Sophomore Jane Kwak learned the rules of a Model United Nations conference an hour before attending and brought home a first place win. Such achievement for her very first conference will be an unforgettable moment for her and the rest of the MUN members.
Kwak, being a novice, had juniors Sophia Goldblatt, Emma Kojonroj, Maryjane Santamaria, YaeEun Han, and senior Evelyn Ishikawa quickly summarize key terms and break down the basics moments before while waiting at a cafe. Some may see Kwak’s win as beginner’s luck, but Kwak said it was a result of having helpful classmates and being bold.
“I just spoke a lot,” said Kwak, who won first place in the UN High Commissioner for Refugees committee. “The same advice from those five delegates was that no matter what the topic is that we’re talking about, you always raise your hand to talk.”
Fullerton’s MUN competed with over 450 delegates at the Valley Regional MUN conference Feb. 3 at Granada Hills Charter High School. Seven of the 13 participating FUHS students won an award.
In preparation, students must learn to take different positions based on their given country to discuss problems and create solutions. This challenged the common “American perspective” having to advocate for other countries as if your own based on various dilemmas. Model UN serves to broaden perspective and understanding.
Sophomore Jane Kwak took the stand as Italy, discussing the effects of the Russo Ukrainian crisis and the increase of refugees in neighboring countries.
“Italy is having this financial crisis and the only way out of this crisis that other countries are facing as well because of the refugee crisis is the fact that the war needs to end,” Kwak said. “Ukrainians are trying to evacuate and they’re trying to go to those financially stable countries like Italy who are very rich and are more welcoming to refugees.”
Junior Yae-Eun Han, representing St. Kitts and Nevis, talked about promoting STEM education in Latin America and the difficulties faced in attempts.
“40 percent of students [in Latin America] don’t have access to the internet, which makes STEM education really hard because it’s all about science and technology,” said Han, who won fourth place in the UN International Children’s Emergency Fund committee. “We really wanted to focus on poverty because kind of our idea was that If I don’t have enough to eat on the table, I’m not going to be focusing on wanting to become a STEM scholar. If my family is starving, obviously I’m not going to do well in school.”
One of the most common concerns students face when wanting to join MUN is the fear of public speaking. Luckily, the club members actively provide information and advice to newcomers to ensure success.
Junior Sophia Goldblatt, the public affairs officer, said the most important thing about speaking at a conference is having a good opening speech.
“In model UN, the more you talk the better,” said Goldblatt, who won fourth place in the UN International Children’s Emergency Fund committee. “One notable strategy that everyone uses is trying to get to be the first person to speak. When it comes to speech, it’s having something that separates yourself, being able to dive into a character, being able to perform a certain way with your movement, and that’s kind of important to get their attention.”
Senior Evelyn Ishikawa who won fourth place in the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization committee said she recently discovered over-preparing isn’t required for success.
“I just kind of go with the flow, that’s why I was really surprised when I got an award,” Ishikawa said. “I didn’t know going with the flow could actually lead to somewhere.”
Because Fullerton’s MUN was implemented as a club, students initially felt intimidated by other classes at conferences but now feel content with what they currently built up.
“We’re just happy to be here; we just want to compete,” Goldblatt said. “The fact that we could afford to go to a conference is awesome because I think in the past fundraising has been a little bit difficult.”
Club advisor and social studies teacher, Katy Wren, says she is proud of her students for reestablishing MUN because of the importance it holds.
“’I’m very proud of what they’ve [club members] done in such a short amount of time,” Wren said. “I think one of the best things about MUN is that it helps students develop a better understanding of what’s going on in our world. Kids not only have to research and look into specific things that are happening across the globe, but they also have to come up with realistic solutions to these problems in a community setting.”
Other winners include Junior Hamza Cabrer who won a Research award in the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Junior Mae Pantoja who won second place on gun control policy, and Junior Emma Kojonroj who won first place on gun control policy.
MUN will travel to USC in April. Another conference will be hosted at Fullerton Union High School. The topic will be on the French Revolution and students will represent a character from the revolution attempting to resolve the crisis.
