New Model UN Club

New+Model+UN+Club

Sahar Saiyed, 12th Grade

If you’re interested in politics or international relations and like to do hands-on activities, Model UN is for you!  What is Model UN, you might ask?  Well, MUN is an extra-curricular activity that was started back in the 1950s in which participants simulate United Nations organizations such as UN General Assembly, UN Security Council, UNICEF, and others.  Participants, or delegates, play the role of ambassadors from various countries and debate current issues.  Model UN participants learn how the international community acts on its concerns about topics including peace and security, human rights, the environment, food and hunger, economic development and globalization. MUN is a popular activity across the country – around 400,000 students participate yearly!

As a delegate of our Model UN team, you will have a variety of tasks and responsibilities.  You and your partner will be required to research your assigned country as well as an issue pertaining to that nation.  You will also be writing a position paper in which you state your country’s stance on the issue and propose possible solutions.  At the Model UN conference, you and/or your partner will present your position.  Each representative country will do the same, and then Q&A sessions and debates known as “caucusing” will occur.  After different countries’ positions have been debated, committees will work together to come up with a written resolution statement.  The resolution will provide the committee’s collective proposal on how to solve the issue at hand.  At the end of the conference, special delegates will be given awards for exceptional position papers, effective debating, good teamwork, and playing an active role in the resolution.

Joining Model UN is a great way to build your college resume and acquire valuable experience.  If you join Model UN, you’ll become aware of current international issues.  You will improve your public speaking and debating skills, which will be beneficial for years to come.  No matter what your future career, public speaking skills are a necessity.  Model UN is also fun!  We will be attending a conference in the spring, so we’ll be going on a field trip with our MUN team.  You will also get to meet delegates from other schools.

THS is fortunate enough to have a handful of students who have already participated in a MUN conference.  Senior Kenna Khan was asked about her thoughts on Model United Nations, and she stated, “It’s thrilling that THS is starting up with MUN! I participated in the club during middle school and I’m really eager to participate as a student at Teaneck High School.”

Don’t just take Kenna’s word for it!  Come check it out for yourself!  Make sure to be on the look-out for announcements on upcoming meetings.  We’re looking forward to seeing YOU there!