MUN

Lancaster Country Day School is one of only six secondary schools in the nation invited to participate in the week-long International Model United Nations Conference (IMUN). This conference is officially recognized by the United Nations and held at The Hague, Netherlands (www.thimun.org). Each year, this prestigious event brings together over 4000 students from 130 countries to experience international politics and gain global perspective. LCDS has offered this program as part of its upper school curriculum since 1980.

A Student's Perspective on MUN

Dan Smith ‘06

Ever since I heard of the Model United Nations class at Lancaster Country Day School, I wanted to participate.

The reality of what I had gotten myself into didn't hit me until I began working in the Model United Nations class. The idea of traveling halfway around the world to meet with about 3,800 kids of my age, who came from over 100 different countries to discuss world problems, was unnerving. To top it off, we discovered that this year we'd be representing China, one of the most powerful countries in the United Nations, and a member of the U.N. Security Council.

The amount of information we needed to learn was unbelievable. Under the direction of Mr. Smedley, we learned about China and its global agenda. Each of us wrote two resolutions, which are United Nations-style documents designed to offer specific solutions to pressing issues. The resolutions would be debated at M.U.N. in the committees and sub-commissions. Our class spent countless hours researching, writing and re-writing resolutions.

The months [of preparation] passed very quickly until our January trip to The Hague arrived.

I was worried that I was not prepared enough. On the first day of the conference, I felt scared, but my fears were soon lifted when I started talking with other students in the disarmament commission who felt the same way. I then decided to talk to as many people as possible and found many students working on the same resolutions as mine. After negotiating and merging resolutions several times, my group selected me to submit the resolutions.

Two days later, I gave a speech in front of two hundred people. I had never been a great public speaker, but I felt that the speech helped to win over the other representatives. After an hour or two of intense debate, my resolution passed by a margin of over one hundred votes. The next day, I had to present my resolution in front of five hundred people and again my resolution passed by a large margin.

This was one of the greatest scholastic accomplishments I have ever experienced. The feeling that accompanies creating something that people my age believed was worthy of approval provided me with a sense of pride and accomplishment. I saw these same feelings in my classmates, as well.