The University of Arkansas at Little Rock will host a community event on Friday, Nov. 8, recounting the adventures of 17 students who competed at the International Model Arab League conference in Morocco in October. 

The community event, free and open to the public, will take place from 5-8 p.m. at UA Little Rock Downtown, 333 President Clinton Ave., Little Rock. 

The Model Arab League is a student leadership development program created by the National Council on U.S.-Arab Relations. It is a simulation of an international organization, the League of Arab States, which represents 22 countries. From Oct. 17-26, UA Little Rock students served as representatives of Sudan, Kuwait, Oman, Tunisia, and Morocco in the conference simulation, followed by a cultural immersion in Morocco.

UA Little Rock’s School of Public Affairs will present the inaugural UA Little Rock Model Arab League Alumni Excellence Award to Miguel Lopez, Hispanic resource officer for First Community Bank. Lopez graduated from UA Little Rock with a bachelor’s degree in political science, graduate certificate in nonprofit management, and master’s degree in public administration.

As an active member in the community, Lopez serves on the boards of UA Little Rock Alumni Board, Just Communities of Arkansas, Harmony Health Clinic, Museum of Discovery, and Goodwill of Arkansas Education Initiatives.

“Miguel Lopez is an outstanding UA Little Rock alum who attended our first trip to the International Model Arab League in Morocco in 2016,” Glazier said. “Since then, Miguel has become an active community leader. We hope that hearing about his journey will serve as an inspiration to students who hope to become leaders like him.”

The event will also feature a silent auction with items brought back from Morocco, including hand-crafted rugs, jewelry, tea glasses, pottery, and scarves. Framed photographs from Morocco taken by Larry Rhodes, learning technology coordinator in the College of Social Sciences and Communication, will also be available for sale.

All funds raised from the silent auction will go to the creation of a new scholarship fund to help students who have participated in Model Arab League simulations study abroad. First Community Bank has generously donated $2,500 toward the new scholarship.

In the upper right photo, UA Little Rock students visit the Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca, Morocco, the largest mosque in Africa. Photo by Larry Rhodes.