18 Model United Nations (MUN) upper school club members won awards at the virtual TritonMUN and BruinMUN Conferences on Nov. 7 and 22, which are traditionally held at Triton College and University of California, Los Angeles, respectively..
The online conferences gave students the opportunity to discuss various topics, such as the regulation of space-related technology, child soldiers, the Rohingya Genocide, youth disarmament and the civil war in Myanmar.
MUN member Rhea Madhogarhia ’22 won an Honorable Commendation at the BruinMUN Conference and said that the school has prepared her for MUN’s fast-paced environment.
“I’d like to think I got the award by being really vocal and making my voice be heard,” Madhogarhia said.
TritonMUN Conference Commendation Award winner Cory Porter ’22 said that she loves the community of people that she has met through the MUN program.
“I really enjoy the whole process of researching and learning about all of these different topics that you debate during conferences, but it’s even better to do that with friends,” Porter said.
MUN member Stephen Purdum ’22 received awards at the two consecutive conferences. Purdum said he decided to join MUN this year because quarantine gave him more free time throughout the week. He said that MUN has taught him about the importance of conducting in-depth research and learning to s in front of large audiences.
“The purpose of Model UN is to build useful skills like teamwork and public speaking, as well as making a generation of people who are aware of important global issues,” Purdum said.
First-time MUN award winner and conference attendee Idalis McZeal ’23 received a Verbal Commendation Award at the BruinMUN Conference. McZeal said that the award was for being in the top 20% in the committee and also having a well-written position paper, actively participating and demonstrating strong leadership skills.
“I really like how I get to collaborate with others to work for a similar goal and also build advocation skills,” McZeal said.
Madhogarhia said that MUN is a great way for students to learn to think and write quickly, while working closely with their peers.
“I don’t have lots of knowledge regarding foreign policy, but the conference gave me the chance to learn more about global issues and apply that knowledge to create collaborative, informed and realistic solutions,” Madhogarhia said.
Chronicle Print Managing Editor Celine Park ’21 won the Best Award, Jason Morganbesser ’22 won the Outstanding Award, Porter Comstock ’22 and Stephen Purdum ’22 won Honorable Awards and Cory Porter ’22, CC Mesa ’22 and Sofia Llevat ’22 won Commendation Awards at this year’s daylong conference.
Purdum, Mesa, Porter, Amanda Korris ’22, Olivia Feldman ’22, Assistant A&E Editor Sydney Fener ’22and Assistant Features Editor Kate Burry ’22 won Outstanding Delegate Awards, Madhogarhia and Owen Huang ’24 won Honorable Commendation Awards and Jack Moreland ’23 and McZeal won the Verbal Commendation Awards.
