The BYU Model United Nations (MUN) program hosted a conference attended by 23 high schools to practice skills of collaboration and diplomacy on Friday, Oct. 11.
BYU students currently taking IAS 351R took various positions leading the conference as the high school students represented a variety of countries to practice international diplomacy.
The BYU student helpers in IAS 351R, a MUN preparation course, will compete in a similar simulation competition in New York this coming April.
Kelly Russell, executive director of the conference and an instructor for the BYU MUN class, said a total of 499 high school students gathered to participate in this all day event. Anya Searle, a teacher's assistant of the IAS 351 BYU Model UN class and the secretary general of this year’s conference, explained the purpose the conference plays in the learning of BYU students and high schoolers alike.
“It's really an invaluable experience to participate in Model United Nations because it can teach you a lot about what kind of leadership is truly the most effective,” Searle said. “Our college students are ready to help as staff, and then I think the high schoolers are ready, too, so it’ll be a good time.”
The conference began with an opening ceremony featuring the keynote speaker, Christina Tomlinson, who works as the Deputy Executive Secretary at the U.S. Department of State. She expressed appreciation that the students gave their time to come and practice this type of academic communication.
“We have enough problem makers in the world,” Tomlinson said. “What we need desperately are problem solvers, and your participation here today indicates that you already understand that, and I applaud you for your decision to be here.”
She continued to explain her involvement in international relations and actions the United States is taking as part of the United Nations. The United Nations has succeeded as a “continuing mechanism of utility,” Tomlinson said.
Working with 193 nations is not an easy task, but “we believe it's important to show up,” Tomlinson said.
Tomlinson finished by urging the high school students to “work for consensus wherever possible.”
The high school and BYU students dispersed to various rooms in the Wilkinson Center to participate in a variety of councils and committees. The number of students in each room varied from 62 to about 120.
In these councils, led by a panel of leaders called a dais, the high school students had opportunities to communicate and express diverse perspectives to create solutions together. These solutions, called resolutions, were written during the conference and voted on by the students, who operated as delegates for their assigned countries.
BYU students enrolled in the Model UN class that worked the conference shared their experiences with the high schoolers.
One, Brycen Eaton, said he had his first exposure to Model UN at the conference. He was impressed by the passion the high schoolers displayed.
“It’s not gonna do anything, but they're putting everything into it as if this is like a life or death scenario,” Eaton said. “Everything they have is on the field, and that's really cool.”
Carson Price, a business major interested in international relations, enjoyed speaking with a few of the high schoolers during the breaks. A freshman that he met is “already finding out he wants to go to law school.”
“Just like so ambitious. That's what I like is how impressive the students are. So smart,” Eaton said.
Cory Leonard, instructor of the Model UN class at BYU, called Model UN the "ultimate experiential learning activity.” After teaching the college students the rules and process of the United Nations, he was able to watch them put their learning into practice.
“They know the rules, and now they’re playing the game,” Leonard said.
The skills that students who participate in Model UN gain skills that are applicable to any area of study or profession. Jim Hodges, a high school teachers who has taken students to BYU Model UN conferences for 28 years, believes that the best method of learning is doing.
“I always teach my kids that the way you get better at public speaking is by public speaking,” Hodges said. “If you're nervous about public speaking, then publicly speak.”
Hodges has seen the skills developed at Model UN benefit alumni that he has been able to come in contact with.
Lucia Bacon, a BYU student that was also able to work the conference, expressed how public speaking and communication skills benefited her.
“I did speech and debate in high school, and there are skills there that I'll randomly be like, whoa, just like randomly public speaking. Not an issue for me because it was ingrained,” Bacon said.
Bacon was able to see this in the high schoolers at the conference.
“They're building themselves up,” Bacon said.
After making speeches, mingling collaboratively and writing drafts of solutions, committees voted towards the end of the day to pass the resolutions they created. BYU students guided high schoolers through the process, giving them tips along the way.
To end the conference, the directors of the conference announced awards for the high school students at a closing ceremony. These awards recognized students who included others in collaboration, gave compelling speeches, demonstrated understanding of how to write a resolution and overall showed a well-rounded effort.
A few high school teachers were also recognized. Searle explained that the high school teachers make a sacrifice to get their students to the conference.
“I have a lot of respect for our high school teachers because they don't get paid any extra to be doing this,” Searle said. “They really just prepare their students out of a desire to help them to have a great future where they're a lot more comfortable in networking settings and in public speaking and in all of these things that will really help them in college and beyond.”
The high schoolers celebrated their efforts toward professionalism and developing skills with a slideshow of pictures that were taken during the conference.
Searle had the opportunity during the winter semester to go to New York and participate in the weeklong national Model UN conference. She shared what her time participating in Model UN has taught her about leadership.
“The loudest voice isn't always the best leader,” Searle said. “And in fact, it's better to have a collaborative spirit in nature and to have people working with you because they want to and because they feel like their voices are being heard rather than out of fear or out of obligation.”