Monday, June 21, 2010

Ridley Prize Day!

On Saturday Ridley students, faculty and parents celebrated Prize Day. Students in their graduating year received their diplomas and prizes for their hard work during their time at Ridley. Some students have spent eight years at Ridley while others eight months, but today they are all Old Ridleians. Watch the video below to see some highlights from Prize Day including a clip from valedictorian Spencer Greenways address as well as some parting thoughts from our newest OR's as their days as students end and their time as loyal Alumni begin. Congratulations class of 2010!



Friday, June 18, 2010

Ridley Prize day TOMORROW!! Watch on Live stream!




Schools out for the summer! Campus is pretty quiet today as classes and exams are finished, but it will be bustling with activity tomorrow. It's Prize Day - a time to recognize the great achievements of Ridley students and to present the graduates with their diplomas. This year we are live streaming the Prize Day events starting at 1 p.m., click on the link below to watch the events live:


Tonight is Lower School Prize Day where we will acknowledge the achievements of our young Ridleians. Watch for videos and pictures from this special evening.

Tuesday, June 15, 2010

Ridley Prize Day

Ridley Prize Day is this Saturday! As the graduates walk across the stage to receive their diplomas they will be starting a new chapter in their life. Some graduates are heading to University or College while others are taking a GAP year - they all have big dreams to realize. With the help of Ridley College and family support the students have the tools to make their dreams come true. Watch the video below to hear what a few grads had to say about embarking on their future.

Thursday, June 10, 2010

Campus Watch: Shhhh! Exams are Underway!



It is very quiet these days at Ridley College. Ridleians have their noses in their books for the next couple of days as exams are underway. The last day of exams is June 18th. Study hard students - summer vacation is just around the corner!

Wednesday, June 9, 2010

Campus Watch: Ridley Athletic Awards Ceremony

It was like a scene out of ESPN with all the trophies lined up and banners from tournament wins draped behind them. Ridley College held their annual athletic awards ceremony yesterday in the new fieldhouse. Students were recognized for the sportsmanship, athletic ability and leadership in their athletic pursuits. Each athlete received a plaque and their name forever mounted on the trophy that they were awarded. Congratulations to the students who were honoured yesterday afternoon!

Tuesday, June 8, 2010

Ridley Tradition: Chimes Challenge

The annual Chimes Challenge happened yesterday as the clock struck twelve noon. As the chimes went so did the runners. The girls race was first and Karen Godwin took the title, next up it was the boys turn and Ayo Agusto came out in first place. Watch the video below to see what the Chimes Challenge looks like:

Monday, June 7, 2010

Ridley Sports

OFSAA SILVER!

Congratulations to the Ridley First Girls soccer team who received a silver medal at the Provincial (OFSAA) Championships in Sudbury this past weekend. The Tigers fought hard, but lost 4-2 in the final game against Macdonald Cartier. To view an article about the championship from The Sudbury Star click on the link below:

On Your Mark...

Today is the annual Chimes Challenge. When the clock strikes 12, students will race around a marked course for the glory of the Chimes Challenge title.

The boys competing are:

Jimmy C.

Adam B.

Ayo A.

Antonius V.

Ayo A.

The girls competing are:

Karen G.

Alaina C.

Jordan F.

Courtney K.

Deanna P.

Stay tuned for a video of the Chimes Challenge- we may have to consult the video replay as this is often a tight race!

Sports Day!

Competition is in the air! Sports Day begins after the Chimes Challenge at noon. Students will be don their favorite orange and black clothing and battle it out on the sports field.

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Ridley Prefects Announced!

Headmaster Jonathan Leigh has announced the prefects for next year. Now you might be asking what is a prefect and why should I care that they are being announced. Well if you go to Ridley College or went to Ridley College you will know that besides the fact that prefects get to wear sweet white blazers with orange piping there is a lot more to it and it is a great honour to be appointed as one. Students go through a lengthy process to become a prefect, first they go through house elections, after that the faculty votes and then it comes down to interviews with the headmaster and the final decision. Now back to the original question- what is a prefect? Prefects are senior students who are considered to be the school's strongest leaders, they are committed to Ridley and uphold all its traditions and ideals. The prefect group influences the atmosphere, tone and spirit of the school. Prefects are involved in and organize many school events. Congratulations to the 2010-2011 prefects!



Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Ridley Rowing: Bronze Medal for Sculler


Congratulations to Ridley Senior Sculler Ryan M. Ryan received a bronze medal for his performance in Sunday's South Niagara High School Invitational Regatta. The event is one of the largest high school regattas in Canada and draws approximately 1500 athletes from Canada and the United States.


Art Student Honoured


Congratulations to Nicola N., a Grade 12 AP Studio Art student, who has won the Best in Show award at this year's Niagara Regional Youth Art Exhibition. Nicola's work, along with senior secondary student work from 13 other schools in the Niagara region, is on exhibition at the Niagara Youth Art Gallery until June 20th.

The Houses of Ridley: Burgoyne House

Burgoyne House is the only Junior boarding house on campus. There are 16 students who live in Burgoyne and the countries that are currently represented in the house are: Japan, Korea, Mexico, Canada and America. Watch the video below to find out more about Burgoyne House.

Thursday, May 20, 2010

TheatreLink: Using Technology in the Arts

Yesterday the Grade 11 drama students completed the TheatreLink playwriting programme. They performed a play written by students from the Robert Morgan Educational Centre in Florida via video conferencing. After a discussion facilitated by The Manthattan Theatre Club, Ridley students watched the play that they wrote performed by students from Oregon. TheatreLink is an international web-based playwriting programme in its second year at Ridley. There are fourteen schools involved in the programme and it is sponsored by The Manhattan Theatre Club.

The Ridley performance was very well received by the students from Florida and their teacher had this to say,"My students were especially moved by the intensity of the actors' perfomances and the way each character was portrayed exactly as they imagined. Your sets were, in the words of my students, "awesome." You truly honored us with your performance." Watch the video below to see a portion of the performance:

Wednesday, May 19, 2010

The Houses of Ridley: Merritt North

Merritt North boys are born athletes--the house has won the Bermuda Cup for the past five years and Sports Day for the past nine years. But as Max Fischer says don't let their athletic exterior fool you Merritt North is a well rounded house. Click on the video below to hear more about Merritt North.

Monday, May 17, 2010

Cadet Inspection 2010

(Photo credit- Brett Mortensen '10)


The 103rd Annual Ridley Cadet Inspection was held over the weekend. Thankfully the weather was ideal, not too hot and not too cold for the cadets (as we know from past years if it's too hot cadets start dropping like flies). The Inspecting Officer was Vice Admiral Charles Style CBE and he was joined by George C. Hendrie '74, Chairman of the Board. Click on the video below to see what Ridley Cadets is all about - - I am sure it will bring back some memories for all the Old Ridleians out there!


Friday, May 14, 2010

Campus Watch: Cadet Inspection



The 103rd annual Ridley Cadet Inspection is being held this Saturday on campus starting at 11 am. Cadet inspection is a longstanding tradition at Ridley. Check out the videos from past inspections:

View video from the 1942 inspection:


View video from the 1981 inspection:

Monday, May 10, 2010

Merritt North: Music Night


Merritt North hosted their annual music competition over the weekend. Dean's House came out on top, but there were a lot of talented performers. Check out the video highlighting some of the performances.

Friday, May 7, 2010

Cabaret Nominated for 14 Cappies!


It's the Niagara Regions version of the Tony Awards! And Ridley's production of Cabaret has been nominated for 14 Cappies. The Cappies are local theatre awards and Ridley is competing against six other local productions. The winners will be announced at an awards night at St. Catharines Collegiate on May 27th. The cast is also performing a number from the show during the ceremony. Congratulations on the nominations!

Here are the nominees from Ridley:

Sound
Gregorio A, Ridley College, Cabaret

Sets
Véronique B, Ridley College, Cabaret

Make-up
Gloria S & Katrina S, Ridley College, Cabaret

Creativity
Conad K, Technology, Ridley College, Cabaret

Ensemble in a Musical
Kit Kat Klub Girls, Ridley College, Cabaret

Featured Actor in a Musical
Willi K, Ridley College, Cabaret

Female Dancer
Alexis K, Ridley College, Cabaret

Female Vocalist
Briony K, Ridley College, Cabaret

Comic Actress in a Musical
Madeline K, Ridley College, Cabaret

Supporting Actress in a Musical
Sophia W, Ridley College, Cabaret

Lead Actress in a Musical
Alanna K, Ridley College, Cabaret

Lead Actor in a Musical
Colin H, Ridley College, Cabaret

Song
Willkommen, Ridley College, Cabaret

Musical
Cabaret, Ridley College

Thursday, May 6, 2010

The Houses of Ridley: Dean's House

Dean's House is home of the knights and their motto is "Carpe Diem". It's the only stand-alone house on campus. 44 boys call Dean's House their home, including Louis B. from Montreal:

