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Student CouncilThe Editorial TeamIt has been another busy year for the Rathmore community, and wereally hope that you will enjoy reading all about the fantasticachievements of our pupils both academically and in theirextracurricular successes in this year's edition of Solas. This magazineis a celebration of the wonderful diversity of talent and interests of ourstudents, demonstrating how they live out our school motto, Ut VitamHabeant, to the full.A word of thanks must go to Jennifer Meek for her photography. Herhelp is greatly appreciated. We are most grateful to the dedicated andhardworking members of Rathmore staff, who not only give so freely oftheir time towards organising so much extracurricular activity, but alsofor their help in supporting the Editorial Team with articles andpictures. Special thanks goes to Eva Kearney, Year 14, for providing thebeautiful artwork for the front cover.The Editorial Team:Emer O’Hare, Niamh Quinn, Yashwin Vachagan, James O’Neill, Rachel McCarthy, Aleena Rahman, Tara Cahalan, Conor McKeever, Felicity Mooney, Aoife McCann, Nikitha Sajan, Lucy Sutherland, Leia Phenix, Ishika Pattnaik, Jyothis George, Hannah McGirr, Rory HornerHi, my name is Akhil Shaji and I have been a Communication Officer on the Student Council this year. I have really enjoyedworking with the other Communication Officers and the Year 14 Tutor Group Representatives. I really looked forward to themonthly meetings with my peers as this was an opportunity to discuss issues that will have a positive impact on the pupilexperience in school. This year, the ‘Reps’ have been working hard, leading discussions in Tutor Group and contributing ideas tothe monthly meetings.The Student Council has taken on board suggestions from pupils across all year groups and has achieved a lot during thisacademic year:• There is now a map of the school displayed in different locations to help new pupils, new staff and visitors find their wayaround the school• The Student Planner will be updated next year as a result of feedback from pupils• We launched a “Writing Instruments” recycling initiative. It makes sense for us as a school to recycle pens, highlighters,mechanical pencils, and correction fluid when we are using them every day!• Bike racks have been installed beside the Music department for pupils who cycle to school• It is important that every pupil in school feels included and accepted. We continue to address the issue of inappropriatelanguage experienced by some pupils in school. We have recorded the experience of a number of these pupils and this audiowill be shown to pupils at the start of the next academic year to raise awareness of the impact that our words can have onothers.It is great to see pupils getting involved and making a positive contribution to school life. There is such a “buzz” at the monthlymeetings. I have been both a Tutor Group Rep and a Communication Officer during my time at Rathmore. I have loved both rolesand I have developed many skills that will help me in life.Akhil Shaji (U6 Communication Officer)STUDENT COUNCIL Downstairs LVI/UVI Business Studies Toilets Music Drama Hall Office library I.T. Resources Room Facilities Stairs Resources Languages English I.T. Resource Room Toilets Resource Room Downstairs Canteen H.E. H.E. 1 Sociology Tech Courtyard Convent Convent Careers Science Gym P.E. Entrance 3 2 77 6 5 1 1 2 3 4 3 2 1 4 5 6 3 2 1 Toilets C H A P E L H2 H1 Pol RE6 Downstairs Languages Maths Stairs Sixth Form Art 9 8 7 6 5 4 Stairs 7 6 1 2 1 4 3 2 5 V.P. V.P. 3 Staff Room G3 4 G4 1 3 Ceramics 10 11 12 9 8 7 13 RE2 RE3 RE4 RE1 RE4 Courtyard Upstairs H3 Stairs Stairs Stairs Stairs Stairs Stairs Stairs

On my first day at Rathmore I was quite nervous because it was my first time at secondary school and I knew it was going to be very different but I was also excited to make new friends and meet all my new teachers! Before my first day I went to the summer activity week and I got to meet my Tutor who is Mrs Mc Kenna and Tutor Group which helped me to settle into Rathmore.On my first day, I went to Tutor Group where my Tutor talked to us about what our first day would be like and encouraged us to try hard but also have fun. I then went to my classes that I had that day and met lots of my new teachers; they were all lovely and made us feel at home in Rathmore.I was very nervous that I wasn’t going to make any friends but I did- I made lots! I first went into Rathmore with my best friend from primary school so I knew that I always had her by my side but I also made lots of other friends and now I don’t know what I would do without them. I think that friends are a very important part of school because they make it fun but don’t go into your first day worrying that you won’t make friends, because you definitely will. Sometimes it takes time to get to know one another but just keep talking and be kind to people. If you do that, you will always make friends.I can’t believe that my first year of Rathmore is nearly over and even though it has gone by really fast. I still remember everything, especially my first day. Your first day is a chance to make friends, to meet your teachers and most importantly get to know the school.Good luck Year 8, I hope you have a fantastic first year at Rathmore and really enjoy it, just as I have done! Chloe Adair 8M7My First Day at Rathmore

For the first time since 2019, Rathmore was able to host the Prefect Investiture as a live event. The role of Prefect is very important inschool life and the Prefect Investiture is a chance for the team to be formally introduced to the pupils to whom they will be role models.This year 24 Prefects were appointed, in addition to the Head Boy and Head Girl.The Prefect Investiture took place after the Opening Mass in St Annes’s church. The congregation enjoyed beautiful live music andsinging from both the school choir and orchestra. Here the Upper Sixth pupils who had received roles were presented to the studentbody. Each member of the Mentoring Team, the Buddies, the Communication Officers and the Prefects were introduced to andapplauded by the school community and later they received their badges.After this, the school community listened to speeches from the Head Boy, Fiontan O’Boyle and the Head Girl, Eva Kearney. Bothexpressed their gratitude for being given the privilege to give back to the school that has given them so much. As the Head Boy said inhis speech, “We at Rathmore are a team”. The Prefect Investiture was the perfect way for our school to come together at the start of anew academic year and to demonstrate just how much of a team we are.The Period Dignity TeamThe Period Dignity Team is a growing team of pupils who believe that every person who has a period should be able to access freeperiod products in school.Last year we surveyed the whole school and discovered that there were some people who were unable to access period productsbecause they either could not afford them or had an unexpected period.Since the survey we have established the Period Dignity Team to ensure that everyone has access to free period products. Our team is open to all pupils which is crucial to help break down barriers. We have raised awareness in our school community about periods, to begin to remove any embarrassment or stigma that there might be. We have organised a very successful workshop for the Year 8 girls led by Sixth Form pupils and supported by ‘Always’ and the National School Partnership. In the workshop, the girls learned all about the changes during puberty, as well as how and when the changes will happen. The Year 8 girls went home withan Always starter pack and parents were informed of the workshop and were signposted to further support. We have also created and led Period Dignity assemblies across every year group (Years 8-14)during which we gave comprehensive feedback from the Period Dignity Survey and addressed the issue of ‘period shaming’ and provided holiday period packs for anyone who needs them.Prefect Investiture

Ron Mueck is an Australian sculptor who now works in the UK.Some of his most famous works of hyper realistic sculptur es of people living their everyday lives came to the MAC in Belfast, and the Lower SixthArt students had the opportunity to view his exhibition. We soon discovered that it was the artist’s intention that his sculptures have the ability tomake us, the viewer, reflect on our own emotions, whether they be related to childhood, personal experiences or vulnerability. He plays with thesize and statur e of his sculptures to provoke thought and to make a connection with the viewer. Following our guide, we were led to the first andlargest of his scul ptures entitled ‘In Bed’. Here we were introduced to Mueck’s play with scale as he wished to invoke a childlike feeling for theviewer similar to how you might have felt as a young child when you shared a bed with your parents. This all felt very surreal as the lady was sorealistic, yet so enormous.Ron Mueck’s sculptures were hyper realistic; however we felt that elements of his previous career as a puppeteer had somewhat of an influencewith the inclusion of the wound in ‘Youth’, where it seemed alm ost to o perfect.This brief but amazing experience taught us much about human nature, facial expression, scale and the immense possibilities open to the artist.Felicite Mooney,Year 13A-Level Art Ron Mueck Exhibition TripOne sunny morning in October, the Year 12 artists travelledto Bellaghy to visit the Seamus Heaney centre, where we hadthe privilege of meeting the renowned, award-winning Irishillustrator and author, PJ Lynch. We thoroughly enjoyed apresentation from PJ, who guided us through his journey asan artist and enthralled us with an exhibition of some of hisown work, before affording us the opportunity to ask himsome questions. It proved to be an exceptionally nostalgicexperience as PJ transported us all back to our childhoodthrough his fascinating fairy tales and fantasies. PJ was veryenthusiastic and inspirational, and he demonstrated how aninitial idea can manifest itself in our final outcome, and howour imagination can play a crucial role in our artwork.Following an enchanting experience with PJ Lynch, the Year12 Art classes received a guided tour of the Seamus HeaneyMuseum, and we ended our day of sentimental reminiscingwith the dressing up clothes. What an exciting, fascinatingand inspiring day itwas! Cliodhna LoganYear 12 Art trip to Seamus Heaney Centre, BellaghyRobert Peters Etching Workshop with year 14 art"We really enjoyed the printworkshop with Robert Peters.We were asked to produce ourown etchings that relate to ourprojects. These were then usedto carry out a whole range ofdifferent printing techniques.Some of the techniques werereally interesting and it was sogood to see an artist at work inthe department. Thank you toRobert for organising to come tous.”Emma Copeland-Art PrefectYear 13 RUA Trip October 2022Guided tour given by Maggie BowenIn October the Year 14 Art class visited the RUAExhibition at the Ulster Museum. There were many pieceson display, ranging from paintings to sculptures and evenvideo installations. There were some interesting works ofart and personally, my favourite piece was a stained-glass window by Evan Connon called ‘Stolen Child.’When I walked into the room it immediately stood out tome as it was inside a light box and the light shiningthrough the glass made the colours look vibrant. Overall,I had a good time visiting the exhibition and seeing thedifferent pieces inspired some ideas for my own art.

