Alumna and Current MAE Student Speaks at UN

Alumna Michaela Hylen spoke at the United Nations during the summer after winning a competitive essay contest.  

A May 2017 graduate and current Master of Arts in Education student, Hylen entered the Many Languages, One World international essay contest and became one of 60 students, out of a pool of more than 2,000 entrants from 170 countries, to be proclaimed a winner. Her essay, written entirely in French, focused on the role multilingual ability can play in fostering global citizenship and cultural understanding.

As part of her winnings, Hylen was provided with an all-expense-paid trip to Boston and New York City where she had the opportunity to speak at the General Assembly of the U.N. She and the other winners presented action plans related to the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

The Many Languages, One World contest challenged students around the globe to write their essays in one of the six official languages of the U.N. that is neither the contestants’ first language nor the medium of instruction in either their primary or secondary education. Entrants were asked to write an essay that reflected their personal, academic, cultural and national context and discussed global citizenship and cultural understanding and the role that multilingual ability can play in fostering these. The official languages of the U.N. are Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish.