The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) is held annually in the United Nations building on 45th Street in Midtown Manhattan. Delegates from 193 member states meet in coordinated sessions held from September through December to discuss and resolve international issues. The UNGA is a symbol of international cooperation and the cruciality of diplomatic discussions.
Location is not the only thing Baruch has in common with the UNGA. In fact, many Baruchians have grown up with the influence of the U.N. their entire lives. Seniors Tim Zhainakov, Abylai Zhassuzakov and Marko Frchkoski’s fathers all work for the organization, representing different states within different job positions.
Zhainakov’s father works within the Permanent Mission of Kazakhstan to the United States. He said moving from Kazakhstan to China to America due to his dad’s position has taught him to better adapt to new surroundings and learn not to get too comfortable with one place.
Zhainakov met friend and fellow Blue Devil, Zhassuzakov while living in China. They got to know each other in kindergarten but lost touch when Zhainakov moved. They reunited when Zhassuzakov came to the US last year.
They were family friends of sorts, so Zhainakov’s mother told him about Zhassuzako’s imminent arrival. Zhainakov being at Baruch influenced Zhassuzakov’s decision to apply to the school.
Zhassuzakov’s father works as a military colonel to Kazakhstan’s mission to the UN. Despite his dad’s prestigious position, Zhassuzakov said he “doesn’t want to be in the military. My family says that it’s my life, and I can do what I want with it. Working in the military is sort of a Plan- B.”
Frchkoski represents a different country and a different story of arrival here to Baruch.
Frchkoski’s father works as a representative of the Mission of Macedonia to the U.N. He moved from Europe to New York City in the summer of 2022. He said his father’s job has sparked his interest in travel and has allowed him to adjust to new environments a lot faster and smoother.
Zhassuzakov and Zhainakov agreed that although they share immense pride in their fathers’ work, they’re still unsure of what their future aspirations and career paths will look like. As of now, they know they don’t want to work in the diplomatic field.
Junior Shivam Sahoo and senior Uddeshya Agrawal met because of their parents’ positions. Sahoo’s dad is a second secretary for the Permanent Mission of India to the U.N. and Agrawal’s mom is an attaché for the Permanent Mission of India to the U.N. Sahoo and Agrawal live only one floor apart from each other and discovered they attend the same school a few weeks after meeting.
Sahoo said he was nervous about how to connect with people.
“Having travelled and attended schools in so many countries, I knew how to get familiar with people: be straightforward and confident,” he said. “That’s similar to a U.N. job, you talk to people and establish connections with them.”
Sahoo and Agrawal agree it was very easy to establish a connection with each other because of their proximity but also the similar lifestyles they’re leading. Agrawal said he “was fortunate enough to be in a grade where a lot of kids in grade 12 are diplomat kids, like Tim, Abylai and Marko so it was much easier to establish a connection.”
Sahoo doesn’t want to become a diplomat, but he wishes to find a job that includes as much traveling and exploring as possible. He’s lived in Germany, Poland and Belgium.
Agrawal admires the hard work, dedication and commitment his mother has to her job and India which is why he plans to follow in her footsteps and become a diplomat.
Regardless of the various countries that each students’ parent represents, different positions they hold in the U.N. and the different grade levels they are in, this has not stopped them from becoming very close friends.
Zhainakov, Zhassuzakov and Frchkoski concur that although the similarity drew them together, the qualities they found within each other resulted in true friendship.
