Youth Day & Youth to Washington Tour

The Association of Illinois Electric Cooperatives (AIEC) and its member cooperatives, including McDonough Power, proudly sponsor the Illinois Electric and Telephone Cooperatives Youth Day, which usually takes place each year in late March or early April.

During the day hundreds of students from all over the State of Illinois have an opportunity to meet with their elected Senators and Representatives at the State Capitol. Furthermore, students also tour Illinois Supreme Court and visit the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum.

Area high schools are contacted each year and asked to select two students to represent their school at the “Youth Day” event. The manner in which the student is selected is left completely up to the schools.

Any student interested in participating in the Illinois Electric and Telephone Cooperatives Youth Day should contact the Guidance Counselor at their high school. For additional information, please contact the cooperative by calling 309.833.2101.

Two of the students who participate in the Illinois Electric and Telephone Cooperative Youth Day are selected to represent McDonough Power during a weeklong, all expense paid trip to Washington, D.C. The Youth to Washington tour takes place in the month of June.

The “Youth to Washington” tour was inspired by Lyndon B. Johnson in 1957. The program actually began in 1964 with 400 students from 12 states participating in the first event. Today more than 1,500 students from across the country attend the Youth to Washington tour.

During the week in the nation’s Capitol, the Illinois contingent meets with Illinois senators and the downstate Illinois congressional delegation at a Capitol Hill luncheon. Visits with elected officials provide participants a better understanding of federal government, the political process, and democracy in general. In an effort to help young people better understand the value of rural electrification; meetings are scheduled with leaders of co-op organizations such as the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA). Furthermore, many historic sites will be visited during the week so that participants can become more familiar with the historic and political environment of our nation’s Capital through first-hand looks at monuments, government buildings, and cooperative organizations.

Additional information concerning the “Youth to Washington” tour can be found at www.youthtour.coop.