SouthEastern Illinois Electric Cooperative is very proud to be one of a number of businesses in our area that remain locally owned and locally operated in Southern Illinois.  Your cooperative takes great pride in the communities that it serves and is committed to giving back to those communities in a variety of ways.  The following is just a few examples of how your electric cooperative is striving to make a difference, especially for our local students, right here in Southern Illinois.

Your cooperative is participating in a statewide education grant program known as the Touchstone Energy Classroom Empowerment Grant.  As part of the Illinois Touchstone Energy Statewide fund, Touchstone Energy Cooperatives from around the state are offering $20,000 in grants to be awarded in up to $1000 increments to fund innovative, unfunded projects or materials.  Qualifying projects are those that improve the learning environment or increase educational resources for the school and the students.  Your cooperative sent applications to all of the schools in the 10 county service area and assisted school administrators in applying for these grants.  This year marked the first year for the Touchstone Energy Empowerment Grant and proved to be highly successful.

SouthEastern is also participating in a statewide scholarship fund known as the Illinois Electric Cooperative Memorial Scholarship Fund as a means of honoring deceased members of the electric cooperative family.  Every year, your cooperative sends information to all of the schools in the 10 county service area with instructions on how students can apply for these scholarships.  The program will award seven scholarships in the amount of $1,250 each.  Five scholarships will be awarded to high school seniors who are enrolling in an accredited two-year or four-year college, university or vocational/technical school in the United States.  The sixth and seventh scholarships will be awarded to a high school senior who will be enrolling full-time at a two-year Illinois community college. The scholarship must be used for educational costs, and the student must enter college within one year from the time the scholarship is awarded.  Scholarships are awarded based upon grade point average, college entrance test scores, work and volunteer experience, participation in school and community activities, biographical statement and knowledge of cooperatives, as demonstrated by a short essay. 

SouthEastern also invites all twenty three area high schools to participate in a program known as the "Youth To Washington Tour".  Students are invited to participate by writing a one page essay on the subject, "Why I would like to visit Washington D.C."  Participating schools select the best essay written by their students and forward that essay to SouthEastern for evaluation by staff personnel.  The composers of the two best essays are awarded the opportunity to participate in a one day tour of the State's capital in Springfield, Illinois and then on to a one week, expense paid tour of our Nations capital in Washington D.C. 

As you can see, your cooperative is striving to provide opportunities to improve conditions for local students and also providing them with unique learning opportunities.

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See you next month and as always, "We'll keep the lights on for you."