Another club activity that can help students to become successful adults is the Model United Nations (MUN). This is an activity which can provide a large list of benefits that can help students to succeed in their life, education, and future careers. With the support of a Model UN Booster Club, it offers an environment in which students can learn about new topics such as current issues, problem-solve and work together to find fitting solutions.
If your school doesn’t have a MUN available for the student body to participate in, your students could be missing out on some excellent experiences that they wouldn’t receive anywhere else.
Like other clubs, this one allows the participants to travel, which unfortunately means that there are some associated costs with this activity. As such, it’s a great idea to get a Model UN booster club in place to help alleviate the costs so that more students can experience the rewards of such a great program.
What is a Model UN and Why Should Students Participate?
The Model UN is a school club for high schools and colleges where students participate in a mock United Nations meeting and discussing the very matters that the real UN deals with. Students become ambassadors and get a hands-on learning experience while learning about diplomacy and pressing issues while filling various positions found within the UN councils.
A topic is given and the students then debate different sides of the matter and draft up proposals on approaches they could take to fix the issues. An immersion into such roleplaying can help a youthful student to open their mind to new ways of thinking and to understanding the world which we all share.
The list of benefits for students is extensive, by simply being a part of the MUN students can:
- Work on their public speaking skills.
- Learn diplomatic and negotiating skills.
- Develop analytical and comprehensive abilities.
- Promotes responsibility.
- Develops leadership skills and builds confidence.
- Learn about culture and politics in other countries.
- Hands-on experience with internal affairs.
- And more.
The MUN not only forces students to work together to solve problems, but it also creates an environment the promotes students to take responsibility. These are all great skills to have as an adult as it can advance help to careers. Not only do students deal with issues that may include an economic side of the matter, so that they can get a better understanding of how money works, but the students are also required to write out all of their resolutions which increases their writing abilities and introduces them to proper documentation and record-keeping.
When you think about all of the benefits that a single student can gain from a MUN club at a school, it’s hard to justify not having one. Creating a Model UN booster club to help create and sustain a MUN club would help to give students experiences that could last a lifetime.
How a Model UN booster club can help student success
With a school activity that is as beneficial as a Model UN club, it makes sense that you’d want as many students to participate as possible. The MUN looks amazing on college applications and can help to shape the perfect career path for students as well.
Unfortunately, the MUN can often cost parents as much or more than a physical sports club or an orchestra club where students are required to buy or rent their instruments. For this reason, many students choose not to participate. The up-front costs and the costs throughout the year for hotel fees, transportation and uniform clothing such as shirts or sweaters add up and many parents cannot afford these costs.
A model UN booster club can offset the costs that these parents have to pay by helping to raise the funds to keep the club actively running. The booster club may even help to find low-cost transportation and lodging solutions so that the finances stretch even further. With more finances available and being provided by the Model UN booster club, more students can join the MUN and participate in education, travel, and participate in the conferences.
In short, a Model UN booster club helps to secure the financial backing so that students can have the opportunity to participate in conferences as well as host their own.
How a Model UN booster club can raise funds
Booster clubs are great at raising money through various fundraisers, grants and donations. There is no shortage of ways that a booster club can raise money for a school activity and as time progresses we see more creative ways come about.
With a Model UN booster club, you may find that federal grants are a great way to earn larger sums of money to help support your MUN. While most booster clubs may shy away from grants as a form of financial backing, this one could be the perfect way to secure funds for a political group such as a MUN.
Securing a grant means giving time and energy to writing letters and filling out applications. If selected to receive a grant there may even be stipulations in place dictating how the finances are supposed to be allocated, or forms to fill out showing that the money was spent as agreed upon.
While this may seem like a lot of work, grants can often range from a few hundred dollars to a few thousand dollars, making them well worth the time and effort.
Other successful ways that your Model UN booster club can raise money include:
- Selling booster club merchandise
- Hosting events such as carnivals, bazaars, movie nights, craft fairs, or dances
- Selling concessions at events
- Holding a carwash (or several)
- Selling donuts, coupon books, chocolates, or other products
Having a social media following and website more booster club members can help you to get more known within your community and as your booster club brand becomes more known in your local community and online, you’ll find that your fundraisers become even more successful. This also opens the doors to even better fundraising ideas as well.
With a Model UN having so much to offer students, having a Model UN booster club to support the students in their endeavors is something that can give students the support that they need to create life-long experiences and skills.