Rathmore artwork was on display in Malone House as part of a wonderfulevening of culture for St Bride's miscellany.Pupils from KS3 right through to a few past pupils put in their art to go ondisplay at this event.So many members of the public were impressed by the talent on show. OisinDuffy Year 11 was performing on the evening as part of the orchestra.St Bride’s Miscellany at Malone HouseVan Gogh Immersive Experience in BelfastOn Thursday 8th February 2023Rathmore was represented at theCCEA 'True Colours' exhibition by lastyear's Head Girl- Lara Hanly. Lara'spaintings, that she completed for herA2 Art, have been showcased at theevent.Young artists were selected byCCEA to showcase their GCSE andGCE Art and Design work from thesummer 2022 examination period.From intricate paintings to innovativesculptures and creative design work, the'True Colours' exhibition reveals thehigh calibre of creative work producedby young artists in Northern Ireland. Awonderful celebration.

The Young Enterprise Company Programme involves devising a product concept, development of the actual product,creating a business plan, raising capital, marketing and management of all major business functions. The CompanyProgramme is a comprehensive all round business experience.This year our Young Enterprise company was called ‘Vitam’. We started our own company and raised our own capital byselling candy canes at Christmas. Our company sold a range of badges, premade, and on the day customers couldpersonalise their badges with their own designs. This was a great hit with P6 and P7 pupils and their parents at Open Day.Starting and running a company can be difficult and conflict is inevitable, but the skills developed are invaluable. We gainfirst-hand experience of the world of work and working as part of a team. We developed the qualities and skills thatemployers value and are now able to evidence examples of these skills, and we explored self-employment andentrepreneurship as a possible career pathway.The Young Enterprise Company ProgrammeNI Business Challenge and Trip to BDO OfficesOn Tuesday 2nd February, Rathmore were crowned joint winners of the NI Business Challenge alongside St.Mary’s, Magherafelt. A group of Year 13 Business Studies students, Rachel McCarthy, Katie O'Reilly, Eva Grayand Lucy Barr, visited Queen's Management School's Riddel Hall campus to compete against school teamsfrom all over NI. The competition set us a complex business case study and challenge, and we were asked topresent our recommendations back to expert judging panels comprising of Directors from Henderson Group,BDO NI and members of the Queen’s University Belfast teaching staff. The Business Studies Department wasawarded £500 and tickets for a Belfast Giants match. We were also given the opportunity to give ourpresentation again at BDO offices in March, in front of directors from each department. It was a great learningopportunity and gave us an excellent insight into corporate life.

Year 13- A Day with BruiserFrom the moment the blue floodlightsuddenly burst into a bright array ofcolours, loud music blasting on thespeakers, and the three actors began theirelectrifying performance with the first ofmany choreographed movement, I knewseeing ‘Teechers’, performed by BruiserTheatre Company, would be an experienceI wouldn’t forget any time soon. Not onlywas their use of a simple set and props suchas cardboard lockers, blazers and scarves tocreate scenes and establish charactersgenius, the way the three actors were ableto create a wide range of characters, noneof them similar, all in sync, was awe-inspiring and a true embodiment of whatBruiser’s style is: physical, engaging, and atrue journey of the senses.‘Unmute’. To restore sound. To give a voice to. To lift the temporary silence. This is what theUnmute Monologue Competition, run by Lung Theatre Company, is about. Giving youngpeople in today’s society the opportunity to create a theatric piece that raises awareness onany social issue they feel isn’t being talked about enough or given enough spotlight. When ourDrama class was given the opportunity to join in the competition, I jumped at the chance. Thewebsite gave us lots of tips and examples and, drawing on past writing experience I had fromFighting Words and GCSE and A level Drama, I decided to write a monologue based onidentity and how it feels to be Afro-Irish. When my monologue was chosen for publishing, I waselated. There were a wide range of topics covered in the competition, from sexism to theclimate crises to gender identity to racism. Our monologues will be recorded by actors and puton a podcast to be listened to later in the year and I cannot wait to see where else my scriptwriting abilities will take me.

How the Earth BreathesIn the rolling hills, the winding streams,The tall white peaks –the stuff of dreams.The great red deserts, the vast blue seas,The rustling forest with emerald leaves.The plateaux of ice, the rainbow reefs,The golden beaches with their salty breeze.The little creatures and colossal beasts:Horses with stripes and spotted cats in trees.That caw, cackle, roar and squeak as they please.The rolling, rumbling clouds, a violent lava sneeze,The electric-white flash, the rain that relieves,And whirling, swirling white rain, cold enough to freeze.Can you see it, hear it, feel it?It’s how the Earth breathes.Aoife McAlinney(Yr10)The EnvironmentThe early spring wind blows through the meadows.Through fields of flowers of bright mellow yellow.Spring brings with it, light rained days.Until they are dried by summer sun’s rays.As summer comes the clouds retreat.Leaving the earth to feel the sun’s heat.Forest trees have lush green leaves.Until the dawn of autumn’s breeze.Autumn comes like an experienced thief.Robbing trees till there’s not a leaf.Autumn steals any greens in its path.Only to be met with winters wrath.As winter arrives the lakes all freeze.Howling winds replace the breeze.Though the desert has no ice to show.The trees and vines are covered with snow. Tia Ji (Yr10)HomeI am a dark sky bespangled with countless radiating orbs.I am a stretch of brackish water with burgeoning mangroves.I am a fathomless chasm with Brobdingnagian cliffs of sandstone.I am a vivacious reef with clusters of flamboyant coral.I am a vast, sandy wasteland without a drop of water in sight.I am a flowery meadow with waist-high viridescent grass.I am an obstreperous torrent of cascading water.I am an active volcano simmering with incandescent rage.I am a craggy mountain with waves of snow tumbling down my flank.I am a stygian woodland teeming with towering oaks and prickles of briars.I am verdant.I am safe.I am your home.Emma Flynn (Yr8)Poetry CompetitionOn World Book Day this year all Rathmore pupils were set the challenge of finding ‘Where’s Wally’ images which were dotted around the school. The three students who were first to locate all the Wally pictures were Maria Rafferty, Sophie Stewart and Abhiraj TandonOn World Book day some of Mrs McCullagh’s classes brought in their favourite novels. Pupils took a break from their normalstudies and shared their love of reading by highlighting favourite characters, paragraphs and stylistic features in their chosennovels. It proved to be a wonderful opportunity, particularly for the Upper Sixth, to introduce their peers to books they mightnever have thought of reading. The novels ranged from writers such as Dante, Kafka, Hana Yangihara to Maureen Johnsonand Casey McQuiston. I think the pupils might agree with Maya Angelou when she said, ‘ I am my best around books’.The theme of this year’s National Poetry Day was The Environment.This topic was chosen not just because of poetry’s ability to capturethe beauty of nature but, also because of the prevalence of the topic ofenvironment in young peoples’ lives. This year, like many before, pupilsof Rathmore armed themselves with their pens and thesauruses tocompete in the school poetry competition. A winner is chosen fromeach year group and, the 2022 winners were Emma Flynn, Year 8, TiaJi, year 9, Aoife McAlinney, Year 10, Beth Madden, Year 11, EveWilson, Year 11, and Tara Cahalan, Year 13. Here are some of thebrilliant winning poems of our Junior School pupils.

Drop Everything And ReadD.E.A.R. or Drop Everything and Read was established a number ofyears ago and its focus is to promote reading for pleasure. Every Fridayduring registration period, pupils read a novel of their choice for 15minutes. What a lovely start to the day!Reading is about pleasure, but its value is immeasurable in the rewardsit fosters in us personally as well as academically. During extendedTutor Groups, students were asked to write out a meaningfulquotation or something that they had read which resonated with themor left a mark; these were displayed on the D.E.A.R. board. Readingdevelops vocabulary and polishes written expression, so ‘Word of theWeek’ was launched wherein pupils were asked to find interestingwords, provide their meaning and then illustrate their understanding ofthe word in a sentence. These were also displayed on the D.E.A.R.board and there was a lot of excitement amongst the junior pupilswhen they saw that their word had been chosen!World Book Day saw the usual activities to celebrate the wonderfulworld of reading. Pupils took their favourite books into English classand had interesting discussions about why these books meant so muchto them. This enabled pupils to discover new novels and genres toexplore. Some junior classes made their own bookmarks, whilst MrsMulligan’s ‘Where’s Wally?’ hunt around the school inspired muchexcitement and competitive spirit. The day also saw a class of Year 10using their creativity, imagination and skills of analysis as they re-created crime scenes and tried to ascertain who the murderer was in‘Whodunnit – Dead Man’s Pockets’.Ultimately, D.E.A.R. is about reading for pleasure, but through it wetry to instil the sense that reading promotes empathy. As the Irishauthor John Connolly wrote, “I think the act of reading imbues thereader with a sensitivity toward the outside world…it allows us toinhabit the consciousness of another which is a precursor to empathy,and empathy is one of the marks of a decent human being.”ThÉrÈse Hamilton Outstanding Reader AWARDEileen O’Doherty in Year 10 received the Thérèse Hamilton Outstanding Reader Award this year, presented to her by Dr Donnelly.In March, the Year 13 classes were given the opportunity to visit the Seamus Heaney Homeplace in Bellaghy. This year we are studying an anthology of Heaney’s poetry, and this trip gave us a chance to take a closer look at his life. Once we arrived at the homeplace we were greeted by a welcoming tour guide and handed little speaker devices. As we were taken through the brilliantexhibits, we were able to use these little speakers to hear the real Heaney reading his poetry! The exhibits showed important items, places and moments from Heaney’s life, his Conway Stewart pen, a recreation of his attic study and a video of him receiving his Nobel prize. After a quick visit to the café for lunch, we peeked into the gorgeous Heaney Library and were able to flick through copies of his poetry collections. Just before we headed home, we stopped off in the dress up corner, here we tried on firemenuniforms and aprons just like the one Heaney’s mother would have worn. We had a brilliant day out and learned a lot about howthis legendary Irish poet came to be.Tara Cahalan, Year 13English Year 13 Heaney Trip

