Gavin Hughes and Isaac Stamper, rising seniors from Smith Center High School and Plainville High School, recently represented Prairie Land Electric Cooperative, Inc. at the 2024 Electric Cooperative Youth Tour in Washington, D.C., held June 14-20. During their time in Washington, D.C., students deepened their understanding of America’s electric cooperatives and honed their leadership abilities alongside peers from the electric cooperative community.
The Youth Tour kicked off in Topeka with a lively dinner, followed by an exclusive night tour of the Kansas State Capitol led by State Treasurer Steven Johnson and Kansas Representative Kyle Hoffman, alumni of the youth tours. While in Washington D.C., students explored iconic landmarks such as the U.S. Capitol, the White House, Arlington National Cemetery, and Mount Vernon. They also visited the Holocaust Memorial Museum and the Smithsonian museums to further enrich their appreciation for history and culture.
During the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association’s (NRECA) National Youth Day on June 19th, students were inspired by a lineup of motivational speakers. Among them was Paralympic Gold Medalist Mike Schlappi, NRECA’s CEO Jim Matheson, representatives from the NRECA International Program and the 2024 National Youth Spokesperson Hayley Dorsey.
Students also had the opportunity to engage directly with government officials by meeting with United States Senator Jerry Moran. During this meeting, students were invited to ask questions on a variety of topics that were important to them.
For Hughes and Stamper, attending the youth tour as a representative of the cooperative was an inspirational experience.
“The Holocaust Memorial Museum had the biggest impact on me. It showed me a lot that I didn’t know,” Hughes said. “Getting to see the memorials for some of the wars that some of my family fought in was very inspiring.”
“I enjoyed walking through all of the Smithsonian museums,” Stamper said. “I was inspired by Senator Jerry Moran being from the same small town and community as myself.”
At the conclusion of the conference, Isabelle Jones, sponsored by Midwest Energy, was elected by her peers as the 2025 Kansas representative to the NRECA Youth Leadership Council. Jones will attend the general session at PowerXchange, NRECA’s Annual Meeting in Atlanta, GA, from March 7-12, 2025.
Students who attended the 2024 Youth Tour have the opportunity to apply for the Kansas Electric Cooperatives, Inc. (KEC) Auxiliary Scholarship and the NRECA Glenn English Scholarship.
Sponsoring local students for the youth tour is one of the most important ways that Prairie Land upholds the cooperative principle of education, training, and information. We are proud to have this unique opportunity to build upon the leadership potential of the next generation.