Piper Busby from Praise Academy, Jacob Fields from Paulding County High School, Carlsen Inweh and Knoah McWhite from Westlake High School and Olivia Wilson from Chapel Hill High School have been selected to attend the 2026 Washington Youth Tour, a once-in-a-lifetime leadership experience made possible through the generosity of the electric membership cooperatives (EMCs) in Georgia, including GreyStone Power.

Kali Schneider, executive administrative assistant with GreyStone Power, was selected as one of 16 chaperones from across Georgia to accompany the state’s student-delegates on the trip.

As Georgia’s oldest leadership program for teens, the Washington Youth Tour is designed to teach students about U.S. history, the role of democracy, the importance of community and public service, and the need for civic leadership and service.

GreyStone’s five student winners will be among 113 Georgia high school students during the event, which is set for June 12-19 and begins with a gathering in Atlanta before departing for Washington, D.C.

While in D.C., the Georgia delegation will join nearly 1,700 Youth Tour participants from co-ops across the country, providing yet another significant benefit of the trip: the opportunity to meet and learn from a diverse group of peers representing nearly every state.

According to PR & Communications Coordinator Anitra Ellison with GreyStone Power, the Youth Tour is an opportunity for exceptional students to personally interact with members of Georgia’s congressional delegation and visit landmarks in the nation’s capital.

“With tours of museums, memorials and monuments, the trip provides a history lesson that can’t be learned from any textbook or classroom in Georgia,” said Ellison.

The trip includes historic attractions such as the Smithsonian Museums, Holocaust Museum, Mount Vernon, Supreme Court, Capitol, Washington Monument, and the FDR, Jefferson, World War II and Lincoln memorials.  

Since 1965, the Washington Youth Tour has given more than 3,000 students from Georgia and more than 50,000 nationwide the opportunity to take part in this unique experience. While a senator, Lyndon Johnson initially requested the program to “send youngsters to the nation’s capital where they can actually see what the flag stands for and represents.”

GreyStone Power is a member-owned cooperative providing electricity and related services to more than 135,000 members in eight counties, including portions of Paulding, Douglas, Fulton, Cobb, Carroll, Bartow, Fayette and Coweta counties. Learn more at www.greystonepower.com.