Techint E&C has awarded the latest round of Roberto Rocca Scholarships to outstanding students on both sides of the Andes. The grants go to high-school and university students in Argentina and university students in Chile in recognition of their academic performance.

In two practically simultaneous events, Techint E&C awarded 28 Roberto Rocca Scholarships, 22 to students from different secondary schools in the communities of General Pacheco and Bahía Blanca, both in the Argentine province of Buenos Aires, and another six to students from the University of Antofagasta in Chile.

In Argentina, the students were invited to a special awards ceremony hosted jointly by the company and the Fundación Hermanos Agustín y Enrique Rocca, an event held at the company's Machine Park (TEPAM) in the town of General Pacheco. The ceremony was presided by Guillermo Farall, Corporate HR Director, who was joined by Pablo Castelnuovo, Corporate Director of Training and Development, and Javier Fernández Racaño, TEPAM Corporate Manager.

The event was an opportunity to celebrate the effort and commitment made by the young people and share the emotion with their families, justifiably very proud of their children’s achievements. Julián Agostinelli's mother said that, “We’re over the moon that they chose him and that he’s been recognized for what he’s learned.”

“It’s important to note that a large majority of students are receiving this scholarship for the second time. This points to the fact that the program is clearly an incentive for them to keep studying, aiming for excellence in what they do so they can attain a prosperous and fruitful future,” affirmed Pablo Castelnuovo.

The guest speaker at the event was Eduardo "Coco" Oderigo, a criminal lawyer and founder of the Los Espartanos rugby club, who gave a motivational talk to wind up the day’s session. Oderigo founded a highly successful rugby initiative to help penitentiary inmates find value in sport, as a path to social reintegration and lowering the rate of recidivism.

The ceremony was followed by a tour of the Techint E&C Machine Park where visitors were treated to a close-up view of some of the heavy equipment used in the company’s different projects across the region.

The schools whose students were selected to receive scholarship in this latest round of awards were:

> EEST N°1 General Manuel Savio. El Talar de Pacheco: 13 scholars.

> Maria Guadalupe School. General Pacheco: seven scholars.

> EEST N°2 Ricardo Rojas: one scholar.

> Colegio Internacional del Sol de Bahía Blanca: one scholar. 

Roberto Rocca Scholarships also for university students

In Chile, the Roberto Rocca Scholarships were awarded to six students from the University of Antofagasta studying different Engineering specialties. The students stepped up to receive diplomas and medals from the hands of the General Manager of Techint Chile, Jorge Donoso, flanked by Hernán Gómez, HR Manager of the Andean Region. For Jorge, this “is a great opportunity to meet the awardees and share their interests and aspirations with their families. We know they won't necessarily come to work with us when they graduate, but it's fantastic to be able to support and accompany them and their families."

Bárbara Romina Cuello González is 22 years old, a Civil & Mechanical Engineering student and one of the scholars on the Roberto Rocca program. She declares that winning the scholarship "brings joy to my heart, since it shows that everything I did in my studies over the years has borne fruit." She adds that, “this also shows that such a career is more than possible for all women who want to study engineering. Today, it’s an area where women can truly make a difference.”

As regards the Roberto Rocca Scholarships for undergraduates in Argentina, the Techint Group held the award ceremony last year, on November 24, for 245 engineering students from 19 universities across the country. The recognition of their achievements is part of the Group’s contribution to strengthen the disciplines necessary to drive the country's industrial and energy development.

Attending the event were Guillermo Hang, Vice President of the Techint Group, and Pablo Castelnuovo, as well as representatives from the Human Resources and Community Relations departments of the Techint Group’s different business units, together with university authorities, the scholarship winners, and their families.

Paolo Rocca gave a keynote speech at the ceremony, congratulating the scholars from the different communities for their commitment and determination. “Education is the bedrock of growth in a country, the growth of companies and families; it’s what enables people to fulfill their talents. We put our trust in you, but you’re the ones who are making the effort, putting in the hours and committing to developing your talents. Education opens the way to personal growth and to social mobility. It paves the way towards the future,” declared Rocca.

More about the Roberto Rocca Scholarships

Since Techint’s beginnings in 1945, Roberto Rocca and his father Agostino shared a vision of growth as a part of development undertaken jointly with neighboring communities, based on education as a vital tool for individual and social progress.

The values upholding the Roberto Rocca Educational Programs spring from their founders’ ideals, such as excellence, innovation, transparency, commitment to safety, the environment and the community, as well as collaborative work.

Congratulations to all for their effort and commitment to studying!

For more information about the Scholarships, click here.