On April 6 and 7, twelve Pleasant Valley High School students had the opportunity to participate in the Iowa High School Model United Nations conference in Cedar Falls. At the conference, all students acted as delegates representing a particular country. The Pleasant Valley students were there representing France.
According to the Iowa High School Model United Nations, “The Iowa High School Model United Nations program was created to host conferences that model the operations of the United Nations to help educate students on the workings of the organization and to inspire students, our future leaders, to take an active role in the shaping of their world.”
Over 400 high school students from across the state of Iowa attended and participated in the event, which was essentially a mock United Nations conference. Prior to attending, they each prepared position papers stating the stances of the countries they would be representing on the particular topics that were to be discussed at the event.
At the conference, the students were divided into smaller committees to discuss a variety of topics. Throughout the conference, each committee debated various issues relating to their topic, to create a resolution similar to one that would be created at a real United Nations meeting.
One Pleasant Valley student who participated at the conference was Isabelle Davis, junior. She said, “The conference helped me gain a better understanding of the political process and a greater appreciation for the United Nations.”
A large amount of the conference was spent debating in a serious manner, as the real United Nations would do. However, the students also enjoyed several joke amendments. Davis said, “One of our most memorable amendments in the resolution that we passed called for all member states to fund and support the creation of an orbit-based nuclear defense system, the Death Star.”
Since returning from the conference, the Pleasant Valley students are excited to begin preparing for next year. They will continue to hold meetings, and look forward to returning to the conference in the years to come.
