Model United Nations is a program that engages thousands of students across the globe, and simulates students having the role of a delegate from different countries in an attempt to resolve a real world problem with other delegates. This simulation has been known to help students understand how the UN works, and utilize their negotiation skills as delegates to resolve a current issue. It also trains students to actively engage in discussions regarding their topic, and passionately debate why their solution will better resolve the conflict.
Just recently, on October 28th, our school’s very own Model United Nations team participated in a tournament at Cerritos High School. Although this tournament was a novice-friendly tournament, nerves and anticipation were high as the members arrived at Cerritos. After practicing and finalizing their opening speeches, they were all headed to their designated conference rooms, where they would meet other delegates representing different countries. Although the atmosphere was unfamiliar as most students had no other San Marino students in the same room, they were quickly able to adapt and have friendly conversations with other delegates.
After listening to everyone’s opening speeches, delegates are free to roam around the room and engage in conversations with other delegates who have similar resolutions. These delegates will then work together during unmoderated caucuses in order to write a resolution paper in a short amount of time, these delegates would need to work collaboratively and ensure they all have similar goals in mind.
All the members were seen to actively participate in this competitive tournament, and in the end, five students were able to receive an award of excellence: Aayan Khan, Nathaniel Eberwein, Claire Lee, Stephen Wu, and Austin Yang. These five students demonstrated their hard work, determination, their ability to actively participate in discussions, and overall, stood out to the chair as valuable delegates. “In my first Model UN conference of 2023, my teammates and I went and had a great time. Through our discussions, I learned and improved my public speaking skills. I am very, very honored and joyed to receive the award of excellence,” Austin Yang, 11, expressed.
With many tournaments to come, the San Marino Model United Nations team holds a promising year, and through their hard work and dedication, are sure to achieve many more awards and titles.
