Awards at Model U.N.

A group of Rockway students participated in a Model United Nations on Tuesday hosted by Resurrection Catholic Secondary School.

The students were split into four general assemblies to draft and vote on resolutions for nuclear proliferation.

Each student represented a different country and gave input based on their country's stance.

Twelve awards of merit were given out to students who represented their country with distinction. Of those twelve, three were awarded to Rockway students! Ben Brubaker-Zehr (Canada), Cameron Penny (Israel), and Zainab Ramahi (Iran) were the recipients.

Congratulations students!

Rockway students will be attending another Model UN event at the end of April. Thanks to John Moyer for his leadership in giving our students these opportunities to think globally!

Students Return - Blog Updates

Our students had a great two week break and are now back in class.

We are beginning to update our trip blogs (links on the right) with pictures and stories. You can now read through the experiences of the China trip and we'll be adding pictures/stories to all three trips over the next week or so (as things come in).

Thank you to all our leaders for making each trip an amazing experience for our students!

March Break

As Rockway is on March Break until the 30th, this blog will be taking a hiatus.

However, some of our students are on ventures around the world. There are links to three blogs on the right.

Please pray for our students as they engage in expanding their world through service and experiential learning. 

You can also add your comments and let them know that you are walking with them!

Chapel Series on "Gaza"

This week's chapel services were dedicated to looking at the issues in Gaza, Palestine and Israel.

On Tuesday, Glen Witmer, a Mennonite pastor, teacher, aid worker, who has lived in Israel for many years, gave our students a glimpse into the history of the conflict and some of the issues that make it so complex.

On Thursday, students were presented stories from two perspectives: Laura Wolfson, a Cantor/Educator from Temple Anshe Sholom in Hamilton; and Omar Ramahi, a Palestinian refugee and Electrical Engineering Professor from the University of Waterloo.

In both these chapels we were privileged to hear stories from people who are passionate about peace and justice. Each speaker connected well with the students and tried their best to give context and information to us. It was wonderful to hear Laura and Omar agree on what they feel would be a hopeful first step: allowing Palestinians to return to the land and have equal legal rights as Israelis.

Each speaker, in their own way, urged us to take the difficult stance of standing in the middle and drawing each side to peace.

Sr. Girls VB - So Close at OFSAA

Yesterday, in the quarter final game against the top seed, St. Thomas Aquinas, our Flames came as close as they could to winning a medal at OFSAA.

The first set was lost 25-17. The second set was a grudge match, with both teams playing excellent volleyball. Our Flames had several chances to win (and thought that they had at one point!) but couldn't hold back a team with gold on their mind. St. Thomas Aquinas took the second set with an epic score of 31-29 and went on to win the tournament.

Congratulations Flames (players, mangers and coaches) for playing great volleyball all season and representing Rockway so well!

Here are both sets in edited form. Enjoy!

Set 1:

Set 2:

Into the Quarterfinals

The Sr. Girls have won their last pool game and ended up 2nd. This puts them up against the number 1 seed, St. Thomas Aquinas, in the championship quarterfinals at 12:30 today.

Go Flames Go!

Sr. Girls competing at OFSAA

The Sr. Girls Volleyball team got off to a great start today at OFSAA in Port Hope.

Seeded 9th, the girls started the tournament by defeating the 8th seed, EJ Lajeunesse in straight sets. They followed that up with another two-set victory over Monsignor de Charbonnel. The last game of the day was against the 3rd seed, Centre Desloges. After losing the first set 25-23, the Flames could not find a way to bounce back and lost 25-16.

This sets them up for a tough day of competition on Wednesday. They will finish the pool play tomorrow against a lower-seeded team and so can anticipate ending up 2nd in their pool. If this happens they will face the number 1 seed in the quarterfinals.

If anyone can do it, our Flames can! Go girls!  

Humpty Dumpty Found

On Friday and Saturday night, the gr. 6-8s put on an amazing production of "Humpty Dumpty is Missing".

Who knew that the Police Chief was doubling as the "Please Chief" in the form of Humpty Dumpty?

As you can see from the pictures, the students looked great and told the story with a ton of energy! Thank you to all the cast, crew, teachers and parents who made this production so memorable.

Senior Choir invited to nationals!

Last Tuesday, the Senior Choir participated in the Ontario Vocal Festival, held at Galt Collegiate Institute. The choir sang three pieces for a panel of adjudicators and then participated in a workshop. One of the adjudicators, Charles White, said "This is a choir that has attended to many things - balance, tuning, discipline... congratulations Rockway!"

As a result of their excellent performance, the choir has been invited to the national showcase, MusicFest Canada in May!

Thanks to each choir member for your hard work and for representing the school so well.

Thanks also to Ms. Ann L. Schultz for continuing to teach and inspire our students to achieve excellence in music-making.

Rockway student editorial in The Record

Rockway's chair of Social Concerns, Zainab Ramahi, writes about her personal connection and experience in the war-torn region of Kashmir in today's edition of The Record.

Click here to read her editorial online.

Earlier this year, Zainab shared her experience with the student body through a chapel. Her words were accompanied by pictures and videos that she had taken this past summer.

Humpty Dumpty will be missing!

Our grade 6-8s have been working hard over the past several months in preparation for this weekend's production of "Humpty Dumpty is Missing or The Mysterious Case of the Fallen Egg".

For a brief synopsis of the play click here.

In addition, on Saturday March 7 we are hosting a "Get to Know Rockway" event prior to the show for prospective families with children in grades 3-8. For more information go to the event site.

Come on out and support our talented students!

Dinner & Auction Extravaganza

This video pretty much speaks for itself! A great evening in support of our school. Thank you to all the volunteers, staff, and purchasers who continue to contribute so much to our community.

If you weren't there this year, get it on your calendar for next year - February 27, 2010!