Washington
Youth Tour
| If you’re a junior
attending Benson, Bowie, Buena, Patagonia, St. David,
San Simon, Tombstone, Valley Union or Willcox high schools,
you are eligible to compete for the next Washington Youth
Tour! The Program
Since 1981 Sulphur Springs Valley Electric Cooperative
has sponsored six high school juniors on all-expense-paid
trips to Washington, D.C., for one week each June. Students
attend seminars and meetings sponsored by the National
Rural Electric Cooperative Association, visit Congress
and the White House and see the sights of our nation’s
capital.
Funding for the annual Washington Youth Tour is supplied
by the Sulphur Springs Valley Electric Cooperative Foundation.
SSVEC follows legal requirements to return money (refundable
deposits, fees and capital credits) to its members.
If the cooperative is unable to locate individuals,
the money is contributed to the Foundation. Previous
to the establishment of the Foundation in 1984 such
money was forfeited to the state of Arizona. Voluntary
contributions to the Foundation are also accepted.
The Process
The Washington Youth Tour program is open to all high
school juniors in schools served by SSVEC or to a high
school junior living in SSVEC’s service area.
|
2007
SSVEC Washington Youth Tour Group
at the Capital Building in Washington. |
|
SSVEC representatives make a presentation in nine high schools
to introduce the program. The high schools are San Simon,
Bowie, Willcox, Valley Union (Elfrida), Tombstone, St. David,
Benson, Buena (Sierra Vista) and Patagonia. Study materials
are distributed and about one week later students take a qualifying
test over the material. The test consists of 50 true-false
questions. The highest scoring students from each school advance
to the next level -- the essay.
The essays are scored by four judges. These judges are often
teachers, journalists, directors of community or youth organizations
or representatives from other cooperatives. Students with
the top scoring essays advance to the semi-final level. They
receive a packet of study materials on the subjects of cooperatives,
rural electrification and energy. On the day of competition
students take a test over these materials and have an interview
with four judges. The essay, the exam and the interview are
worth 100 points each (for a total of 300 points) to determine
which students win all-expense-paid trips to Washington, D.C.
Students who do not win earn $100 for their efforts and are
given the option of attending the trip at their own expense
(about $1,500).
The Tour
While in D.C., the tour participants visit famous sites such
as the U.S. Capitol, Arlington National Cemetery, Smithsonian
Museums, Lincoln Memorial, Washington Monument, and the Viet
Nam Memorial. They also travel to Washington's Mount Vernon.
They visit with their Congressmen, take an evening boat ride
on the Potomac, and attend a stage show.
In addition, tourers have the opportunity to get to know
the more than 30 other students from across Arizona they will
tour with and meet hundreds of students from other parts of
the United States.
The Arizona delegation includes SSVEC’s students as
well as tourers from Trico Electric Cooperative, Mohave Electric
Cooperative, Duncan Valley Electric Cooperative, Navopache
Electric Cooperative, Navajo Tribal Utility Authority, and
Tohono O’odham Utility Authority.
For additional information, email Marcus
Harston, or call him at 515-3475. |
