Mateus Hoerner Rocco is a high school student from the Cayman Islands interested in physics and aerospace engineering. He is especially passionate about space exploration and sustainability in commercial flight. Mateus is actively involved in a range of extracurricular activities, including debate, where he has contributed to multiple championship wins, and robotics, where he enjoys collaborating with his teammates to build innovative projects.
Currently, Mateus is focused on leading his school’s Steel Pan Club, an instrument with deep ties to his community and culture, where he prepares the club’s materials and organizes events. He also participates in his school’s jazz club and honors band. Read on to learn more about Mateus, his journey in STEM, and his future goals!
Meet Mateus!
How did you initially become interested in STEM?
From a young age, I became interested in STEM because my dad works in technology. Also, my middle school science teacher, Mrs. Lori, was fantastic and super passionate about space and NASA. She often took time out of class to talk about exciting things happening in space and showed us inspiring videos. Around the same time, I was watching a lot of YouTube, particularly focusing on using engineering principles to create fun projects. Those influences really set me on the path to wanting to pursue engineering, especially aerospace engineering.
What academic subjects or fields of STEM are you most interested in?
I love physics the most; that’s my favorite class. I also find math interesting, but my heart really lies with physics. I find engineering fascinating, especially seeing how people design machines that work in clever ways. It amazes me how someone can create something that moves one part and pushes up another.
What extracurricular activities are you involved in?
I’m big into music, so I’m in several bands, both at school and outside of school. I’m in my school's jazz band and honor band, and I run my school's Steel Pan Club. I live on a Caribbean island, and we have this unique instrument, the steel pan, made from oil drums. I’ve been playing it longer than any other instrument, and now I’m in charge of the club. I prepare the material, run the meetings, and set things up, which is super exciting for me.
I also participate in the debate team! I’ve even won championships on the island in debate, which is something I never thought I would do. Additionally, I’m on my school's robotics team, and it’s really fun to work with my group to build something together.
Fellowship Experience
What was your favorite part about the Summit STEM Fellowship?
My absolute favorite part was getting to meet all these other people, both mentors and peers. Meeting people my age with similar interests was so fun, and I've kept up with a lot of them online. It's so cool to have these people around the world that I've never met in person, but we talk all the time about things we have in common. Because we share the same interests that brought us to SSF, we often find we have a lot of similar experiences. It was so fun to talk to these like-minded individuals.
On the mentor side of things, it was amazing to hear all these people's stories. They have achieved so many great things, but each one did it in a different way. It was so fun to hear about each new person and the cool things they were doing. It really helped broaden my understanding of what it can mean to achieve and dedicate yourself to something.
Which event or speaker was your favorite during the fellowship?
I would put my favorites down to two people. First was Matthew Tan with his talk about aerospace engineering, which is obviously very relevant to me and something I'm very interested in. Hearing him talk was awesome; I loved what he had to say. Even though it's something I've looked into a lot and am passionate about, I still got to hear a lot of fresh, new things from him.
The other mentor that comes to mind is Isabel Duran, who spoke about materials engineering, specifically magnets. She was clearly so passionate about it, and her love for the subject was contagious. It really came through in her presentation. I had never thought about magnets and materials engineering in that way, but the way she talked about it was so engaging that I thought, "Absolutely, let's listen to this."
What was your main takeaway from the Summit STEM Fellowship?
The main takeaway from the fellowship was that we, as high school students, are a lot less limited than I initially thought. I had always envisioned some constraints on teenagers because of our age and status in society, still living with parents and taking high school classes. However, there's actually nothing stopping you from pushing further. You see all these mentors who did amazing things, and they talk about how they accomplished them, and you think, “Wow, what's stopping me from getting in contact with experts and hearing from them?”
Just because you're young doesn't mean you have a limited scope. That was a significant shift in my mindset during the fellowship, where I realized I had never considered this before. Many mentors talked about it from different angles, which broadened my understanding of what you can do as a high school student.
What advice would you give to future Summit STEM fellows?
My advice is to be everything you know you can be. Explore whatever is available to you and even beyond that. Once you've found what you like, you can stick to it, but never limit yourself. It’s fun to explore!
For example, my interests have evolved; I've been into STEM and engineering since middle school, but the more I engage with music, the more I enjoy it, and it has become another passion.
Future Aspirations
What are your goals over the next five to ten years, and do you know what type of career you're hoping to pursue?
Right now, I want to work in an aeronautics company, focusing on commercial flight to make it safer, cheaper, and more sustainable. Planes are expensive and are the most polluting form of travel per mile, so I want to tackle those issues. My long-term goal is to work with a space agency, like NASA or the European Space Agency, focusing on rockets. I might spend my time in commercial aircraft or quickly transition to the space side, but I want to gain experience in aeronautics first. Ultimately, I want to contribute to space exploration and research, leaving my mark on that frontier. In the next five to ten years, I hope to graduate, find a stable job in an aeronautics company, and maybe pursue a master's or PhD.
How has the fellowship influenced your career aspirations?
The fellowship opened my eyes to ideas I hadn't considered before. For instance, I learned about delivery drones shaped like small airplanes during the Fields of Engineering Career Panel. They operate in some U.S. states, but they also have humanitarian missions in Africa, delivering medical supplies over difficult terrain. Initially, I thought it was just a cool concept, but hearing about it during the fellowship made me realize that impactful work doesn't always come from big-name companies.
My goal is to have a positive impact on the world, and while I’m interested in aerospace engineering and space exploration, I now see that there are many ways to contribute, even through smaller startups. The fellowship taught me to keep an open mind about my career path and consider opportunities that might not fit the traditional mold, like working for a smaller company where I can see my impact more directly.
