What
An all-expense-paid trip to Washington, D.C., under the guidance of chaperones, to tour national historic sites, experience cultural diversity, meet U.S. congressional representatives, and learn about electric cooperatives and the energy industry
• Touring famous places
• Laying a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier
• Visiting museums
• Seeing a production at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
• Going on a Potomac River boat cruise and dance
• Participating in National Youth Day with 1,000-plus students from around the country
• Meeting U.S. representatives and senators
Who
Texas high school students and their peers from around the nation who have won contests at their local electric cooperatives
Why
Electric cooperatives responded to then-Sen. Lyndon B. Johnson, an advocate of rural electrification, who in 1957 suggested “sending youngsters to the national capital where they can actually see what the flag stands for and represents.” Sponsoring students on the tour also follows the cooperatives’ guiding principle of concern for the community, a concept that includes supporting young people.
Where
From Austin to Washington, D.C., via airplane for a whirlwind tour
• Supreme Court and Library of Congress
• Washington National Cathedral
• Arlington National Cemetery
• George Washington’s home at Mount Vernon
• Smithsonian Institution and Holocaust Memorial Museum
• Jefferson, Lincoln and Franklin Delano Roosevelt memorials
• Vietnam Veterans, Korean War Veterans and National World War II memorials
• Washington Monument
• Kennedy Center
When
10 days in June
How
Local electric cooperatives have individual methods for selecting Youth Tour winners. Many hold annual competitions such as essay, speech or video contests. Each winner’s travel expenses—valued at more than $2,000—are covered by her or his co-op and sponsors, and coordinators at Texas Electric Cooperatives and the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association handle all the arrangements.