The Houses of Ridley: Gooderham East

Sixty girls call GEast their home (30 boarders and 20 day students). A.B.C - Always -Be-Cind is the "crocs" motto. They organize the Run for the Cure for the entire school, sponsor a child with World Vision and organize a Christmas shoebox program. Watch Lara G. talk about her house:

Wednesday, May 5, 2010

The Houses of Ridley:Gooderham West

Gooderham West is the home of the flamingos. There are 20 boarders and 19 day students in GWest. The house supports Breast Cancer Research and the Community Care Toy Drive. View the video below to see Briony talk about what makes Gooderham West her home away from home:

The Houses of Ridley:Merritt South

The incredible hulk lives in Merritt South (well not quite, but their crest does depict a strong man flexing that they call the hulk). At every house meeting a boy is honoured with the hulk of the week trophy for something special they have recently achieved. Want to learn more, listen to Tomas P. talk about his house:

Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Church Parade

He Made It!!
It's always a tense moment when the Drum Sergeant Major throws the mace over the gates - will the mace be caught? or fall to the ground? or not even make it over the gates in the first place? Despite the pressure drum Sergeant Major Ryan Maloney '10 was calm and effortlessly tossed the mace over the gates as everyone cheered and clapped (for me it was especially exciting being my first church parade and all). For those of you who don't know - this past weekend was Church Parade where the Ridley cadets march through downtown St. Catharines. The parade starts with the cadets moving out from the school and the Drum Sergeant Major throwing the mace over the gates and hopefully catching it, the next notable stop is 68 Yates Street (the former site of the school) where the cadets do a traditional "eyes left" - our headmaster Mr. Jonathan Leigh along with Lt. Carl Dorland – a veteran of World War II and former Ridley Faculty member – and Henry Burgoyne ’67 (representing his mother, Mrs. Dorothy Burgoyne-Doolittle, who also served in the Second World War and is a former member of Ridley’s Board of Governors) were at the site, the last stop of the parade is the front circle of campus where there is a drum head ceremony. Despite humidity and the threat of rain the weather stayed relatively nice and the cadets did an amazing job! Check out the video from the parade:

Monday, May 3, 2010

The Houses of Ridley: Mandeville House

You can hear the ducks all over Ridley's campus... it's no wonder the motto of Mandeville house is "where there is spirit there is song." Take a look at the video below featuring one of Mandeville's own - Gaelan

The Houses of Ridley: Arthur Bishop West

Arthur Bishop West is the home of the Titans. With 30 boarders and 22 day students ABW has a reputation for being laid back, but they also have an intense house spirit. Listen to Shaun H. tell you about his house:

Friday, April 30, 2010

Perfect Weather




It's a gorgeous day on campus and I am sure most Ridley students have been looking longingly outside. A few Lower School classes were lucky enough to take advantage of the nice weather and read poetry outside in the Reading Garden.

Campus Watch: Church Parade


Come out to the annual church parade this Sunday. Starts at 10 am. The Cadet Corps and Marching Band, with a police escort will proceed from Ridley College south on Henrietta Street, east on St. Paul Street over the Burgoyne Bridge, north on Ontario Street, west on College Street, south on Yates Street (this is where the Cadet Corps does a traditional "eyes left" to the original home of Ridley), west on St. Paul Street, and north on Henrietta Street. The 103rd Cadet Inspection is also coming up on Saturday May 15th.

The Houses of Ridley: Arthur Bishop East

This happy and spirited, but not wild house (however, their mascot is a Beast ... get it...A B East) is centrally located on campus and is comprised of 51 housemates. Watch the video below to hear why Gianni B. thinks Arthur Bishop East is the best house on campus:

Thursday, April 29, 2010

The Houses of Ridley: Leonard House

Each house on Ridley's campus is unique and has its own identity, culture and traditions. Check out Beatrice G. telling us about Leonard House:


Wednesday, April 28, 2010

OFSAA Gymnastics

Over the past two days there has been a lot of tumbling, balancing and flipping going on at Ridley--no not just another day on campus! We were hosting OFSAA Gymnastics in our arena--yes you read that correctly in our arena, we melted the ice and over 330 athletics from 44 schools came to compete.

Our girls team showed very well!
Lauren A. received a silver medal for level three vault and the team made up of Lauren, Sarina M. & Rachel R. placed 6th overall. Shane C. was awarded the gold medal for level two beam and Kennedy F. placed fourth in level one vault. Congratulations gymnasts!

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Ridley Radio: We're on the Air...Are you?

Ridley Radio launched on Tuesday April 13th and has been going strong ever since. Students have conceived and created individual radio programmes including interview segments, food and cultural reviews, request show, shows that highlight different genres of music, and much more. The programming is really great!! I especially like ‘60 Minutes of Fame’ which showcases Independent music. There are new shows every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Click here to go the Ridley Radio website:

https://www.ridleycollege.com/podium/default.aspx?t=130683&rc=1


Monday, April 26, 2010

Where in the World is Ridley College?: Dallas Edition



What a four day stretch!


Our matches on Friday were toughly contested, and even though some of our alliance partners were weaker teams, we managed to win them all and sit 2nd out of 100 teams at the end of Friday with just one more match to go in the preliminary rounds on Saturday. The complex scoring system allows teams with similar records to score differently and another good team from Puerto Rico was slightly ahead of us. Friday we celebrated with some excellent Texas steak.


Saturday, the last day of preliminary matches went well. Team 1509 (our best machine) won again for a perfect 8-0 record. 1509R finished 5-3 and 1509B finished 4-4. Because James C finished in the top 10 in the skills challenge, he was given one more opportunity to better his score. James posted a 129 to finish 3rd overall and win our first trophy.


Next we won the innovate award for the most clever techniques and use of VEX material. Following that we managed to win our division of 100 teams and came 3rd overall in the world! To top it all off, we won the most prestigious trophy of all, the Excellence Award, the highest honour at this tournament for overall team play, programming skill, technical excellence and sportsmanship.


Congratulations to the Ridley Robotics team!!


(Update Provided by Coach Rodney Reimer)

Friday, April 23, 2010

Where in the World is Ridley College?: Dallas Edition


The Ridley robotics team has safely made its way to Dallas for the robotics VEX World Championship. Our trip down was eventful - we made special crates for our machines and when we arrived in Dallas, our machines were not in the luggage! After waiting for a second plane arriving later, we FINALLY got our machines.


Our first day of competition was today, and even though our machines had passed size inspections at previous contests, all 3 machines failed the stringent sizing requirements in Dallas. After grinding and refitting, we got all machines to pass inspection and then went out and competed in our first matches of the tournament. There are 400 machines at the competition, many of which are amazing, but we eked out wins in all of our matches (one by only 2 points: 52-50).


Tomorrow the contest really gets going with 6 more matches and stiffer challenges. This 12 hour day was exhausting but tomorrow is the real test. Team 1509, Ridley Rmageddon, did great today and hopefully we will continue our excellent play tomorrow!


(Update provided by Coach Rodney Reimer)

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

Public Speaking Contest

Congratulations to the students who participated in the public speaking contest! I was very impressed by all the participants. It takes a lot of courage to get up in front of an audience and put yourself out there. As for the hardware, Maddie H. took home the Family Guild Trophy (Junior Division), Joy C. received the Judge Kingstone Trophy (Senior Runner Up) and Dan R. was awarded the W.H. Merritt Trophy (Senior Winner) as well as the English Department Prize for Dramatic Monologue.

