The second installment of our national tour across the United States brought us first to Ohio: "The heart of it all," boasts the state license plate.

Our first stop was Columbus -- Ohio's burgeoning capital city, peppered with humungous outdoor shopping malls and bustling with students from Ohio State University and local community colleges.

The sun shone hotly when we pulled the Generation Next RV into Easton Town Square on the evening of July 10. Restaurants and stores buzzed with commercial activity. We conducted several impromptu interviews with young locals shopping or dining in this bustling outdoor mall. We spoke with young Ohioans like Ben Szerlip about the value of education, the necessity of parental support and the sometimes conflicting ties of religion and friendship.

"We use our parents as more of a crutch than previous generations did," said Ben Szerlip of Mount Vernon, Ohio. "But we're independent thinkers."

Our second day in Ohio started early, in the city's east side at a local garden community maintained by children in a summer program facilitated by several Gen Nexters at Columbus Community House.

Our first interview was with Chaz Hillmon, a budding poet and child care provider deeply concerned about the challenges facing his neighborhood at a time when the rising cost of higher education puts college degrees out of reach for many.

Later that day, Chaz took Judy Woodruff and the crew to a poetry slam, where he shared his poem, "Black Moses," an intense piece about finding one's individual value through the maze of negative stereotypes impacting what it means to be a black man in today's world.

Adora Mora, another young community activist, also shared her poetry that evening. The following day, Judy spoke with Adora at length about her life and future prospects. We shared a meal with her family.

Much like Adora and Chaz, our other two profiles -- Jesse Jones and Sarah McGarity -- were as alike as they were different. We found Jesse Jones through John Roscoe's campaign for the Ohio Senate. Although she is a conservative, her close friend and fellow community college student, Sarah McGarity, most definitely is not. Sarah is currently volunteering for various Green party campaigns.

After wrapping up several days of video kiosking at Ohio State University, Easton Town Square and Columbus State Community College, the RV hit the open road and headed to Michigan, specifically Comerica Park in Detroit, where we interviewed some more folks before they headed to the ballpark to watch the Tigers play the Royals.

If you have any ideas or questions, please feel free to contact us at generation-next@newshour.org.

See you on the road!