As part of this year’s Trócaire campaign we held‘Rathmore’s Got Talent’ and an Easter Raffle. Every singlecontribution helped. We are extremely grateful to everypupil who bought a ticket for the Easter Raffle or the TalentShow, who auditioned for, or performed at the Talent Show,the pupils who organised the many cake and bun sales andall those who supported the Non Uniform Day. We all cametogether as a school community to raise money for Trócaireand had great fun as well!Our parents also made very generous contributions viaParentPay, without having the chance to participate in anyof the activities. They, alone, raised over £4,000.We are extremely proud of what we have all achieved.For the past thirty-seven years, Tutor Groups have been raising moneyto buy clothes and toys for local children and have been providinghampers for their families. This year was our biggest campaign ever; weworked with social workers from the Beech Hall Family Centre to providetoys for one hundred and eleven children and hampers for their families.Each hamper was full of delicious treats and every single present waschosen with thought and care.We were also able to provide an additional twenty-five hampers andboxes of essential items such as hats, gloves, scarves and toiletries to theWelcome Organisation, which supports people in Belfast who havebeen affected by homelessness.Our Trócaire Campaign this year was a huge success. Thecampaign brought a great sense of fun and energy to school, witha vast array of exciting events, including the various Year Groupactivities, our Easter Raffle, the Prefect Spinathon, our Non-Uniform Day, and the inimitable ‘Rathmore’s Got Talent’ show.At Rathmore, our charity events are such an important part of school life. These are led by the Prefect Team. Throughout the schoolyear, we come together as a school community to support and raise funds for The Friends of the Cancer Centre, to support families andchildren in our local area at Christmas by providing toys and hampers, in our Catholic Caring Campaign, and to continue to support thework of Trócaire through our annual Trócaire Campaign.‘We can not all do gre at things, but we can do small things with great lov e’-Mother TeresaThis year, as always, our campaign to raise awareness for theexcellent work of The Friends of The Cancer Centre was given hugesupport by staff and by all students in Sixth Form and Year 12.Together, we managed to raise £2,421.Catholic Caring @ Christmas

GEOGRAPHY tripsYear 12 River study to Colin GlenYear 14 Ethnic Diversity tour of BelfastYear 13 Sand Dunes study to MagilliganOn Wednesday 8th February, the Year 13 Geography students travelled to the Magilligan Field Centre in County Derry tostudy plant succession along coastal sand dunes. The trip lasted all day, leaving school at 9:15 am and returning to school at7:00pm. When on the sand dunes, we used different kinds of measuring apparatus, for example barometers to measurewindspeed, quadrats to measure plant diversity and many more! This data that we collected in the field will be used to assistanswering questions in the Unit 3 Fieldwork examination. Although collecting the fieldwork data on the sand dunes was a lotof fun, the highlight of the trip was, of course, being allowed to stop off at McDonald’s for our dinner on the way home!Conor McKeever ,Year 13All our Year 12 Geograhers went outfor a day trip to Colin Glen inSeptember, where we investigatedchanges to the River Colin fromsource to mouth.Our students loved the day especiallygetting in to the river in their wellies.All our Year 14 went for a bus tour ofBelfast in December where we werestudying segregation in inner city Belfastwith particular focus on peace linesand interface areas. Our students enjoyedseeing parts of Belfast they would notnormally be in and areas that sufferedgreatly during the Troubles.

The Year 9 and GCSE Food and Nutrition students took part in acookery information talk and demonstration organised by The Livestockand Meat Commission. Liz Brown spoke to the students about variousaspects of meat production and the importance of buying farm qualityassured products. She also discussed the nutritional benefits of red meatand the current dietary guidelines for its consumption with the students.During the various visits a range of dishes, using beef and lamb, wereprepared and cooked which the students sampled and enjoyed. Theseincluded marinated lamb steaks, sticky beef bowls and Thai red beefcurry. Each student also received a booklet of tasty recipes that the LMChad recently published.Livestock and Meat Commission Cookery Demonstrations In December, the Key Stage 3 students were given the opportunity to enter a competition. The brief was to prepare and cook six cookies, biscuits or pieces of shortbread which could be given as a Christmas present. Due to the current cost of living crisis, the cost of the ingredients could not exceed £5. The judges were very impressed with the entries and thoroughly enjoyed tasting them. Congratulations to our winners for each year group who can be seen below. A big thank you must also go to Mrs Beattie for organising this. Christmas Cookery CompetitionDuring four Tuesdays in February and March, after school, the Home EconomicsDepartment was filled with the smell of freshly baked foods and the buzz ofenthusiastic Year 10s laughing as they tried to flip pancakes and cook somedelicious recipes. This year, the HE Department teamed up with our LanguagesDepartment to introduce us to new international dishes, including Crêpes fromFrance, Torrijas from Spain, Apfelküchlein from Germany and Ham and CheeseJambons from Ireland. We learnt a lot from this club and had a lot of fun. It wasa very enjoyable experience and it was great to make these dishes as well aslearn about the culture of each country. Special thanks must go to our HEassistant Miss Dane for arranging all the ingredients, to our teachers Mrs Beattieand Mrs Lindsay and the languages assistants Mathias Bensaadoune, ChiaraStelling, Teresa Galán Sánchez, and Lúsaí Ní Mhearáin for showing us new skillsand cooking styles.By Aoife McAlinney & Katie Magee, 10JYear 8 Cookery ClubDuring the month of January, a group of Year8s met on Tuesday afternoon each weekafter school in the Home EconomicsDepartment for the Cookery Club. Ourtheme this year was party food and we learnthow to prepare sausage rolls, pizzapinwheels, fifteens and mini chocolate chipmuffin. Special thanks must go to our HEassistant Miss Dane for organising theingredients and to our teachers Mrs Beattieand Mrs Lindsay for helping us each week.Year 9 Cookery ClubDuring October and November Year 9students came to the Home EconomicsCookery Club and cooked some deliciousrecipes. Our theme this year was being a'savvy spender' with cost of living crisisshowing how we could use our leftoverswisely. Some of the dishes that wereprepared were Ham and CheeseQuesadillas, easy Cinnamon Swirls andSausage Pasta Bake. It was a really enjoyableway to spend the afternoon.Year 10 Cookery ClubCookery Club spanned a total of five weeks. In those five weeks welearnt how to make dishes and snacks that were related to the themeof the cost of living crisis and how to save money on food and how toreduce food waste. Every week we made something new and exciting.For example, we made Enchiladas from left-over Tortillas which werereally simple and easy to make and tasted amazing! Another week wemade an egg-fried rice dish which was so delicious and looked veryappetising. Overall, I think Cookery Club is definitely worth going to, itis always so enjoyable and fun.Luke Blaney, 9H

HistoryA group of 18 students, made up of Year 12 History students and Year A level Historyand Politics students were accompanied by two teachers, Mrs Bailey and Mr Tully, toMaynooth University for a debate co-ordinated by Parallel Histories. We arrived at theuniversity and made our way into the hall. It was filled with students from all overEurope: France, Germany, Belgium, England, Denmark, and other schools fromIreland.The hosts of the debate made an introductory speech and there was a special guest,Maynooth University’s leading expert in Irish History.Our first debate focused on the question - Should the British government be blamed, orpraised, for the Partition of Ireland? Our group of 8 was split into two. Half of us agreedwith the statement and the other half disagreeing. Everyone came prepared. We had40 minutes to prepare an order for our debate, as well as appointing team memberswho would introduce and conclude.After the debate, we had an opportunity to walk around the university. After lunch wehad a second debate. It was an amazing opportunity to learn and understand theoutlook of others.Speaking to people from so many different places was interesting and it was anunforgettable experience. Charvi Geddam, Year 12History and Politicstrip to Maynooth UniversityYear 10s go back to the futureHistory meets AI with ‘The House’ On October 6th, the Big Telly Theatre Company came to Rathmore to showcase their new VR experience called ‘The House’. This project was created to “address the legacy of the troubles within families and communities”. All Year 10 pupils were able to participate in the experience.We used VR headsets to spend time in a house. In each room there were different actors engaged in conversations with others, or with themselves, talking about different issues they had had living in a post-conflict society. ‘The House’ was interactive, so we were told that we could click on different images and icons in each room to learn more about the object, person, situation or time. This was helpful as we had the opportunity to engage and understand more about the ongoing struggles people experience in Northern Ireland today. At the end, our respective Tutor Groups had the opportunity to meet with staff from the Commission for Victims and Survivors, to ask any questions about the experience. This was useful as many people had questions about things we had seen and what they represented.The workshop allowed us to learn and understand about the Troubles, which helped with our studies, but also added to our awareness of the history of Northern Ireland and the world around us. Currently in History, we are learning about the consequences of partition, and the VR event really allowed us to understand this more.Overall, it was a unique activity as it was inclusive and interactive. It would be wonderful to have more opportunities like this because it was interesting, and it directly dealt with the major issues that have emerged since the Troubles ended. It was mindful of the sensitive nature of the topic, and it gave everyone a chance to imagine themselves in the shoes of someone who had experienced it. The VR video also explained the stigma around it today as it was such a traumatic event for many. Personally, I am grateful that I was able to participate in this activity as it is an important part of our history in Northern Ireland. Anila Saha, year 10

BelTech Edu is an annual competitionaimed at KS3+ students aged 13-18interested in a career in the Technology &IT sectors. This year’s brief was to designan app that “…solves a problem faced bymany people…”. Lower 6th studentMatthew Jordan designed and developed‘Haven’ which provides people with thelocations and contact details of manyservices in their local area such as foodbanks, homeless shelters, police stationsand domestic abuse shelters. Matthewhad to present his idea to a VirtualDragon’s Den judging panel and wassuccessful in walking away with the £5001st prize.In September, a Code Show Computing Event took Year 10 students on an exciting trip to the 1980s, immersing them in the world of retrotechnology. The event offered hands-on experiences with iconic devices like the Commodore 64, Sinclair electric car, Sony Walkman, and earlymobile phones. Through this unique adventure, students enjoyed a day of learning and gained valuable insights from the past.Exploring Retro Technology:Students were transported back to the 1980s, a time before modern advancements in computing. The highlight of the event was theCommodore 64, a legendary computer that students used to code simple programs. This vintage machine allowed them to appreciate thechallenges of working with limited hardware and no graphical interfaces.In addition to the Commodore 64, the event showcased other iconic devices from the era. The Sinclair electric car demonstrated early attemptsat electric vehicles, while the Sony Walkman represented the revolution of portable music. Early mobile phones showcased the evolution ofcommunication devices. Interacting with these gadgets provided students with a tangible understanding of the past and the progress made intechnology.Under the guidance of expert instructors, students wrote simple programs and experienced the constraints of 1980s hardware. Throughpractical exercises, students learned about debugging, memory limitations, and the importance of efficient code.Our Year 10 students developed a fresh understanding of the progress achieved in computing within their own and their parents’ generation.For many, the event sparked an interest in the history and evolution of technology.Apps that Change the WorldJourneying Back in Time:Year 10 Students Em brace RetroComputing at Code Show Event

