Six local high school students will be attending this year's National Youth Tour Conference in Washington, D.C. this summer.
The top six-scoring finalists were Bailey Schnieder, Leah Guss, Alexis Kennon, Grayce Knisell, and Olivia Ketterer, all of Warrenton High School; and Audrey Lovell, Bowling Green High School.
The final judging was determined during the annual Cuivre River Electric Cooperative Youth Tour Final Competition and Awards Banquet held on April 5.
Five other finalists received $500 in college scholarships. They were Daniel Adams, Kaitlin Stumpf, Caleb Stewart, Reese Douglas, all of Liberty High School; and Christine Wehmeyer, Elsberry High School.
Adams and Wehmeyer were named first and second alternate, respectively, in the event one of the delegates cannot attend the trip.
This year's National Youth Tour will take place June 12-18. The seven-day youth tour provides an action-filled week for delegates, offering them opportunities to visit with representatives from their congressional districts and tour famous monuments, the Smithsonian Institution's museums, and Arlington National Cemetery.
Cuivre River Electric fully funds the participation of its delegates. There is no cost to students or families. Ninety students from seven schools entered the preliminary stage of the competition by submitting an essay. The top 12 students won the opportunity to advance to the final competition. In the final stage, students took a cooperative knowledge quiz and presented their essays orally.
This year's topic was "My Favorite Cooperative Principle." Scores from all three contest segments were combined to select the delegates and scholarship recipients.
Since 1964, CREC has sponsored over 200 youth tour delegates for visits to Washington, D.C. More than 54,000 high school students sponsored by the nation's electric cooperatives have participated in the youth tour since the educational leadership program began.
The annual contest is open to high school juniors who live and attend school in CREC's general service area, or who have CREC service in their homes.
For more information contact Tim Schmidt at tschmidt@cuivre.com or 636-695-4837.