About Us
The Leon Charney Diplomacy Program was established at Florida Atlantic University in 1996. Since its inception, the program has offered students interested in international affairs unique opportunities to enhance their diplomatic skills in areas such as speech writing, public speaking, negotiation, dispute resolution and research. In 2017, the Program was named to honor the legacy of Leon Charney.
Annually, the Program fields and trains a delegation of student diplomats to represent the university in collegiate competitions. FAU's Leon Charney Diplomacy Program has competed in diplomatic simulations in New York, Washington, D.C., San Francisco, Chicago, Seattle, Portland, Indianapolis and Maastricht, Netherlands.
Diplomatic competitions are simulations of major international organizations in which schools are assigned countries and students serve as diplomats of their assigned country. Student-delegates must remain in diplomatic and country character throughout the competition, and strive to solve the myriad of problems confronted by the organization. In preparation for the competitions, students compose a portfolio that contains country information, committee assignment documents and topic backgrounds. Additionally, students draft country profiles and resolutions that are judged by conference organizers.
Administration
Jeffrey S. Morton, Professor of International Law & Diplomacy, is the Director of the Leon Charney Diplomacy. He is responsble for general administration of the Program and leads fundraising efforts.
Annette LaRocco, Senior Associate Director of Political Science, is an expert on African affairs and environmental regulation. In her capacity as Associate Director of the Diplomacy Program Dr. LaRocco trains and advises students in their preparations for competitions.
Timothy Steigenga, Professor of Political Science in the Wilkes Honors College, is Associate Director in charge of Program development and operations on the Jupiter campus.
Olyvia R. Christley, Assistant Professor in the Department of Political Science, serves as Assistant Director of the Diplomacy Program. She is responsible for training students who participate in Model United Nations and European Union conferences.
"Want to learn more?"
Hear directly from our students. For more information about the Leon Charney Diplomacy Program and our relationship with the Charney Resolution Center, watch the video below with FAU student-diplomats and the ambassadors from the CRC.