On Monday 19th December a former RathmoreGrammar School pupil, Colleen Agnew, came in tospeak to our pupils about the importance of learninglanguages to A level and beyond. Colleen now worksfor a major American software company and shespoke to our pupils about where her languages havetaken her in the world of work, as well as in herpersonal life, sharing some of her experiences to-datewith us.The pupils and staff found it highly inspirational andwe were so impressed by Colleen's expertise andadvice. Her main message was to pursue the subjectsthat are your passion and you will do well in yourcareer.On Thursday 28 October we were delighted to have the Head ofNICILT at QUB, Dr Ian Collen, come to speak to us aboutModern Languages and where they can lead to in the world ofwork. The talk was very interesting and informative, giving us lotsof ideas about the types of work you can do after havingstudied languages to A level and beyond. Dr Collen helped uswith our understanding about our place in a global market andhow we need to be prepared for the ever-changing job market.He was very impressed that our school offers four languages toAlevel and, coupled with the Language Assistant Programme,gives pupils the opportunity to excel in speaking the language.Languages open many doors into the world of work, but theyalso help us to develop personally, as we have to engage withothers, exchange ideas and opinions, and be open to newcultures and experiences that broaden our horizons.We look forward to Dr Collen returning next year.COLLEEN AGNEW Languages Career talkDr Ian Collen TalkThis long-established tradition marks the halfway point on the road to fluency for students of Irish. The Year 10 Irishclass used a series of six speaking tasks covering all areas of language studied in Junior School.This award is highly regarded by the Irish-speaking community and serves to inspire students to continue learning Irishand other languages. This project builds confidence in the students and prepares them for the rigours of GCSE.The students were presented with their Fáinní by the A2 Irish class and Head of Year 10, Mr Kelly, at a specialceremony held in the Drama-Lecture Theatre, which was also attended by their Tutors and other Language teachers.An Fáinne Airgid / Silver FáinneAt the same occasion, the Year 14 students were awarded thevery prestigious ‘Fáinne Óir’ which denotes fluency in Irish,having gone through the rigorous speaking examination at A2.The pupils received their gold Fáinne at a special ceremonyand were presented by their Head of Year, Mrs Lavery.These same students, only four years, previously had beenawarded the silver Fáinne, which shows due diligence andserves to inspire the younger students in the Irish Department.An Fáinne Óir / Gold FáinneAn Fáinne

In April, I was granted the opportunity by my youth club to complete the final quarter of the Camino de Santiago. We walked a total of 120km over the course of five days, stopping at hostels in Sarria, Portomarin, Palas de Rei, Arzua, O Pedrouzo and finally, Santiago de Compostela. On the final day we visited the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela, which is the reputed burial place of Saint James the Great, one of the apostles. There, we received the last stamp on our pilgrim passport before being awarded the Compostela certificate. We celebrated Mass in the Cathedral and were lucky enough to visit St James’ tomb which Pope John Paul II visited in 1989. Although I found walking the Camino both a mentally and physically challenging experience, the bonds that were made, having time to reflect from the fast pace of life and the breathtaking views throughout the journey made this the most memorable event of my life. Charley Donnelly (Lower 6)Au revoir, Mathias. Our French assistant for the past year.Mathias Bensaadoune is from Avignon in southeastFrance (every one knows the song ‘sur le pont d’Avignon,on y danse…’. He took on the weekly conversation classeswith AS/A2 students, and also the junior French Club withYear 8. Mathias really enjoyed his year in Rathmore andwe wish him well for the future. Merci Mathias et bonnechance!Mathias - French AssistantSome year 10 students attended Hispanofest at QUB in February2023. They gained enhanced ICT, marketing and enterpriseskills, thinking skills and personal capabilities They also used theirreading, listening, speaking and writing skills in Spanish for theevent in a realistic, but safe environment. They met and werejudged by professional linguists, had a guided tour of theQueen’s University Belfast campus and listened to a talk on theimportance of the Spanish language and the relevance oflanguage skills for employability. Hispanofest aims to raise thecareer aspirations of young learners of Spanish and foster closerrelationships between schools, higher education and business.HISPANOFEST

On Tuesday 14th March , National Pi Day, 12teams of pupils from Year 10 competed in our firstRathmore Pi Day Team Maths Challenge. Led byMrs Thomas’s Year 14 class, the teams battled itout completing group rounds, cross numberchallenges and relays. Lots of fun was had by alland the winning team was from Mrs McKenna’s10M class (pic below).Winning Team from 10M: JackMcKenna, Finn Taggart, AmyDenny and Michael FitzpatrickMaths ChallengeIn November, all L6 Maths students and U6 Further Maths students took part in the UK Senior Maths Challenge. In it they have tocomplete a series of complex Maths problems. The majority obtained a Gold, Silver or Bronze Certificate. Erin Crawford was top inthe school.More recently, some of our Y8 and Y9 pupils took part in the UK Junior Maths Challenge. Lots were awarded Gold, Silver and BronzeCertificates and some even qualified for the next round, called the Kangaroo Round. Good luck to Amelia Morris, Erin Burke, AidanAustin, Tia Ji, Mikey Muckian, Ishaq Sharif, Leo Girvan, Patrick Hamill and Paul Nancarrow.Rubik’s Cube Club started up this year for Junior pupils whowanted to learn how to do a Rubik’s cube or for pupils whowanted to improve their time. Many talented pupils attended,including pupils who can solve a 4 x 4 Rubik’s cube and pupilswho can solve a cube one-handed. Rubik’s Cube Club will runagain in 2023/24. Details to follow in September.

In February, I had the opportunity to compete at the Ballymena Arts Festival. It was inthe Braid Arts Centre, in the heart of Ballymena. I entered three categories, Vocal Solo,Sacred Solo and Folk Song: the only pupil doing this. The categories were open to anystudent in Years 8-10 in Northern Ireland. I won second place in Vocal solo with myGrade 5 Classical Italian Piece ‘Caro Mio Ben’. I loved performing this song. I went onto win first place with my second piece ‘Little Road to Bethlehem’, and finished withsecond place in the folk song category with ‘Red is the Rose’. In Rathmore, I haveindividual singing lessons with Ms Murray each Friday and have achieved Grade 5Classical Singing. Outside school, I am preparing for Grade 6 Musical Theatre. I havestudied at Pophouse Arts, Fusion Theatre, and more recently at theThe James HuishAcademy of Theatre Arts Belfast. I look forward to continuing my musical passionsboth within and outside school.Sarah Duffy Year 9(H)I was playing Starry Dome (by GeorgeNevada) and Changing Times (byHeather Hammond) on the piano againstfour other pianists. I won first place andwas awarded the Valerie DickeyMemorial Trophy. Winnie Lin, Year 8JBallymena Arts FestivalBelfast Musical FestivalThese trophies were for theBach Prize at the LaganFestival, and the Sonatacompetition as well as MostPromising SecondarySchool Pianist at BelfastMusic Festival. All thesewere won in March when Iwas also playing with afractured finger!Alfred Chen, Year 11

On Sunday the 16th of October, I, along with the other A2 Moving Image students, had the unique opportunity to attend thepremiere of a new Sci-Fi film called ‘Vesper’. We were invited by Cinemagic to view the film in the Odeon in Victoria Square. The filmwas directed by Kristina Buozyte and Bruno Samper. The film is set in a dystopian future in which Earth’s ecosystem has beendestroyed and the protagonist Vesper must support herself and her incapacitated father with her survival skills and environmentalknowledge. The film’s premiere concluded with an interview with Raffiella Chapman, the actor who played the leading role. Theaudience was given the opportunity to ask questions about the film and about her process. She talked about the vast filming scheduleand the physical and mental challenges of playing the role of Vesper, and we learnt more about film distribution and post-production. We even got the opportunity to meet Raffiella and talk to her one-on-one. It was an excellent experience, and I am thrilledto have been given the opportunity.Zack Keane, Year 14Film PremiersThis year I was chosen to be part of the BFI Academy, where I learnt about life on afilm set. Our main goal was to produce a short three-minute film. My role in theproduction crew was director, where I worked closely with the actress, cameratechnicians, sound technicians and assistant directors and production design in orderto keep the filming going smoothly. In the ten weeks that it lasted we successfullyproduced a script, shot list, prop list and filmed the entire film. I think that doing BFIwas a great decision and has helped me a lot in deciding what I want to pursue acareer in, and I highly recommend it to anyone interested in filmmaking. The short filmthat we produced was screened in a cinema in January.Emer O’Hare, Year 14In June 2022, I attended a Prop Costume workshop run byScreenWorks. It took place over 4 days at the Into Film centreon the Dublin Road and was taken by costume designerEnda Kenny, who guided us through the different techniquesof costume making. We worked together to create a Romansuit of armour mainly using breakdown, the technique ofmaking new clothes look like they have been worn for manyyears. I enjoyed the workshop, and in the future, I aminterested in pursuing a career in costume design orsomething similar.Niamh Quinn, Year 14In December 2022 Chloe from Cinemagic came into Rathmore to deliver a workshop on analysing animated film. All Moving Image A-Level students attended and were inspired by the range of visual storytelling techniques of the filmmakers.Moving Image Showcase 2022In November 2022 all Moving Image A level students had the opportunity to attend the CCEA Moving Image showcase in Cineworld at the Odyssey in the Titanic Quarter in Belfast. This event celebrates the filmic successes of students who submitted films for their Moving Image Coursework from all over Northern Ireland and awarded our students the chance to see the creative potential in film making.

