Spring break for many undergraduates means sandy beaches with a sun setting in the distance and tan bodies streched out near the ocean. But for 28 Harvard students, the last week in March will mean a trip to rainy and humid Luxembourg to manage the third annual Harvard Model Congress Europe (HMCE) conference.

Started three years ago by Alexander E. Shustorovich '88, the HMCE is "the first and only American-run conference in Europe," Shustorovich says.

The major goal of the conference is to teach high school students from Europe and Africa about the American governmental system by organizing a three-day simulation of the U.S. Congress, National Security Council (NSC) and press corps, according to organizers.

"We hope students gain a better understanding of how the U.S. government works," says Andria L. Derstine '91, president of the HMCE, adding that the conference presents students a "different perspective" in governmental systems.

"It's an important educational experience," says Marc D. Posner '91, joint secretary of state of the HMCE. "Like it or not, America is a large political factor in the world. This will give [European students] a better understanding of why delays happen. Problems that arise may seem inexplicable to Europeans."

Organizers say that Europeans can learn about the two-party system in the U.S., which is different from the multi-party governments found in their own countries.

Some HMCE members, however, say they feel that it is not the European students who benefit the most, but rather they themselves who do.

"We benefit more than they can benefit from us," says James H. Fowler '92, chief of staff for HMCE. "They accuse us of being conservative," Fowler says, adding "Soviet students say maybe the U.S. could use more perestroika."

Fowler says that many Europeans believe that because there are only two parties in the American political system, a wide diversity of opinion is not represented in government.

A Model U.N. in Luxembourg

Planned for March 29, 30 and 31, the event will be held in Luxembourg City's European Parliament building. The use of the building was donated by the Luxembourg government for those three days following an agreement made with Prime Minister Jaques Santer during Santer's visit to a Harvard Model United Nations in 1987.

"[Santer] liked the idea of model U.N. and suggested that we do something similar in Luxembourg," says Shustorovich.

For the first time a simulation of the House of Representatives is planned, said organizers. Unlike the real House which contains 435 members, the simulation has only 300 participants. The full Senate, NSC and the press corps will again be represented as in past years.

Students in their respective committees will discuss AIDS, the international debt, the Central American drug problem, bilinguism in schools and changes in Eastern Europe.

HMCE members participate in the conference as committee chairs if they are staff members, while HMCE executives and president "shape the conference," says Derstine.