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The Seven Cooperative Principles
BY SAMANTHA RHODES
Principle 5: Education, Training, and Information IN THIS SEVEN-PART SERIES, you’ll learn how the same principles that guide cooperatives around the world also govern your local electric co-op, keeping you — a valued member-owner — the primary focus. Principle 5, “Education, Training, and Information,” reads as follows: “Cooperatives provide education and training for their members, elected representatives, managers, and employees, so that they can contribute effectively to the development of their cooperatives. They inform the general public, particularly young people and opinion leaders, about the nature and benefits of cooperation.” A closer look at a rural school district in northwest Logan County provides a real-life example of this principle in action.
The Laker motto: Educate, inspire, empower Imagine glass beakers, hand-drawn graphs, and outdoor field trips where the wind blows away the status quo. For seventh grade science teacher Erika Eley, her classroom is a portal — the place where students use tangible experiments to break down abstract concepts into “aha” lessons. “I enjoy teaching science because it allows me to show students that science is all around them, and it affects their lives on a
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daily basis,” the Indian Lake Middle School teacher says. “I try to make them aware that they can make a difference for the world, even if it seems small and insignificant.” Eley isn’t alone in her passion for education. The Indian Lake School District in Lewistown serves nearly 1,800 K-12 students and proudly maintains high academic standards with rigorous classes. Whether it’s the “Laker Zone” program that instills confidence and compassion in elementary kids, the new middle school robotics team, or revamped high school welding and 3-D printer courses, Indian Lake Schools constantly examines the needs of its students and works to align with them. In the spring, the district even hosted the first-ever Logan County Workforce Expo, bringing in representatives from more than 40 local companies seeking job applicants.
Living the principle Just as educating students is Indian Lake Schools’ main priority, your electric cooperative also emphasizes educating its members, employees, and even the general public about the nature of co-ops, as well as energy efficiency and electric safety tips. In fact, this summer, Indian Lake High School and Logan County Electric Co-op celebrate a decade of partnership through a wind turbine on the school’s front lawn for science classes to study. The turbine is estimated to power one classroom for an entire year and ensures that students learn first-