As part of the celebration of the Roberto Rocca Education Day, which takes place every year for the Techint Group of companies, various events were held in the network of Roberto Rocca Technical Schools (ETRR) in Argentina, Brazil, and Mexico. This year the celebration coincided with the 20th anniversary of the passing away of Roberto Rocca (February 1, 1922 – June 10, 2003) and, as always, his legacy in education was commemorated, reflecting on the current educational context and sharing good practices and trends in educational settings.

Argentina

“Today we are remembering the anniversary of the passing away of my father,” began Paolo Rocca in his welcome speech to the event at the Roberto Rocca Technical School in Campana, Argentina, “This school bears his name and replicates the spirit and values ​​that guided his entire career, following the path also traced by his father Agostino, who began in 1946 in Argentina with all the Techint Group. Education is the center of everything, it is the center of transformation. With education, you can reach any place in the world, you can go wherever you want and where your talent takes you," he said.

In turn, Erika Bienek, Community Relations Director, announced that the Roberto Rocca Technical School in Campana was distinguished as one of the 10 most innovative in the world by T4 Education, a global organization based in the United Kingdom, dedicated to providing teachers and schools with tools and initiatives to improve education. "It is a great pride to have received this award, which represents the joint growth of the private sector with the community, and the commitment to quality education with innovative methods as a fundamental vehicle for progress, upward social mobility and integration," said Bienek.

Several talks and debates followed, with panels of renowned experts, on topics such as: Leadership for a school culture centered on students and connected to the community, Community and school: 10 years of working together, and Education in the era of Artificial Intelligence. Javier Martínez Álvarez, President of Tenaris for the Southern Cone, led the panel discussion titled Education and employability.

In addition, attendees had the opportunity to tour the Roberto Rocca Technical School facilities and witness an open exhibition of projects, where students exhibited their creations and innovative works.

The final round table, Current and future educational agenda: facing the challenges of production and social inclusion, brought together Paolo Rocca with Soledad Acuña, Minister of Education of Buenos Aires, Walter Grahovac, Minister of Education of Córdoba, José Manuel Thomas, General Director of Schools of Mendoza, and Martín Müller, Minister of Education of Entre Ríos. During the discussion, current and future challenges of education were addressed, with a focus on social inclusion and the development of skills for the professional arena.

The event came to an end with some closing remarks by Paolo Rocca, who emphasized the importance of education as a driver of sustainable development and thanked all the participants for their contribution to this unique event. "The Techint Group has an industrial tradition and technical education stands out as something that promotes the transformation of communities. The industry is not limited to the plant, it has deep values ​​anchored in its people and in its community. We can only grow if the community around us grows with us, and education is a fundamental factor for economic progress and social mobility," he concluded. 

México

In Mexico, the Tenaris event was opened by Cecilia Bilesio, Vice President of Tamsa A.C., who highlighted: "We created the Education Day to transmit and share the value of education as a factor of social mobility and progress."

Several conferences followed, such as Develop and flourish, with Gil Noam, Psychologist and associate professor at Harvard Medical School, the panel discussion, Education. A tool to generate equal opportunities. Inspired by the Roberto Rocca After School, and the workshop Cooperative Games for socio-emotional skills in primary school. The event concluded with the presentation of the musical group Maderas Tlen Huicani from the Universidad Veracruzana.

Another event was also held last week by Ternium México, in which students from all over the country met at the Roberto Rocca Technical School in Pesquería, Nuevo León, in person and virtually to receive more than 900 scholarships. The event was chaired by Máximo Vedoya, CEO of Ternium. During his speech, Vedoya highlighted how education boosts the lives of young people: “Education is fundamental to building the transformation of a country. For this reason, the basis of Ternium's commitment to the growth of the communities where we operate is education. Education is today the key to individual and social progress, it transforms life, it transforms people, it opens new paths, it opens new opportunities.”

Brazil

Tenaris's Roberto Rocca Education Day in Brazil took place on Friday, June 16, at Clube ADC Confab, in Pindamonhangaba, São Paulo. During the event, the Roberto Rocca Scholarships were awarded and, for the first time, Secondary education (200 winners) and University education (22 winners) received the scholarships together. Vice-President of Brazil, Geraldo Alckmin, joined the celebration: “The industrial strength of the city of Pindamonhangaba is impressive, exporting 1.9 billion dollars per year, and Tenaris is part of it. This is employment, income, and opportunity. Congratulations to Tenaris for generating jobs and development, and for its commitment to high school and university students. For all the young students here, the future starts today,” he said.

Roberto Rocca Education Programs

Since 2022, the Techint Group has grouped all educational programs under the name Roberto Rocca Educational Programs. The main programs are the Roberto Rocca technical secondary schools in Argentina, Mexico and Brazil, Technical Gene (to strengthen technical secondary education in the community, conducting internships and training for students and educators, and modernizing equipment and infrastructure for educational institutions ), Extra class (non-formal education, which seeks to generate STEM aspirations, through the active learning of children and young people from 6 to 15 years old) and Secondary, university and doctoral scholarships (recognizing students for their excellence and commitment).