Are you a Texas high school student? Would you like to travel, experience a big city and visit historic landmarks - all without spending a dime of your own money? Perhaps you'd like to meet your congressional representative, or maybe you're looking for a new experience in the company of other Texas teens. If that sounds like you, then keep Youth Tour on your radar.

Youth Tour is a chaperoned, 10-day, all-expenses-paid trip to the nation’s capital. Students selected for this opportunity will join more than 150 of their peers from Texas and some 1,900 other students from across the U.S. on this trip of a lifetime. 

The trip starts with a day in Austin, where students tour the state Capitol and Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum. They then fly to Washington for an action-packed week that includes tours of historic sites, museums and congressional offices, where they meet with their U.S. representatives. Other highlights of the trip include a wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, seeing a performance at the Kennedy Center and an evening cruise on the Potomac River. 

San Patricio Electric Cooperative typically sponsors TWO local high school students from its service area to participate in Youth Tour each year. We hold an essay contest to determine which students will be awarded the opportunity to attend this trip of a lifetime. We typically begin accepting essays and applications in November. Be on the lookout for us to release the essay prompt!

Youth Tour Winners

Congratulations to our 2022 Youth Tour Essay Contest winners! Skye Marin, a senior at Three Rivers High School, and Ethan Thetford, a senior at Sinton High School, will attend Youth Tour in June for a once-in-a-lifetime experience!

SPEC Youth Tour winners for 2022

 

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WHAT'S INCLUDED:

  • Airfare

  • Meals

  • Hotel accommodations

  • Attractions in Washington, D.C.

 

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

  • You must be a high school junior or senior

  • Your GPA must be 3.0 or higher

  • Your parent/legal guardian must be a SPEC member

  • You must be in good standing with your school

 

Applications will be available in November 2022

 

 

 

 

 

Be the next generation to attend the Government-in-Action Youth Tour in Washington D.C. this summer. Apply online today!

 

About Youth Tour

The Government-in-Action Youth Tour is a national cooperative initiative to send student’s to the nation’s capital. The program grew from the ideas of President Lyndon B. Johnson, an advocate of rural electrification and youth supporter. In 1957, when LBJ was still a Senator, he spoke at the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association’s (NRECA) Annual Meeting. In his speech he declared that young people should be sent to the national capital “where they can actually see what the flag stands for and represents.”

Cooperatives across the nation soon got behind the idea and in 1964 created the first organized effort to send students to Washington D.C. for what is now known as the Government-in-Action Youth Tour. After more than 50 years, the Youth Tour has been able to send nearly 50,000 students from rural America to the nations’ capital. 

The Youth Tour Impact

Youth Tour is an incredible opportunity for local students. Those who are selected to participate in the program often gain life-long friendships and connections. The trip inspires careers and opens doors for these young students. Youth Tour alumni have gone on to become teachers, lawyers, politicians and even co-op employees.

There are also a number of opportunities available to Youth Tour Delegates and Alumni:

  • Youth Leadership Council - Once accepted to Youth Tour, participants can apply to be Texas’ one representative on the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association’s Youth Leadership Council. YLC representatives return to Washington, D.C., in July for a leadership workshop with an emphasis on electric cooperatives and attend the NRECA Annual Meeting the following spring. Students apply for YLC in a packet of information they send to Texas Electric Cooperatives

  • Wreath-Laying Ceremony - Once accepted to Youth Tour, participants can apply to participate in the wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery. Four students are selected each year. Students apply for the ceremony in a packet of information they send to Texas Electric Cooperatives.

  • Scholarships - Youth Tour Alumni are eligible to apply for the Glenn English National Leadership Foundation Scholarship. This scholarship program awards (1) $10,000 scholarship and (4) $1,000 scholarships each year exclusively to Youth Tour Alumni who have at least 1 year of college credits.
  • Internships - The National Rural Electric Cooperative Association offers paid summer internships in Washington, D.C., in disciplines including communications, accounting/finance, government relations and regulatory affairs, compliance and marketing. If you're looking for something more local, SPEC also offers paid summer internships. Let us know if you're interested!