U.S. foreign policy in courses and interning at the World Federalist Association. He also interned at Makro Cash and Carry headquarters in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, for a summer. Van Gorp is a member of the Phi Kappa Psi fraternity and was a member of International Affairs Club for three years, serving on the board for three semesters.

Other Lafayette students participating in the EU Simulation included Elizabeth Cassidy ’05 (Norwalk, Conn.), a double major in government & law and geology, who served as prime minister; Jerri Pelletier ’04 (Middletown, Conn.), a double major in economics & business, minister of agriculture, food and fisheries; and Leanora Paniccia ’04 (Endicott, N.Y.), a civil engineering major, minister of health and social affairs.

The roles of other students were associated with positions held by representatives of Swedish political parties: Basar Eraksoy ’06 (Istanbul, Turkey), an economics and business major, industry and external trade, Moderate Coalition Party; Alex Karapetian ’04 (Easton, Pa.), a government and law major, environment, Moderate Coalition Party; Kevin McCabe ’04 (Medfield, Mass.), a double major in government & law and Spanish, environment, Moderate Coalition Party; Jillian Carpenter ’05 (East Windsor, N.J.), a government and law major, industry and external trade, Moderate Coalition Party; Marie Finan ’04 (Trumbull, Conn.), a history and government & law major, industry and external trade, Social Democrat Labour Party; Daniel Kiesel ’04 (Southampton, Pa.), a government and law major, environment, Center Party; Rachel Rosen ’04 (Marblehead, Mass.), a government and law major, environment, Liberal Party; Jeannette Weaver ’04 (Doylestown, Pa.), a double major in government & law and English, environment, Left Party; Amy VanHouten ’04 (Chatham, N.J.), an economics and business major, industry and external trade, Left Party; and Haunani Yap ’06, an international affairs major, environment, Green Party.

“The EU Simulation gave all involved an insightful look into how the EU functions and how the legislative process works,” says McCabe, who plans to teach English in impoverished areas of South America after graduation and attend law school. “Through sometimes heated debates, we learned how difficult it can be to work out a deal when you have [representatives] from so many different countries all trying to please their citizens and leaders.”

Not far from where the European Simulation was held, international affairs graduates Lauren Frese ’03, Claudia Meulenberg ’02 (also a Spanish major), and Kenneth Kligge ’00 (also a government and law major), are studying for advanced degrees at George Washington University’s Elliott School for International Affairs. All three participated in the EU Simulation, notes Pribic.

“I believe the EU Simulation is a valuable learning tool,” says Kligge, who earned a master’s in international affairs with a concentration in security studies in 2002. “Too often students are kept within the classroom, which certainly has its place, but ‘hands-on’ learning is also a critical, experiential learning tool. In this regard, I think I gained the most by being given the opportunity to interact with a diverse population of students, in an atmosphere not bound by Robert’s Rules of Order. Within the EU, delegates – while maintaining civility – are not bound by these rules as strictly as is the case in U.S.-centric (i.e., Congressional) simulations. As such, I think the dialogue was often more impassioned and therefore more interesting.

Kligge is working at the National Defense University on the Strategic Policy Forum (SPF) program initiated by the Secretary of Defense in March 2002. It brings together members of Congress, senior executive branch officials, and military leaders for a series of strategic-level crisis simulation exercises that highlight the nuances and complexities of national security policy formulation in the current global security environment and help illuminate policy and organizational options.

“Thus far, the SPF program has had almost 80 members of Congress attend the five exercises that have been held,” says Kligge. “In this role, I was the lead designer on the Impending Storm exercise series, which was conducted twice before nearly 30 members. I am currently the lead designer on our February exercise, which is expected to have approximately another 15-20 members attending.”

Along with the rest of the SPF team, Kligge has written and executed an exercise as part of the new National Exercise Plan, which seeks to bring together the highest level of senior officials to discuss issues related to homeland security.

He was accepted into the Elliott School for his undergraduate education, but chose Lafayette to gain a broader education.

“Lafayette did prepare me for the Elliott School, not only through my classes, but also through some of the more intangible interactions, socially and academically, I had while at Lafayette.”

Meulenberg participated in the EU Simulation as a first-year student and as a senior, when she served as president of the International Affairs Club.

“Both times the simulation served to increase my knowledge of how the EU, especially its Parliament, works,” she says. “As each school represents a particular country, in my case first Germany and then Greece, it gives us access to diplomatic officials from each of the two countries, who briefed us on the role of each of their countries within the Union and their stance on issues such as European security and the EU’s Common Agricultural Policy to mention just a few.

For the past two years, Meulenberg has spoken with Lafayette students about life after college as part of an International Affairs Club trip to the nation’s capital led by Pribic. She is a few months away from completing a master’s in international affairs with a concentration in conflict studies.

“My studies at Lafayette and my experience at the simulation both prepared me for my life now in Washington D.C.,” she says. “I would recommend graduate study in D.C. to anyone interested in the international affairs arena and who wishes to have access to a wide array of work experience while they study.”

Frese says she is learning a great deal from fellow students — many having served in the Peace Corps or with nongovernmental organizations — as she pursues a master’s in international development with a focus in U.S. foreign aid policy and South Asia. She is serving an internship with the South Asia Bureau of the State Department. She also is taking journalism classes and will travel this summer to Hua Hin, Thailand, to serve as a copy editor for the Asia Times.

“Lafayette’s international affairs program has definitely prepared me for the Elliott School, she says. “It’s especially nice to be in grad school right after undergrad, when you still remember how to write academically. However, this is a practical skills school and I have had a chance to learn how to prepare memos and policy memorandums and such. It’s a great opportunity and a great place to be because there are a lot of internship opportunities.