Have a look at the videos from the event:

Dramatic Monologues- some of these performances gave me chills...others made me laugh..they were all entertaining:

Senior Competition:

Junior Competition:

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

Where in the World is Ridley College?: London Edition


Sadly our trip has come to an end. We have spent our last few days seeing the sights of London and of course doing a little shopping …some more than others – Colin practically bought out Primark. Last night we had a final dinner with the whole group at Zizi’s – an Italian restaurant (how appropriate since the play is Italian). We then went for some ice cream! Today we made our way to Shakespeare’s Globe theatre where we had a tour and a drama workshop. What better place to have a drama workshop! As I sit in the airport I see a lot of sad faces because our trip has come to an end, but we will always have the memories “….when the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie...that's AMORE...” Congratulations to the casts of the Servant of Two Masters on an incredible drama tour!

Thursday, March 11, 2010

Where in the World is Ridley College?: London Edition


Last night we had our largest audience of the UK tour so far! Many family members, friends and OR's came out to watch our performance which made it a very exciting and special night for the cast. The audience was very receptive and the cast was able to interact with them and use their improv skills. Today we went to Warwick Castle where we met with court jesters, lords and ladies. This afternoon was performance number four. Tomorrow the tour continues on to Oakham for our final performance.

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Where in the World is Ridley College?: London Edition


Oxford was beautiful and relaxing, but the tour must continue so on to Warwick for performance number three. I had a moment while on the bus yesterday on the way to Oxford where I kind of felt like I was a part of a British rock band. Every couple of days we load up our tour bus with our luggage, costumes and set. We travel through the English countryside and arrive in a new location every so often ready to perform. I think at the end of this performance we should shout out “WE LOVE YOU WARWICK- YOU HAVE BEEN GREAT!” (in our newly acquired English accents of course) Anyway, we are looking forward to tonight. As a warm up, this afternoon we participated in a drama workshop with students from Warwick school, it was interesting to see the different improv activities and work with drama students from England. We will have many special guests in attendance tonight including Ridley’s former headmaster Rupert Lane and his wife Judy.

Tuesday, March 9, 2010

Where in the World is Ridley College?: London Edition


It's day four of the Ridley UK drama tour. Yesterday we went to Hampton Court, Henry the VIII's old stomping grounds. Then it was on to Wellington College where we performed in front of an intimate crowd. The theatre was being occupied by another performance, so our crew performed in a room instead of the theatre. It was a great opportunity to interact with the crowd and both the actors and audience really enjoyed this experience. We were happy to have former Ridley chaplain Tim Novice, his wife Catherine and their three children at the show as well as two former Junior Masters. Today we moved on to Oxford. Oxford has some Ridley history. .in fact there is a stone still present in the area that marks Bishop Ridley's martyrdom site--a must see for any Ridlean who visits Oxford. Tomorrow we are heading to Warwick for two shows.

Sunday, March 7, 2010

Where in the World is Ridley College?: London Edition


The casts of the ‘Servant of Two Masters’ have just touched down in London town!!

After spending a delightful evening with our new English families (billet families) eating some crisps, riding the tube and watching some telly, we’re ready to make our London theatre debut. Our first performance is at Latymer day school in the heart of London, England. Perhaps Hugh Grant or Alan Rickman will be in the audience (both are alumni of Latymer). We are very excited to have some OR’s attending tonight’s performance and meeting up with us after for a reception. Off to Wellington College tomorrow for performance number two! Keep watching the blog for updates on our theatre tour of England!

Saturday, February 20, 2010

Campus Watch - Broadway to Ridley College in a New York Minute


The Ross Morrow Theatre was the scene for a unique way of teaching on Thursday, as twenty Grade 11 drama students sat in front of a video screen and participated in a dialogue with teaching artist Judy Trate in New York City.

TheatreLink is an international web-based playwriting programme in its second year at Ridley. Our students are linked with fourteen other geographically diverse communities from across the United States and Greece. Sponsored by The Manhattan Theatre Club , each school collaborates on a playwriting/production project via the Internet. Using distance-learning technologies, students confer with MTC teaching artists, study the MTC play, and communicate with their partner schools. The work culminates in a live presentation of the plays for the partner schools in the spring via video conferencing technology.

Saturday, January 9, 2010

Campus watch: 1st Girls Hockey and Boys Basketball




Despite the snow, it's a hot weekend on campus for 1st Girls Hockey and the Boys Basketball teams! The girls are hosting the NAPHA Hockey tournament to get things going in the new rink while the boys basketball teams are playing host to the Dorland Classic! GO BLACKS! GO BLACKS! GO BLACKS! GO!!