In late February 2023, Kate Nicholl (MLA) and Paula Bradshaw (MLA) from the Alliance Party attended Rathmore to discuss with our pupils issues such as; the border poll, their experience as women entering local politics, the Alliance Party’s policies to help address the housing crisis for young people, how to make the city centre more appealing and dynamic, their party’s beliefs on the benefits of integrated schools, and what the barriers are to these schools' growth.Nicholl described politics as, “The most rewarding thing you can do…There’s nothing better,” despite the challenges facing her as a woman, a mother and a politician.Bradshaw reinforced that politics is not just solely in the hands of politicians, parties and parliament, stating, “There are other ways of getting involved politically without being in a party”.These questioning sessions with local politicians are organised by Mr. Tully, Rathmore’s Politics teacher, to diversify both pupils and teachers' political perspectives.Our pupils are realising that nothing is impossible, which Doug Beattie (UUP Leader) and Bradshaw echo, especially in regard to politics - perseverance and patience are essential to unlock the millions of doors!Early March 2023 arrived with another local visit for the Politics department. This time a past pupil of Rathmore, Caoimhín McCann, Councillor and Chair of ÓSF (Ógra Sinn Féin - the youth wing of the Irish political party) since 2018, returned to the grounds. Caoimhín has been a member of Sinn Féin for seven years and has progressed in his career ever since leaving school.When questioned how the Belfast City Council could facilitate the development of Belfast City Centre, Caoimhín mentioned different plans of action such as making the centre more accessible, a nicer place to work/live, and rejuvenating empty shops to attract more business. A more relevant discussion to the curious students was how accessible is Politics for young people, in which Caoimhín advised that being on the ground with your community is one of the best ways to get rooted, saying change, “Starts from the bottom-up”, and that, “It’s up to us to write our own future”.Naturally, the questions from one to ten grew in controversy; should the voting age be reduced from 18 years old to 16? What areas can Sinn Féin reach a middle ground with Unionists? How soon should there be a border poll, and what preparations still need to be made before Sinn Féin publicly demand that one should be held? All questions asked were created by our very own students (with the helping hand of Mr. Tully) during the weekly Friday sessions in the Politics Society.“Your voices need to be heard”, concluded Caoimhín, which is important no matter what political party or political ideologies you believe in. Every visitor has reiterated that young people are a big part of the future of Politics. Hannah McGirr, Year 13The Politics in Action’s third session, November 2022, involving Matthew O’Toole, South Belfast’s MLA, took place in Methody for their students and Rathmore’s, to ask topical questions, such as on the Northern Ireland Assembly plans.Not only do the students put politicians on the spot, but these sessions also shine a light on the useful life skills of interviewing, respecting and understanding, which are essential for their futures.With a new year came new visiting politicians; Doug Beattie, Party leader of the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP), February 2023, attended Rathmore to talk about why he chose the pathway of politics, in which he responded, “My desire to serve never really left me”. Further discussions consisted of how he realised what party to join, what other party most aligned with the UUP, and if the Good Friday Agreement was worth it.In the concluding advisory words of Beattie, “Get involved in politics as early as you can”, Rathmore’s Politics in Action programme is the epitome of this.We welcomed Matt Collins from People BeforeProfit for a highly intellectual Q&A sessioncovering a range of topics from a Marxist critiqueof Western liberal democracies to what a futureIrish Socialist state might look like. Matt describedhis personal journey into politics and encouragedour students to become active citizens, whatevertheir political persuasions.

Sociolo gyOn the 14th of February Year 13 Politics students attended Stormont to give a presentation to key political figures such as; Robbie Butler (Ulster Unionist Party MLA), Kate Nicholl (Alliance Party MLA) and Sir David Sterling (the former Head of the NI Civil Service from 2017-2020). We discussed the need for possible reforms to the Good Friday Agreement in the run up to its 25th anniversary, with the aim to continue the Peace Process within our society. Their advice and feedback on our ideas allowed us to gain a deeper understanding of the current political atmosphere and what our suggested reforms could possibly look like in practice.Having given our presentation, we were able to go downstairs into the Assembly Chamber and learn more about what goes on behind the scenes in the building! Nola Wilson, Year 13Politics in ActionThe Good Friday Agreement, 25 years on. Two schools. Six sessions. Yet, the Politics in Action programme’s opportunities cannot be contained in simple numbers. For Rathmore and Methody Politics A level students alike, their knowledge and enthusiasm will be elevated by gaining pertinent insight into the country’s current political state and their fellows’ possibly dissimilar opinions.Rathmore’s new, esteemed Politics teacher, Mr Tully, commented, The Politics in Action programme is an exciting opportunity for some of our Politics students to put forth their ideas to local decision-makers about how we can create a better future for all our citizens.”.Although, politics is notorious for its controversy this programme is an open ear for young voices to be heard in such a noisy world. Hannah McGirr and Lucy Sutherland, Year 13Colin Leonard, a PHDsudent and lecturer inSociology from Queen’sUniversity Belfast cameinto Rathmore to speakto the A level Sociologystudents. They discussedhis current research intopeople’s attitudes tomasking during thepandemic. He also gavethem insight into the jobof a sociologist anddiscussed future careeropportunities.YEAR 14 RESEARCH TALK WITH QUB SOCIOLOGY TRIP TO WHITLA HALLOn the 8thNovember, all Rathmore Sociologystudents, were brought to talks on varioustopics on our course. We arrived at the WhitlaHall, and were welcomed by numerousscholars, who appeared eager to pique theinterest of hundreds of students crowding thehall. There were, in total, six talks- 30 minutesin duration- which involved intriguing andthought provoking topics: Crime andDeviance, Feminism, Religion and more. Thistrip, without a doubt, helped us gain a newinsight into the subject.

We were lucky to have a visitfrom Rathmore past pupil LucyKelly, who spoke to us about herfaith journey. She shared somevery personal stories andinformed us how God has beenby her side, helping her throughthe struggles that life has thrownat her. Lucy taught us that asstudents, we can always rely onGod to help us through thestresses and issues that youngpeople face in today’s world. Itwas lovely to speak to a pastpupil, to realise that she wasonce in our shoes and to listen tohow she has become the personshe is today. Hannah GartlandOn the 3rdMarch, Lower 6thpupils completing theBéziers Award had the pleasure of meeting Sr Ursula,the former Principal of Rathmore and a member ofthe congregation of the Religious of the Sacred Heartof Mary.We had the privilege of hearing about her life and thededication she had to our school and its pupils. Hercommitment to her Religious Order and our schoolhas spanned across the majority of her life. We wereinspired by the stories she told of her life, history andwork. Although she was very modest about hercontribution, without her, the new school buildingwould not have been possible.We also spent time talking to her about how we,through the Béziers Award, are continuing to live outthe values of our Founders. Sr Ursula encouraged usto continue to work and enjoy life, which seemed to behow she lives her life. In our time together she wasconstantly smiling and encouraging to us. We wereso inspired and enriched by her visit and feel fortunateto have met Sr Ursula.Kate McKennaLucy KellySR URSULA CanavanQUB CHAPLAINCY RETREATOn Friday the 11th of November 22, Year 13 Religious Studies students embarked on a Bioethics trip to Stranmillis University. We, alongwith several other schools, sat in the Drama Theatre and watched the heart wrenching film ‘My Sister’s Keeper’. The film follows ayoung girl who seeks the assistance of a lawyer to gain medical emancipation from her parents, as she is forced by them to donate herblood, tissue, and organs to her leukaemia-stricken elder sister to help her live. The film brings to light several ethical issues; such asgenetically engineering saviour siblings; in vitro fertilisation (IVF); the right of the terminally ill to choose to die; and a minor’s right ofpersonal autonomy, which we will be studying throughout the course of our A level. ‘My Sister’s Keeper’ was followed by everyonedrying their eyes, and a panel discussion on issues raised in the film by leading experts from the fields of bioethics, biomedical scienceand medical law. They opened up the discussion to the floor for a brief Q&A session with a prize for the best question, and two of ourstudents, Nola Wilson and Marisha Claxton, put themselves forward. Unfortunately, we didn’t win the prize, but we had a verysuccessful trip full of education and experience.Anna McCorryBIOETHICS TRIP TO STRANMILLIS UNIVERSITY"The time is always right to do what is right." - MartinLuther KingSenan Connolly (Year 12) entered the All-Ireland EssayCompetition organised by LifeWorks; an Irish organisationbased in Dublin. Senan wrote his essay using the words ofMartin Luther King as his title and inspiration. Senan wasawarded second place, which is a fantastic achievementconsidering hundreds of pupils entered this nationalcompetition. We are very proud to have entered and placedin this competition every year since it startedup. Congratulations Senan on your achievement!LifeWorksBeing able to take part in the QUB Chaplaincy retreat was an experience for which I was very grateful. This retreat gave me theopportunity to take a step back from the stress and worries of A levels and university applications and enjoy the time with myfriends. It was a day where I was able to focus on my faith through the silent reflections that took place throughout the day. Thesegave me time to focus on God and talk to him in private which brought a sense of peace into my day. Heading to university is aterrifying experience as much as it is an exciting one. However, the topic of gratitude that we reflected on allowed me to viewevery day with a new perspective and to see the small blessings that we fail to notice daily; a lesson that I will take with me on myjourney in the years to come. Chaplaincy at Queen’s is a place on campus where you can go to clear your head and just spendtime with God. The team at the Chaplaincy are some of the most welcoming people I have come across in my life. The way theycommunicated with us as soon as we came in and made sure that every one of us was comfortable and happy is something that Iwill remember for a long time. If I go onto study at Queen's, I know that I will be visiting the Chaplaincy on a regular basis.Overall, I would like to thank Fr McGrattan and the team for having us and giving us a wonderful time. I thank you for thememories that we made there and hopefully will continue to make.Nevina Jayan

