Essay Contest

Attention High School Sophomores and Juniors!

Win a free summer trip to Washington, D.C., or to Glen Eden Resort near Steamboat Springs!

MVEA sponsors a youth leadership trip contest for high school sophomores and juniors. Two winners will receive an all-expense-paid trip to Washington, D.C., for Electric Cooperative Youth Tour, in June 2023, with other Colorado students from across the state. They will meet up with approximately 1,800 high school students from cooperatives across the U.S. for a week of touring historical sites, meeting legislators, and having a fantastic time in our nation’s capital while adding to their leadership portfolio.

An additional two winners will be invited to the Colorado Electric Educational Institute’s Cooperative Youth Leadership Camp (CYLC) in Clark, Colorado, just outside Steamboat Springs, in July 2023. Here they will join nearly 100 students from Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Wyoming to improve upon their leadership skills, set up and operate a cooperative, participate in legislative forums and enjoy a slew of activities set in the beautiful Colorado Rockies.

To be eligible:

  1. The student must fill out the application (PDF), which contains an entry form and a few short-answer essay questions.
  2. The student must be at least 16 years of age by June 1, 2023.
  3. Parents or guardians must receive electric service from MVEA.
  4. Include a high-resolution digital or hardcopy image of the student with the application. (Photos are used to feature winners in Colorado Country Life magazine.)

Entries must be emailed, postmarked, hand-delivered to any MVEA office, or placed in an MVEA drop box by November 10, 2022. Attach or scan the entry form with your essay and send it to: erica.m@mvea.coop or MVEA, Attn: Essay Contest, 11140 E. Woodmen Road, Falcon, CO 80831.

Congratulations to our 2021 Youth Leadership Trip Contest Winners!

1st Place: Kianna Gray from Air Academy High School
2nd Place: Diya Suri from Palmer Ridge High School
3rd Place: Reagan Massey from Falcon High School
4th Place: John Moritz from Palmer Ridge High School

Meet the Youth Leadership Trip Contest Winners:

First Place: Kianna Gray
Kianna Gray, a junior at Air Academy High School and four-time speech and debate national qualifier, is drawn to the electric cooperative principle of democratic member control. “It speaks to me because the founding ideals of democracy uphold a just organization.” When asked about the qualities a good leader has, she shared that “The qualities of a good leader are not simply the ability to influence others, but the character to lead others to a better path that betters society as a whole.” In addition to speech and debate, Kianna works on her leadership skills while participating in student government and as co-president of the school’s American Sign Language honor society.

 

Second Place: Diya Suri
Concern for community is not only a cooperative principle, it is also a concept that Diya Suri, a junior at Palmer Ridge High School, puts into practice. With a goal to help elementary students who were reading below grade-level due to pandemic-related challenges, she created the Elevate Readers Club, which enables high school students to run book clubs at elementary schools. “What started as a program created due to concern about the community, is now helping dozens of kids rediscover their love for reading.” An accomplished student leader, Diya is president of her school’s National Charity League, a varsity swimmer, and active in speech and debate.

 

Third Place: Reagan Massey
Reagan Massey, a sophomore at Falcon High School, compared the founding of an electric co-op to that of our nation and the importance of democratic member control. “The founders of Mountain View Electric Association demonstrated self-reliance and acted not only to help themselves, but their friends and neighbors,” she said. Reagan is active in her church, 4-H club, and a talented cross country and track athlete. She feels “A good leader should be able to recognize the talents and skills of others and put them in a place where they can grow.” She also shared a valuable approach to life that is wise beyond her years: “I do my best to treat everybody like they are somebody.”

 

Fourth Place: John Moritz
“A good leader is a person who strives to develop themselves and others in ways that would encourage action, innovation, and strategic thinking,” shared John Moritz, a Palmer Ridge High School junior with a goal to attend the Air Force Academy. John has put these words into action through an internship at Tri-Lakes Cares, his success in FBLA competitions and as a student-athlete in two sports. He was inspired by the cooperative principle of voluntary membership. He wrote in his essay, “Support for a variety of people allows for the inclusion of countless diverse and intelligent opinions…being founded on this principle shows the dedication these businesses have towards their communities and the organizations they support.”

 

For more information, please contact Erica Meyer by email at erica.m@mvea.coop or by calling (719) 494-2654.

Don’t miss out on either of these two great trips!!!