Et cetera : Local teen has ‘amazing experience’ with national leadership council

Connor Roth

Connor Rothof Luzerne, Iowa recently returned from Orlando, Fla., where she served on the Youth Leadership Council (YLC) of the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA) during its 69th Annual Meeting, March 7-9, 2011.

Roth, sponsored by East-Central Iowa REC represented Iowaon the YLC, a national leadership group formed by NRECA and composed of 40 students from across the country. YLC members played an important role in NRECA’s Annual Meeting, which drew more than 8,000 electric co-op leaders from around the country.  In addition to performing specific jobs at the big event, YLC members have the opportunity to become familiar with national issues affecting electric cooperatives and the consumers they serve. 

“It was really cool to be part of NRECA’s Annual Meeting,” Roth said. “I learned so much about the energy industry and how public policy affects it. And I met people from all across the country. It was an amazing experience.”

Roth worked at the NRECA Congressional Action Center, encouraging cooperative members to contact their U.S. senators and representatives on key co-op issues, including protecting consumers and keeping electricity rates affordable.

The YLC kicked off the meeting, which showcased Roth with the Iowa flag on the stage to open the first general session. Other typical YLC duties included providing assistance to NRECA staff and participating in educational forums.

The Youth Leadership Council is an extension of the Electric Cooperative Youth Tour, a group of more than 1,500 high school students who are sponsored jointly by NRECA, local electric cooperatives and statewide associations in 45 states.  The Youth Tour meets in Washington, D.C., in June of each year, where the students visit with their elected representative and senators, attend educational seminars and visit historic landmarks.  Each state attending the Youth Tour selects a representative for the NRECA Youth Leadership Council.  The YLC delegate then attends a weeklong summer Leadership Conference back in Washington, D.C., where participants take courses on leadership and deliver a speech on what inspired them during the June Youth Tour. A national spokesperson is selected during this Leadership Conference to address both the NRECA Annual Meeting in the spring and the Youth Tour delegates the following summer in Washington, D.C.

NRECA is the service organization for the nation’s more than 900 consumer-owned, not-for-profit electric cooperatives, which provide electric service to 42 million people in 47 states. 

For more information on the Washington Youth Tour program and how you can participate, contact Greg Pavelka at ECI REC at 319-443-3564 or greg.pavelka@ecire.coop, or log onto ECI’s website at www.ecirec.coop.

East-Central Iowa Rural Electric Cooperative, PO Box 248, Urbana, Iowa, toll-free: 877-850-4343 – email: ecirec@ecirec.coop