Edgemont MUN's success at WUMUNS

Edgemont High School’s Model UN team saw great success at their first conference of the school year, the Washington University Model UN Symposium (WUMUNS). The two-day event, held virtually on October 2nd and 3rd, led the team to win Best Large Delegation, and nine students won individual awards. Taylan Tastan and Aryan Unnikrishnan won the Best Delegate award, Isha Bahadur and Raj Silva won Outstanding Delegate, Samika Agarwal, Sammy Richter, and Sam Bernstein won Verbal Commendation, and Bella Jabbour and Raphie Cai received the Honorable Mention, each from their respective committee.

“I adored the lively spirit of my peers and their upbeatness while debating serious topics."

At the conference, students were in committees modeled after real United Nations committees. They debated topics ranging from the Nigerian Civil War to the Bush/Gore election. Janice Lin, a sophomore, was in the House of Representatives committee and represented Saxby Chambliss, a Republican U.S. Representative. Her committee debated the outcome of the Bush v. Gore Supreme Court case and decided that Lindsey Graham would become president after Mike Pence and Paul Ryan, the previous presidents, were assassinated. “I most definitely enjoyed playing a part in it all,” Janice said. “I adored the lively spirit of my peers and their upbeatness while debating serious topics.”

“everyone acting like a different character that had the power to decide a country’s future was a unique experience and certainly a lot of fun.”

For novices (MUN lingo for first-year members), WUMUNS was the first conference they’d ever attended. Sophie Jost, a sophomore, said it was “a great learning experience for her and her fellow novices”. Nandini Singh, also a sophomore, agreed, adding that “everyone acting like a different character that had the power to decide a country’s future was a unique experience and certainly a lot of fun.” Both of them are looking forward to future conferences and “can’t wait to engage in debate and diplomacy again.”

“Overall the conference was extremely engaging, despite it being online, and I look forward to bonding with my fellow Edgemont MUNners during our upcoming in-person conferences.”

For Isha Bahadur, a senior, WUMUNS was a great way to kick off her last year on the Edgemont MUN team. “While I was initially frustrated that no one wanted to stage a coup against the Pharaoh, I was able to convince some of my fellow committee members to help me in my endeavors,” she said. “Overall the conference was extremely engaging, despite it being online, and I look forward to bonding with my fellow Edgemont MUNners during our upcoming in-person conferences.”

“I was pleasantly surprised yet thrilled to be recognized and hope to continue improving at each conference”

Bella Jabbour went into the conference with “a lot of nerves and little expectations of winning”. She thought that “it was great to work with like-minded individuals from all over the country, develop solutions, and see how everything played out.” Over the course of the conference, her confidence and leadership skills grew, and she was able to win an award for them. “Although it was only an Honorable Mention,” she said, “I was pleasantly surprised yet thrilled to be recognized and hope to continue improving at each conference.”

The next conference for the Edgemont MUN team is the Rutgers Model United Nations (RUMUN). It’s to be held in person from November 18th-21st, and members have already received their committee and room assignments. At the multi-day event, they’ll represent different countries and figures and discuss topics like restructuring the Soviet Union, the Venezuelan economic crisis and promoting sustainable tourism with students from all over the country.

The team’s other “big” conferences of the year are The Ivy League Model United Nations Conference (ILMUNC) in late January and the National High School Model United Nations Conference (NHSMUN) in mid-March, both of which are planned to be held in person, in Philadelphia and New York City, respectively. If Edgemont's success at WUMUNS serves as an indicator, these events are going to be filled with lots of fun and success.

Congratulations to the team for winning Best Large Delegation and to the students who won awards. Good luck at RUMUN!