Youth Tour 2021

Touring the Nation since 1965

You’re a high school student. Your family are members of MidSouth Electric Co-op. You’re smart; you have big dreams. Maybe you’ve never been out of the state, and maybe you’ve never flown on a plane. But you want to travel – experience a big city, visit historic landmarks and meet people. Does this sound like you? Then the Government-in-Action Youth Tour is your Tour.

The TRIP. OF. A. LIFETIME. and ALL. EXPENSES. PAID.

The White House • The Capitol • Arlington Cemetery • Jefferson Memorial
Vietnam Memorial • And a $1000 Scholarship

The deadline for applications is February 15, 2021.

Mail the application and video submissions to:

MidSouth Electric Co-op

Attn: Youth Tour

Po Box 970

Navasota, TX 77868

COVID-19 Update: 2021 Youth Tour Trip Canceled Due to COVID-19

***5 $1000 Youth Tour scholarships are still available***

In 1965, electric cooperatives across Texas joined forces to send a busload of youths to Washington, D.C. There the teens met with President Lyndon B. Johnson, explored the capital, and forged memories and friendships to last a lifetime. For more than five decades, Texas’ electric co-ops carried on the legacy of that first Government-in-Action Youth Tour each summer.

Until the coronavirus pandemic hit. We are saddened to announce that, for the second year in a row, Youth Tour has been canceled.

Along with the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association and other statewide cooperative associations, the Texas Electric Cooperatives Board of Directors decided to cancel the state’s participation in the 2021 Youth Tour.

This decision was made out of an abundance of safety and caution for all those involved. After carefully considering the resources required to properly ensure the health and well-being of more than 200 Texas delegates and 20 chaperones, the TEC board determined that the risk was not worth the reward.

The cancellation comes as a big blow to all of us here at MidSouth Electric Cooperative. Youth Tour represents one of our most important investments in the future of the communities we serve. The students who participate in Youth Tour travel to Austin and Washington to learn about the important role of electric cooperatives, meet their congressional representatives, and gain a deeper perspective on the history and mechanisms of our democracy. Attendees often return with a renewed commitment to their hometowns, and many have gone on to become teachers, doctors, lawyers, politicians and even co-op employees in those communities.

Of course, the biggest loss of the cancellation is felt by the young people who won’t get the chance to take the trip. Many have anticipated Youth Tour for years, hearing friends and family who have participated call it the trip of a lifetime.

Rest assured, as soon as conditions are deemed safe, MidSouth EC will jump on the chance to send students once again on this unforgettable trip.

In the meantime, thank you for understanding this difficult decision. We will still be offering five $1000 Youth Tour scholarships in 2021. Please visit midsouthelectric.com/youth-tour to apply. The deadline for applications is February 15, 2021.