This young man has a bright future.
Stellantis has named Rocco Morales as the winner of the 11th annual Stellantis Drive for Design competition. Morales' name is well-known to Stellantis by now, as he also won the grand prize in 2022 and finished second in 2021. Here's the really impressive bit; Morales is a 12th-grader from Northville, Michigan.
Morales' prize is a Wacom MobileStudio Pro 16 tablet and an internship at the Ram Truck Exterior Design Studio. This year, Stellantis challenged students in grades 10-12 to sketch the next-generation Ram electric truck. Morales came up with the Ram Stadion, which is meant to create a new segment of pickup trucks.
As you can see in the design sketches, Morales designed an off-road truck that transforms into a relaxing place to perch as you watch nature.
"Rocco is clearly a passionate designer with a bright future ahead of him," said Mark Trostle, head of Ram Truck and Mopar Exterior Design for Stellantis. "It will be great having someone eager to learn and experience a professional design studio."
Rohan Seiber, a 10th grader from California, and Benjamin Miller, an 11th grader from Michigan, rounded off the top three. Seiber submitted the Ram Rex truck, an electrified Ram 1500 TRX. Miller presented the Ram Ultima, featuring a modular design allowing an owner to add more power and traction as needed. All of the designs are eye-catching, but we tend to lean in the direction of agreeing with the winning entry.
Miller and Seiber won an Apple iPad Pro and Apple Pencil, a Virtual Day of Design portfolio review with members of the Stellantis design team, and a scholarship to the College for Creative Studies' four-week summer program.
"Every year, I am blown away by the creativity and enthusiasm of these students," said Trostle. "It's really difficult to choose a winner because each design is so unique and thoughtful. Our whole team is excited to work with these students, and I'm already looking forward to next year's contest." Interestingly, Trostle's journey also started when he won a similar competition while in high school.
Apart from winning these fantastic prizes, we're willing to bet other manufacturers are keeping an eye on these young men. We're willing to bet a company like Rivian, known for thinking outside the box, is watching Morales and his outdoor adventure-driven concepts.
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