“Making, filming and editing a documentary from scratch has been anamazing experience. Filming this documentary has made me more aware ofthe hardships other people face. I had fun researching and editing our videoand I got loads of new ideas from watching other participants and theirvideos. I hope to do the Right Focus again next year and I’m enthusiastic tomake schools aware of more global issues.”Mia Millen-Vignon, Year 9Alpha Youth Series is designed to engage students in conversations about life, faith and Jesus.If I’m being honest I initially signed up to it because of the promise of canteen cookies and juice. How could anyone turn that down?However from the first day I realised Youth Alpha was so much more than that. I was a bit apprehensive about discussing personal beliefsand opening up about my opinions. However, I shouldn’t have worried. Not only did this programme allow me to explore my faith in anenjoyable way but also I was able to hear others’ opinions on what their faith means to them. The relaxed atmosphere made me feelsupported and comfortable in discussing my views with my group, which made it much more enjoyable as I wasn’t nervous about beingjudged.The Alpha Youth programme spanned seven weeks and each week we watched a different video about certain elements of Christianityand discussed four questions associated with each video in small break-out groups. We stopped the video to discuss each question and inthat easy, friendly environment, talking about my personal belief system and moral values came naturally. It was really interesting to hearthe views of my friends and the others in the group. A leader facilitated discussion and somehow we navigated our way through moraldilemmas and lifestyle choices. The discussions were searching and challenged each one of us to fully engage and think deeply about ourfaith. As we became more familiar with each other, we found we were happy and comfortable to share thoughts and feelings. Somecookies and juice helped keep the atmosphere informal and relaxed. I found I looked forward to my Wednesdays after school and I talkedto other students whom I hadn’t known very well prior to the Youth Alpha course.I know that attending Youth Alpha has been a really positive, enjoyable experience for me personally. It has triggered me to think andchallenge my thinking about lots of issues that I took for granted. I have enjoyed the opinions (sometimes unexpected) of the others in mygroup.I feel that attending Alpha Youth has benefited me greatly. Everyone I know who attended had the same positive experience.Grainne Pendleton“The videos and questions involved were inclusive and not everyone felt the same about the topics posed. The videos were entertaining asthey questioned people on the streets to receive a wide variety of answers to the same questions I was discussing with my friends. Many ofmy friends who went to Alpha Youth aren’t religious and yet we all had an enjoyable experience. However, at the end of this six weekcourse there was a service with prayer. It was a very nice service which helped me reflect on the time I spent at Youth Alpha. So overall, Iwould highly encourage anyone who is considering taking part in this course to do so. It was very relaxing to take an hour out of my daywith no distractions to discuss important topics in society surrounded by friends.”Leah Magee“The programme was incredibly enjoyable, and was something to look forward to during the week. We were provided with cookies, juice, and time to settle and talk to our friends. This provided a welcoming atmosphere. Along with this, and the content of the programme, Youth Alpha did not feel like a task. Instead, it was a place to talk to friends about meaningful topics in depth. At the end of Youth Alpha we all had a prayer service. We reflected on what we had learnt and heard some prayers from a few people who did the programme. It was nice to come together and it was a good end to the programme. Overall, I would say whether you are involved with faith or not, Youth Alpha is a good opportunity and you may enjoy it more than you think. ”by Marisha ClaxtonRathmore Grammar School was awarded with Distinction, theSpirit of Catholic Education Award 2022-23. This recognisedour school’s outstanding commitment to Respect for theEnvironment as outlined in the quality indicators detailed in theDown and Connor Catholic Ethos: A Framework for Self-Reflection.To acknowledge this wonderful achievement, the Down andConnor Catholic Schools’ Support Service hosted a ceremonyon Monday 30thJanuary in St Mary's University College, FallsRoad, Belfast.Nola Wilson and Olivia Frazer accompanied Mr O'Callaghanand Miss Wright to the ceremony. This is the fourth yearrunning that Rathmore has been awarded this special awardand we are delighted. Well done everyone!The Spirit of Catholic Education AwardExtraordinary Ministers of Holy CommunionFr James O'Reilly commissioned some of our Year 13 pupils asExtraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion on Thursday9thFebruary, 2023. This was a wonderful ceremony toacknowledge the faith and commitment of our pupils. They willnow be able to pursue this role in their parishes and also assistat our school Masses throughout the year. Congratulations!‘The Right Focus’ is Trócaire’s documentary film making programme that explores global justice issues through the lens of short documentary films made by post-primary school students from across Ireland. Groups from Years 9 and 10 participated, and the film produced by Hannah Jivin, Mia Millen-Vignon and Erin Crisby was selected for the finals in Dublin.

On the 4th February, I competed in the NI Final of theSoroptimist Public Speaking Competition, having won theLisburn area heat in November. I delivered my speechentitled, ‘All men and women are created equally, but aresome created more equally than others?’ Although thecompetition was tough, and a range of topics werediscussed – everything from people to the planet – I placedsecond of the thirteen competitors, each of whom had wonthe heat in their area. I was awarded a cup, as well as abursary. Thank you to Soroptimist International for theopportunity to speak and for all the work they do to supportyoung women and girls across the world.Rachel McCarthy, Year 13In November, Rachel McCarthy, Nikitha Sajan, Jyothis George, Katie O'Reilly, Felicite Mooney and Aoife McCann took part in theLisburn heat of the Soroptimist Public Speaking Competition. The Soroptimist Society is a global female-led organisation whichaims to educate, empower and provide opportunities for women and girls. Each year the Soroptimist Society holds a publicspeaking competition open to all girls in Years 12 and 13 that aims to encourage girls to play a more prominent part in public life,improve the art of communication, to develop self-confidence and personality. Nikitha Sajan (Year 13) achieved a HighlyCommended award for her speech, ‘Worsening mental health? Is this the new epidemic?’ and Rachel crafted a six minute speechon the topic, ‘All men and women are created equally, but are some created more equally than others?’ Rachel achieved First Placein the Lisburn Heat.Our school motto, ‘Ut Vitam Habeant’, calls on us to reflect on what it means to have life, and on how we can lead a full life. It is fitting that the Concern Worldwide Debating Competition urges us to develop awareness of the lives of others too and to do our part in creating a just and equitable world. The debates are centered around the UN Sustainable Development Goals which were created and signed by 194 countries to confirm their commitment to create a better world and to have an improved future.Our debating teams have continued to go from strength to strength this term. So far, we have won two out of three heats in the Concern Worldwide Debating Competition. Eve Wilson, Leia Phenix, Oscar Conlon and Peter Kelly triumphed against St Catherine’s College and Leia Phenix, Aleena Rahman, Oscar Conlon and Peter Kelly won against St Louise’s. The Concern Team, prepared for and assisted by Miss Boyle and Miss McEvoy Morgan is eagerly anticipating next year’s competition.Since its inception in 1984, the Concern Worldwide Debating Competition has had over 40,000 participants who have debated current and problematic issues ranging from Climate Change to terrorism, along with HIV and AIDS. This competition runs over several months with over 120 schools participating. We wish our school team every success next year. Concern Worldwide Debating CompetitionSoroptimist InternationalKnights Of St. Columbanus Public Speaking CompetitionIn November 2022, I, alongside my fellow classmates Florence Darioand Rachel McCarthy was chosen by the RE department afterauditioning, to represent Rathmore at the 2023 Knights of StColumbanus Public Speaking Competition. We had chosen to speakon the topic of prison reform and the death penalty.We made the Ulster final at St Louis Grammar school in Ballymena.After competing with five incredibly talented groups, we wereunfortunately not successful in achieving the top prize. However, thejudges were very impressed with my delivery and presentation, and so Iwas named 'Best Speaker’. My participation in the competitionallowed to me to develop my research skills and aided me in revisingfor RE GCSE. I also gained a wider awareness and enhancedunderstanding of global issues that many face in our world today,whilst picking up quite a few speech making and presentation tipsalong the way.It certainly proved to be a very worthwhile experience for the three of usand I would strongly recommend to anyone with an interest in globalaffairs, politics or even just public speaking in general to try and give ita go!Ronald Mathew, Year 12NI Final of the Soroptimist Public Speaking Competition

At the beginning of October, the Year 13 AS Biology classes went on a field trip to Groomsport, just outside Bangor. The rationale behind the trip was to practise learned sampling techniques across the rocky shore. It was a cloudy, wet day but everyone was well wrapped up and wellies were the number one fashion accessory! The excitement of leaving school behind for the day and learning outside the classroom was palpable as the coach drove us to our destination. We used different equipment such as quadrats and measuring tapes to carry out the different sampling techniques. When evaluating the practical we were able to conclude that the rocky shore is a biologically rich environment with an abundance of several types of seaweed, mussels, barnacles and limpets; however, by far the most celebrated findings were the crabs and starfish! I really enjoyed this trip as it enabled me to see how sampling techniques can be used in real life settings. Overall, the Biology trip was an enormous success as it let me, and the other Biology students learn how the subject can be applied outside the classroom in a fun and interactive manner! Catherine CruddenYear 13 Biology Field Trip to GroomsportOn Forensic Science Day, Year 10 pupils took part in a workshop focusing on the assassination of John F. Kennedy.Through the various engaging activities, it gave us an insight into the forensic industry and the vital role it plays fromsolving everything from pick-pocketing crimes to suspenseful murder mysteries. We were enlightened with further scientificknowledge and were convinced that this infamous case would remain unsolved.Firstly, we engaged in an information session with a former Forensic Scientist who gave us a comprehensive and accurateoverview of the assassination of John F. Kennedy. The US President was driving through a heavily guarded road in an opentop car. The police concluded that he was shot 3 times by Lee Harvey Oswald; however, after several weeks ofinterrogation, the police suspected that there was a second shooter. We were also introduced to the various conspiracytheories that were aroused by the police and detectives during the investigation period. The two classes were left perplexedand bursting with questions which continue to be unanswered even to this day. In groups, we explored and were enthralledby the various diverse stations including, a virtual reality set at the scene of the crime, a showcase of revolvers and thebullets used by the assassin, a typewriter and much more, all while completing an activity sheet that kept us movingthrough each station.Alongside my intrigued classmates, I too was gripped with this case and this particular industry and wanted to learn furtherand find answers to my endless questions. Personally, my favourite activity was the fingerprint analysis station as I wasastonished and fascinated at how basic technology was used to discern critical evidence. It allowed me to indulge indifferentiating the structures of fingerprints that unveiled a suspect as the culprit. By being able to visually witness the crimescene, the virtual reality was most definitely worth waiting for in the long, endless line. Everyone enjoyed it as there wassomething for everyone, be it the unique opportunity to do revolver studies or to take a photo with the popular backdrop ofthe ill-famed ‘backyard photo’. Everything was clearly explained to us by the Forensic Scientist, who brought up manycaptivating ideas as she had worked on this case.Overall, by the end of the session, this infamous unsolved case unquestionably had me absorbed into the mystery, makingmy own conspiracy theories. The sterotypical view of forensic scientists working tirelessly in a metallic, white lab day afterday changed to a amusing and gratifying job with various working environments, where creativity and science meet to tryto attain answers to unresolved mysteries.Sreyas GeorgeForensic Science Day

