Recently, the LRHS Model United Nations club attended a conference at UNC Chapel Hill, from February 27 through March 1. The delegates spent three days practicing diplomacy, enhancing their public speaking, and hanging out on Franklin Street. 

The Model UN Chapel Hill conference — MUNCH for short — hosts hundreds of high school students from all over North Carolina, as well as surrounding states. This year, MUNCH had over 20 committees, including General Assemblies, General Assembly Pluses, Crisis Committees, and Ad Hocs. 

College students at Chapel Hill run the conference entirely, not only designing detailed background guides for each committee, but also organizing registration and communication with dozens of high schools. 

Friday was the first day of the conference, and delegates attended an opening ceremony to kick off the weekend. The keynote speaker was a UNC business professor, who spoke about her nonprofit work and hosted a panel of college students who also had experience with the same organization. 

Then, delegates made their way to their first committee session, which was three hours long. In the opening committee session, delegates were quickly immersed in their respective issues. Each committee had a different set of issues; some topics the LRHS delegates tackled included international security with artificial intelligence in the 21st century, decolonization in the 20th century, and the battle against Ottoman expansion in the 15th century.

James Stroup, freshman, said, “Committee on Friday was definitely a learning experience in multiple regards, it being my first time in committee. [Passing] sticky notes for communication… are an important piece of the process of building towards writing a resolution.”

Saturday was a long haul, as delegates had three committee sessions from 10 am to 9 pm. However, there were breaks for lunch and dinner, so the LRHS students ventured out to Franklin Street, eating at staples like I Love NY Pizza and Raising Canes. In between the stresses of committee, the delegates found great times to have fun and bond.

“On Saturday… The fun came in forming alliances with other delegates and writing pieces of the resolution paper as a solution to the topics we debated,” said Stroup.

Alexa Buenaventura, sophomore, said, “On Saturday, we were given about 1-2 hour breaks for lunch and dinner which helped me get through the day. I got to chat with people from my committee as well as people from my club. Saturday actually went by fast because my committee was very interesting.” 

By the end of the day on Saturday, every committee had finished solving their issues through passing resolution papers and directives. On Sunday, there was one brief committee session — Fun MUN — where delegates played games like Hot Seat, saying goodbye to the fast friendships they made with students from hundreds of miles away.

After the last session, the LRHS students had a celebratory lunch on Franklin Street, recapping the lessons and excitement from the weekend.

“For my first MUN conference, I thought it went really well. I learned a lot from watching other people speak. I learned that everyone makes mistakes, so it’s alright if you do too. I met tons of new people and made new friends,” said Buenaventura.

“I most enjoyed meeting several new people over the weekend… Committee brings varying people together… and the debates and discussions tell a great deal about these people,” said Stroup.

There are a few graduating seniors in the LRHS Model UN this year, including Sarah Boada-Silva. “My favorite part of this club is being able to debate fun topics with the people around me. There was one meeting this year where we debated what the best fried chicken place was, and, boy, did that get heated. Just getting to hear everyone’s point of view and find common interests with people was really great,” said Boada-Silva.

The Model UN is a special community, giving students the opportunity to grow as public speakers and leaders.

“Model UN was the very first club I ever joined. I remember feeling out of place the first few meetings because of how knowledgeable everyone seemed… However, I can say that as time has passed, my confidence has developed… Leaving Model UN means leaving behind the place that helped me grow my confidence, and I could not be more grateful for it,” said Boada-Silva.