Students attended the American School in Milan MUN Conference Nov. 9-11 alongside several international schools.
Elsa Skorski (’27) said the Milan trip this year gave her the opportunity to learn more about how the conferences function.
“I like wanting to try something new and go there to experience it for the first time, so I felt like it would just be like a fun experience to see if it’s something I want to like, pursue,” Skorski said.
Meanwhile, Marcus Chae (’24) said he decided to go on the trip to have an enjoyable experience during his last year in High School.
“In the past, MUN for me has always been something that I’ve been passionate about, and I’ve taken it quite seriously,” Chae said. “Upon being a senior, and post-submitting applications, I was like, ‘I just kind of want to go to have more fun.’ So this time was about just having fun, meeting new people.”
HS Social Studies Teacher Shrita Gajendragadkar said a large percentage of students on the trip were Grade 9 students, and she was happy many students who previously took part in MUN plan to continue in High School.
Furthermore, Gajendragadkar said older students were able to support younger students on the trip.
“We had several older students who are really great role models for the younger students, helping them, talking them through the committee sessions, helping lead the group as necessary,” Gajendragadkar said. “It was really nice to see the older student-younger student bonding experience.”
Likewise, Chae said, due to the large number of Grade 9 and 10 students on the trip, he was able to improve his leadership skills.
“People are forever growing based on their experiences, and I think human beings in general learn from different environments,” Chae said. “I kind of felt a bit more responsible than I have in the past going on these trips, but at the same time, that kind of leadership is something that I believe is learned and not taught.”
Chae said the trip also allowed him to make stronger connections with people he knew and new students.
“It was nice, like seeing familiar faces of people who [I] have not seen for an entire year and weren’t expecting to see,” Chae said. “So it was nice to rekindle those relationships as well as meet some new people as well.”
Furthermore, Skorski said she felt like she was “able to connect with everyone who went on the trip” due to the relatively small number of students who attended the conference.
Through participating in this conference, Skorski said she gained more confidence in presenting.
“I learned ways on how to improve my public speaking skills,” Skorski said. “I think it made me more aware of how MUN actually works and if I want to keep doing it.”
Overall, Gajendragadkar said the conference was a great experience for students since it allowed them to gain more confidence in their speaking skills and meet students from different countries.
“[Students] gain a whole lot from interacting with students from different schools, both in terms of seeing how different students present their countries or their topics, but then also getting to know students from different countries,” Gajendragadkar said. “It’s truly a global classroom experience for our students.”