Last summer, I took part in the Sentinus Research Academy, which is aninitiative that gives opportunities for Year 13 to 14 pupils to experience realresearch and development projects hosted by local companies andorganisations. I chose Biochemistry as the subject area for my placementand my project host was Queen’s University Belfast. Over four weeks, Iworked as part of a small group of students on a project about risk factorsassociated with cardiovascular disease. We were given sets of data toanalyse and we took part in weekly online tutorials with the projectsupervisor. The tutorials focused on helping to develop skills in areas likedata analysis and report writing, which was helpful when it came to writingthe final report and creating a scientific poster at the end of the four weeks.My report was concerned with cholesterol, HbA1c (a type of blood sugar)and smoking. Having analysed the data, I presented my findings in the formof graphs and tables. From then on, I drew conclusions about each factorand compared my conclusions to previous published research.I submitted my completed report to Sentinus Young Innovators to be judged,which involved presenting my project at the Whitla Hall at Queen’sUniversity and doing three 12-minute interviews conducted by teamsconsisting of Sentinus ambassadors. After the projects had been scored andranked, I was very pleased to be awarded first place in my category, NISenior Young Scientist.Louis Cameron,Year 14Sentinus Research AcademyIn January 2023, School Employer Connections were delighted to inviteour Year 12 pupils, along with pupils from other schools, to take part ina virtual tour of CERN, one of the world’s most respected scientificresearch centres.Pupils went to the Assembly Hall where a physicist and PhD studentfrom CERN gave them a guided tour of the Atlas experiment. This is anexperiment that seeks to answer questions such as ‘What are thebuilding blocks of matter?’, ‘What are the fundamental forces ofnature?’, ‘What is dark matter?’ Many thousands of scientists,engineers and technicians, students and support staff from memberuniversities and laboratories around the world work collaboratively onthis experiment, using the world’s largest and most complex scientificinstruments to try to answer the above questions.The pupils valued the opportunity to see cutting edge Physics in action.Virtual Tour of CERNThis year, a number ofenthusiastic Year 13 and14 Physics students tookpart in the annual BritishPhysics OlympiadChallenges. This is achallenging test thatuses difficult andunfamiliar problemsolving questions. Theywere all very successful,receiving a number ofawards andrecommendations.British Physics Olympiad 2022-2023Year 12 GCSE Chemistry trip to "Chemistry At Work" - an event at Queens' hosted by The Royal Society ofChemistry - showcasing how Chemistry is integral to everyday life, history and industry.Chemistry At WorkGene Editing Workshop with Year 11’sFifteen Year 11 GCSE Biology pupils participated in a ‘What is GeneEditing?’ workshop. It was presented by Lauren White, a QUB Final YearStudent Research Project, in co-ordination with Stemhub NI and W5. Theaim of the workshop was to explain gene editing to school pupils andinvolved classroom-based series of very enjoyable classroom basedactivities.

sportThe following pupils were selectedfor the U14 Regional BasketballSquad for 2022-23 season:Oisin HolmanDallan HolmanRory SherryKamal NourYr9 Boys Basketball Team won theAll-Ireland NE Regional Final. Theboys beat St Malachy’s in theRegional Final.Year 11 pupil Ethan McCabe was presented with his International Cap by the Irish FA president Conrad Kirkwood. Ethan represented Northern Ireland in a Power Chair Home Nations tournament in April 2022.Power chair Home Nations tournamentHanna Donaghy (Gaelic), DanielFox and Darragh Copeland(football), LughseachMurnaghan (rugby) wereawarded a Queen’s Future All-Star recognising theiroutstanding sporting talent. Allwere presented with a jersey at agala dinner held at Queen’sUniversity.Queen’s Future All- Stars 2023BasketballYear 11 pupil Sophie Bell was selected for the North Interregional Schools’ basketball team this year. Sophie captained the U15 Northern Regional Team. The girls reached the final of the plate but sadly lost out by just three points.Following my success in the U16 schools final I have been selectedfor the Irish National U17 team. This is a great opportunity to takemy basketball to the next level and play against the tough estcompetition at my age group in the country. In August we will playin an international tournament, and I will get a chance to representmy country at an international level. I could not have achieved thiswithout the support I have received from my family, club coachesand school. Jacob ByrneU17 International Team

Some students attended Antrim Forum on Saturday 20thMay for theUlster Track & Field Championships. We had seven pupils participate onSaturday and two on Friday night across eight events. The pupils werebrilliant, we achieved five medals and two narrowly missed out on a medal.The results were as follows:Olivia Morgan - 2ndin the 800mEthan Quinn - 2ndin the High Jump and 3rdin the Long JumpLughaidh Mallon - 1stin the 1500mOisin Mc Gloin - 3rdin the 1500mNoah Kavanagh - 4thin 5000mAaron Fee - 4thin Long JumpOlivia, Ethan, Lughaidh and Oisin have qualified for the All-IrelandChampionships in Tullamore on Saturday 3rdJune. Fantastic achievement!District championships17 pupils went to Antrim Forum to compete in the District Competition. Thepupils all competed well, and we had a number of medals. All of the pupilswho won a medal qualified for the Ulster Track & Field Competition.Aaron Fee (Yr9) - 2ndin Minor Boys Long JumpEmma Quinn (Yr10) - 3rdin Junior Girls DiscusConnor Geary (Yr8) - 3rdin Mini Boys 100mOlivia Morgan (Yr10) - 1stin Junior Girls 800mEthan Quinn (Yr13) - 2ndin Senior Boys High Jump and 1stin Senior BoysLong JumpNoah Kavanagh (Yr13) - 3rdin Senior Boys 5000mLughaidh Mallon (Yr13) - 1stin Senior Boys 1500mOisin Mc Gloin (Yr13) - 2ndin Senior Boys 1500mTRACK AND FIELDUlster championshipsCross countryA group of Year 8-13 pupils competed at the Ulster CrossCountry Championships at Mallusk in early February. It was abitterly cold day, with a biting wind that would resemblesomewhere in the Arctic. It took the athletes about an hour anda half to thaw out after it! Mrs Foster was stationed on the finishline and witnessed a lot of jelly legs, tears and breathingdifficulties from the runners in every race. It really is not a sportfor the faint hearted! We had 3 pupils qualify for the All-IrelandCompetition in Waterford.Olivia Morgan - Yr 10 (3rd) in Junior Girls’ RaceLughaidh Mallon - Yr13 (2nd ) in the Senior Boys’ RaceNoah Kavanagh - Yr13 (4th) in the Senior Boys’ RaceWhen did you start running?I started running when I was in Year 9. After a fitness run in PE, Mrs McCann suggested I do a cross-country race for the school. I took the opportunity to get a day off and that began my running career. We were the only school that showed up to the race.Did you play any other sports in school?I have represented Rathmore in three other sports. I played in the Gaelic team in second and third year, I swam for the school in first year and played football in third year. Although I have many good memories on these teams (including a brace in my debut for the football team and a crazy Ulster Gaelic final in second year, with 23 goals scored in one game), I have no regrets about dropping them to commit to running.What do you enjoy about running?I love how I can always better myself in running. In sports like football, it may be hard to tell whether your skills are getting better, knowing that I am always improving and progressing through the sport always keeps me motivated. I also love the thrill of racing and the feeling afterward and, of course, I’d be a liar if I said I didn’t love the feeling of winning a race. What advice would you give to someone looking to start running?Start off slow and build. Don’t rush into things, take your time. Running a hundred miles a week will not turn you into Mo Farah in a month. Try and enjoy yourself. Running can be lonely and mentally challenging it helps to join a club. If you think about your run in a positive light, it can completely change your attitude. Finally, don’t compare yourself to others. You don’t know what training someone is doing and what their goals are. Everybody’s situation is different. Run at your own pace and focus on your own goals.What is your biggest achievement so far?I’d have to give it to either winning the Irish Schools Cross Country Championships or making the team for European under 18s. An Irish School’s cross-country title was something I had been excruciatingly close to in second and third year. This made winning the title that much sweeter after a three year wait due to it being cancelled in 2020. Europeans was an unbelievable experience, travelling to Jerusalem to represent my country. Although I didn’t have a great performance on the day, getting an Irish vest for an international competition always be one of my proudest moments.

