Tennessee’s electric co-ops sponsor students on Washington, D.C. trip

NASHVILLE – 132 high school juniors experienced a trip of a lifetime this week serving as delegates on the 2025 Washington Youth Tour.

“The Washington Youth Tour is more than a trip — it’s a launching pad for future leaders,” said BJ Bernard, tour director and vice president of member services for the Tennessee Electric Cooperative Association.

This year the weeklong trip was from Saturday, June 14, through Friday, June 20. While in Washington, D.C., participants took a mansion tour of Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello, the Smithsonian museums, the International Spy Museum, the Washington National Cathedral, the Holocaust Memorial Museum, Ford’s Theatre and guided tours of various memorials around the city. Delegates were also able to tour the Capitol and meet representatives from Tennessee who advocate for electric co-ops and their communities. Other highlights included visiting the National Zoo, a boat cruise along the Potomac River, viewing the musical “Les Misérables,” watching the changing of the guard followed by the wreath laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and participating in the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association’s Youth Day at Gaylord National Resort.

“Each year, we watch Tennessee’s brightest students gain confidence, build lasting connections and return home inspired to make a difference in their communities, and I got to experience that firsthand this year,” Bernard said. “This experience, made possible by electric co-ops, empowers these young people to realize their potential and see the value of service and civic engagement.”

Delegates are selected through the Electric Cooperatives Creative Writing and Scholarship Competition. Students had to write a 900-word short story explaining how co-ops are “Energizing Every Moment” by supplying Tennessee communities with energy, education, broadband, economic development and more. From that essay, they are then selected for numerous scholarship opportunities, including ones with partner schools, Carson-Newman University and Union University.

The Washington Youth Tour began in the late 1950s. President Lyndon B. Johnson inspired the trip and since then, more than 6,000 students from Tennessee have participated in this fast-paced leadership opportunity. TECA and the member-owned electric cooperatives across the state are proud to sponsor this unique learning experience and help shape the next generation of informed, engaged citizens.

The Tennessee Electric Cooperative Association provides leadership, advocacy and support for Tennessee’s 23 electric cooperatives and publishes The Tennessee Magazine, the state’s most widely circulated monthly periodical. Visit tnelectric.org or tnmagazine.org to learn more.