After eight months of planning, Aragon hosted its first joint Model United Nations conference with Mills High School on January 28 at Aragon High School.
Usually run by undergraduate students on college campuses, Model United Nations conferences are events where students participate on committees that focus on global and national issues. Students act as delegates representing different nations while debating international issues and deciding on immediate plans of action following sudden, simulated crises.
Mills-Aragon Model United Nations was unique in that it was almost entirely student run. Club members from Mills and Aragon served not only as committee chairs but also the secretariat and staff that helped carry out crises which would dramatically alter the committees’ course. Senior Andrew Lyu from Aragon High School and senior Ryan Lim from Mills High School spearheaded the organization of the conference.
Committees were comprised of the Security Council, Human Rights Council, International Atomic Energy Agency and the World Health Organization. Vice president of Mills MUN club senior Julia Hu, who acted as a chair at the conference, says, “We had to write the topics guide and develop how our committee [would] run.”
Lim says, “Andrew thought about asking the chairs what committees they wanted. We wanted general [topics] that would be interesting and wouldn’t alienate new delegates. Topics our chairs felt were interesting and had knowledge of.”
In planning the conference, recruiting and attendance were primary issues. Staffer sophomore Patrick Lin says, “We had projected around 50 people, but ended up with 30.” This was primarily due to conflicts with the SAT on the same day.
Furthermore, a large portion of those attending the conference were newcomers. Lin says, “Most of the delegates were first timers, so they weren’t as well versed and didn’t do as much research as expected.”
Yet, those running the conference adjusted quickly to these sudden pitfalls. Hu says, “We split committees. Overall the conference was pretty smooth.” Those in the staff and secretariat encouraged participation during conferences by creating crises that would simulate debate.
Many delegates expressed a positive response toward having fellow high school students leading the conference. Sophomore delegate Jacqueline Pei says, “A high school run MUN conference seems much more laid back, which is a plus since you have more room for trial and error. It allows you to make mistakes, learn from them, and be a better delegate in future conferences.”
Lin says, “The first thing you notice is that it is more relaxed and less intense [than other conferences]. It is much smaller.”
At the same time, the conference maintained a level of formality similar to that of an undergraduate run conference. Junior delegate Carly Olson says, “I was actually really surprised with how knowledgeable the chairs were. [They] were formal and had decorum. I was kind [of] intimidated by them because they knew so much.”
Pei says, “They ran discussions accordingly and formally, but when we weren’t debating, they were really relaxed and fun. Plus, they’re pretty funny, too, which also helped delegates feel comfortable when participating in debate.”
Those running the conference express similarly approving reactions. Hu says, “After I became a co-chair, I never want to be a delegate [again]. It is just a lot more fun to come up with the ideas. It’s very difficult to be in the secretariat, making crises. After the conference, I give a lot of props to the people running the conference.”
Lim says, “We were all learning; it was better that way. [Both] the people running the conference and delegates were new to this. Since it was our first year, I wasn’t expecting that much, but it turned out okay.”
With regard to the future of the Mills Aragon Model United Nations conference, club members have projected plans for the future. Lim says, “Next year we are going to expand. This was a good initial start.”
