Space Camp: A Launchpad for Future Leaders

This past fall, 250 high school students ages 16 to 18 from 40 countries and 20 U.S. states and territories came together at the U.S. Space and Rocket Center for a week of immersive STEM education and leadership development. Open to children of Honeywell employees and students from the non-profit organization Carolina Youth Coalition, this program is more than just a camp; it's a launchpad for the next generation of scientists, engineers and astronauts. 

"This camp is intended to expose our future Futureshapers to the space environment,” said Matt Milas, President of Defense and Space at Honeywell. “They get to see and experience what it's like to work as teams across international boundaries and missions.” 

From participating in design challenges to leading shuttle mission simulations, this cohort of innovators were immersed in a variety of STEM activities and leadership development opportunities. Throughout the program, students engage in hands-on projects that tested their problem-solving skills and creativity. They work in teams to respond to incident command scenarios and even simulate space missions in a state-of-the-art shuttle simulator.  

"Honeywell has been a part of the space program since the very beginning," said Milas. “Every space mission has had Honeywell on board, so it's very important that we create the future generation of engineers who are going to design, build, and support our space programs in the future.” 

Rathish Reghav Ramkumar (pictured below), a 2024 space camp participant, noted that HLCA pushed their boundaries by placing them in challenging situations and encouraging them to find solutions. 

For students like Rathish, it’s not only the skills and lessons they have taken from the leadership challenge academy, but also the valuable relationships formed. 

“This program has also introduced me to many like-minded people who share the same interests as me and helped me build many useful connections,” Rathish said. “I would like to use this opportunity to thank all those who have put their effort and dedication to make this space camp a reality.” 

Check out this video for more space camp highlights: 

Learn more in Honeywell's 2024 Impact Report about our community initiatives and how we take a purposeful approach to making a difference.