By: Courtney Reopelle, SPEC PR Intern

Two area students are headed to Washington, D.C., Wednesday on an all-expenses-paid trip, courtesy of San Patricio Electric Cooperative.

Stephanie Munson, a junior at Skidmore-Tynan High School, and Jarel McFadden, a senior at A.C. Jones High School, entered and won SPEC’s essay contest in January. Their prize was a free trip to the nation’s capital, to attend the Government-in-Action Youth Tour.

More than 1600 hundred students from cooperatives across the country will attend the Youth Tour this year. Munson and McFadden will travel with 147 participants from Texas—the highest state participation.

This year, the Texas delegation will kick off the Youth Tour in Austin. Students will get to tour the Texas State Capital and Bullock Texas State Museum before heading to Washington, D.C.

While in D.C., the students will experience a whirlwind tour of the nation’s capital, visiting the Washington National Cathedral, Arlington National Cemetery, Mount Vernon, Smithsonian Institution, memorials and more. Activities include learning about rural electrification, seeing a performance at the Kennedy Center, going on a boat cruise with dinner and dancing, and meeting elected officials.

“The Youth Tour is a wonderful experience for our local students. We wish them safe travels as they tour our nation’s capital and immerse themselves in not only the history, but the friendships discovered along the way,” said Ron Hughes, General Manager for SPEC.

SPEC’s Youth Tour contest was open to high school juniors and seniors in the co-op’s nine-county service area, whose parents or guardians are members of SPEC. Applicants were required to have a GPA of at least 3.0 on a 4.0 scale. To enter, students had to fill out a short application and answer the essay prompt, “Imagine you were elected President; What three things would you plan to accomplish during your term in office?”