Year 12 pupils Hanna Donaghy, Mia Law and year 13 pupil Orla McKernan have all been selected for this year’s NI U17 Netball Development Squad.The following Year 8 pupils were selected for theNI U13 Academy Squad for 2022-23: CiaraWilkinson; Amelia Morris; Alexandra Frazer.Mia Law was selected as Vice-Captain of theteam that represented NI in the Netball EuropeChampionships held at Antrim Forum 23rd-26thFebruary 23.“In February I competed in the EuropeanChampionships as part of the Northern IrelandDevelopment Squad. Over the course of fourdays, I played against Gibraltar, Republic ofIreland, Isle of Man and Switzerland. We wonthree of our matches and finished 2ndin oursection. I was also given the role of vice-captain ofthe team which involved communicating betweenteam-mates and coaches and offering ideas tobetter our performance. Whilst at the tournamentI received a lot of support from school and my clubcoach Laura Montgomery. It was an amazingexperience which allowed me to meet new people,I learnt a lot about my performance, and I had funalong the way”.NETBALLNI SQUAD SELECTIONSYear 8 pupil Rory Kane won the 50m Breaststroke at the Ulster Primary Schools Gala on Sunday 8th October. Rory now qualifies for the Irish Schools’ Competition.This season I was entered into the County AntrimChampionships and after two hard fights, I wascrowned the County Antrim Champion for Boy 137kgs.Winning the County Antrim Championshipsqualified me for the All-Ireland NationalChampionships which were held in the NationalStadium in Dublin over Easter.Ultimately, I was out pointed in the Semi-Final ofthe tournament by the eventual All-IrelandChampion, Evan Thorpe, the Leinster Champion.Although disappointed not to have won the All-Irelands, I gained very valuable experiencethrough competing with the best boxers in Irelandat my weight and age.I look forward to retaining my County Antrim titlenext year as a Boy 2 boxer and building towardsgreater success at the National level.Conri Mccusker, Year 8BoxingMACLarnon Cup FinalThey say, ‘It is better to have loved and lost, than to have never loved at all’.It is certainly true that every member of our Senior MacLarnon panel loved this year’s campaign which led to the school's firstMacLarnon Cup final since 2007. Despite a difficult night at the Dub, our players had every right to be proud of a very strong season.Our players had reached their peak for the final, gaining momentum from every hard-won victory during the campaign, and resulting ina promising first half. Ultimately, and despite a tenacious effort, St Joseph’s Donaghmore proved to be the stronger side and wereworthy winners on the night.The Senior Football team are looking forward to next year’s competition already with star talismans Michael Morgan, Rory McErleanand Sé Ferris using this year’s experience to mount a fresh campaign in their final year at school.

Anna Adams (Yr9) and Jessica Mc Cartan (Yr9) selected forthe Antrim U14 Gaelic Squad for 2022-23.Hanna Donaghy (Yr12) and Cliodhna Logan (Yr12) selectedfor the Antrim Minor Squad for 2022-23.Eirinn Wall (Yr10) selected for the Antrim U14 Camogie Squad for 2022-23.U14 GaelicU14 CamogieOur opening game was on the 14th of October against St Colman’s, Newry. This was not one of our strongest games, but nonetheless wecame out with a win by a good margin. The team was not happy with our performance and used it as something to build upon for the restof our campaign. Up next was St Patrick’s, Keady on the hallowed turf of Rathmore Grammar. The team put in a good shift against anevenly matched team, and came out with a win by 2 points on the day. The boys knew that we performed well, but there was still morethat we could get out of each other. Our last group game was versus last year’s Casement Cup winners St Malachy’s, Belfast.Unfortunately, it wasn't our day and St Malachy’s ended up winning by a small margin. As a team we learned from this game and startedtraining harder, and getting better every training session, for our semi-final against St Colman’s, Newry.We knew we would need to put in a much better performance than we ever had on the day, and we did just that. We went out and beatthem by 21 points to reach another Casement Final for the school. The boys started putting in a shift, training for the final against StMary’s, Magherafelt. It was a cold day and we had fantastic support from our school community and beyond.Unfortunately, it wasn't to be on the day. Missed opportunities led us to losing the final. I'm sure that all the lads are using this loss to buildupon our own performances and come back stronger for another run at the competition next year and for many more years to come.Casement cupOn Friday 21st of April we remembered Fionntán McGarvey with the launch of our Sunflower Cup. This competition was very sentimentalto Rathmore as Fionntán was a much cherished past pupil of our school.Mr McKernan surprised us with the competition after a disappointing Ulster campaign. We stuck the heads down and got to training withMr Ewing coaching us. The day came around and ten schools from across Antrim came down for a strong competitive competition.In Rathmore’s group there was St Pat’s, Lisburn who we got a good start against and managed to see the game out. Our next game wasSt Malachy’s, who got off to a good start, but Rathmore managed to fight back. Unfortunately, St. Malachy’s put the game out of sightwith two late goals. We finished second in the group, which put us into the cup quarter finals against St Patrick’s, Knock.This game went down to the wire with a new system in place we had Donnacha McGurk playing as a keeper and outfield player. He camefrom nets to score 0-3, and in the last-minute saving two one on ones to bag our place in the semi-finals against St Benedict’s College,Randalstown. This game was just like the previous, but this time, when Rathmore started getting tired from the blistering sun, MrMcKernan energised us, telling us we want it more, that we aren’t tired and can find more within for Fionntán. A strong second halfagainst Randalstown set our place in the final against St Malachy’s, who we lost against earlier in the day.The final of the Sunflower Cup was one for the ages, with boys cramping and getting injured, we knew it wasn’t going to be easy. Thefinal was a fierce battle, with Rathmore down by 5 at half time. Rathmore knew they could come back and with the new system in placewe had an advantage of an extra man outfield. Rathmore went on a run of scoring, bringing the game back, until in the last minute withno keeper in the net and two St Malachy’s forwards running at Jay Ward. It seemed we would fall at the last hurdle, but a spectaculartackle from Jay iced the game out and sent it to extra time. Extra time came with Rathmore getting an early point, but St Malachy’sequalising. Some close shots and misses from both sides followed. Finally, a 45 kick was sent in with Jack Heatherington catching andputting it over. The second half of extra time came and Rathmore managed to hold out, and were crowned the inaugural Sunflower CupChampions.James McCarneySunflower Cup(Ulster schools year 11 ‘A’ hurling)Leonard cup Firstly, to play in this level of competition was completely unheard of for any Rathmore team ever. To get to this level our Year 11 hurling team had won the MacFarland Cup (Ulster schools year 10 “B” hurling), beating Red High, Downpatrick on a scoreline of 2-10 to 1-05.In October we made our way down to the Dub playing fields to play our round-robin games. We were up against the best hurling schools in all of Ulster such as hurling stronghold schools like Cross and Passion, Ballycastle and St Killian’s, Garron Tower. In our debut to ‘A’ hurling, we were narrowly beaten by St Killian’s, Garron Tower by 3 points. After that game we dusted ourselves down and got ready to play Cross and Passion, Ballycastle. The game was nip and tuck but, in the end, we managed to win by 2. We then went on to play Knock securing another win by 1 point before going on to play St Patrick’s, Maghera (the eventual winners of the cup competition). In a game where we felt we might not have the energy or power after already playing three games without a break, Maghera outran us and won by 11 points. We then went on to play St Mary’s, where it was a Belfast derby and we felt there was a lot on the line. Goals from Callum McCausland and Ronan Taylor helped steer us to victory. Finally, we played St Louis, Ballymena, who had too much firepower for us. We then placed fourth in the group and were set up to play St Louis, Ballymena again. We narrowly lost out by a last-minute goal and lost by 2 points; this meant we dropped into the shield and play OLSPCK in the shield semi-final. This was a derby and an important game for Rathmore. It was well-contested and a well-driven Rathmore performance put the lads in a Leonard Shield Final against St Mary’s, Belfast. Sadly, it wasn’t to be for our lads as we fell at the last hurdle and were beaten by 11 points. This year was monumental for Rathmore hurling, and we hope to continue our progress to play at the highest level in all codes of sports and hope the lads can have a good crack at the Forester’s Cup campaign next year! Jay Ward

Our Under 18 Football Team were finalists in the Belfast Cup this year. After winning the Belfast Cup in 2018 we were inthe semi-finals in 2019 when Covid disrupted the season. This was the boys’ last opportunity for silverware in school. Webegan in the group stages of the Belfast Cup playing against Ashfield Boys’ B, Bangor Grammar, and Boys’ Model. Wewon our first game 2-0 against Ashfield Boys’ B, and then in our second game we drew 2-2 in a tough match awayagainst Boys’ Model. In our final group game in which we needed to win, we won 6-1 against Bangor Grammar. Thegoals were important as we needed to win by five clear goals to qualify for the quarter-finals. In the quarter-finals weplayed RBAI and came out comfortable 8-1 winners. We then faced St. Mary’s in the semi-final in an exciting game,played at the Dub. Thankfully we won 4-3. The 4 goals were scored by Fiontan O’Boyle, Michael Morgan, and ConorLogue with 2.Finally, we played Ashfield Boys’ A in the final in April at Blanchflower Stadium. Unfortunately, on the day we lost 4-0against a very strong team. However, it was a very successful year for the team, to again reach a major school final.Many thanks to Mr Graham our coach for all his hard work this year..Fiontan O’ Boyle, Year 14Under 18 Boys-Belfast Cup Final Rathmore vs Ashfield Michael Morgan, in Year 13, became the first Northern Ireland Under 18International for Rathmore since Eddie McGinley achieved the honour in the 1990s.Michael currently plays for Cliftonville, however he was on loan last season as hehelped Newington maintain their status in the NIFL Championship. Michael wasvice captain of the team and played in the games versus Wales, Scotland and theRepublic of Ireland. Congratulations Michael.Individual Success This season has been a long and hard-fought rollercoaster of a journey filled with a series of ups and downs. The first game began awayfrom home where we managed to prevail with an impressive victory of 9-2 against St Kevin's College in Lisnaskea. A special mention must begiven to the goal scorers: Finn Lappin and Aodhan O' Hanlon with two each, Daniel Fox, Charlie Wilson, Jacob Kennedy, Joe Logan andFintan O'Brien.This led us to round two where we were challenged to perform on a very difficult pitch against Killicomaine, and were nevertheless able tosecure a comfortable 4-0 victory with both Aodhan 0'Hanlon and Joe Logan bagging a brace each.The quarter final was against De La Salle Downpatrick and it was our toughest match yet. Despite the opposition putting up a formidablefight, we triumphed with a nail-biting 3-2 win at Ballyhornan, with Joe Logan bagging another double and Aodhan O' Hanlon joining him onthe scoresheet.In the semi-final, Rathmore emerged victorious, earning us a spot in the final. A magnificent display of two touch football led to a 4-2 winagainst Parkhall Integrated with the goal scorers consisting of Joe Logan, Finn Lappin and Aodhan O’Hanlon with another brace.The moment the boys had been waiting for: the final - Rathmore vs Lagan College. After defeat in the Belfast Final last year, the players werewaiting for a chance to redeem ourselves and add some silverware for the school. We had been raring to get the match started and we didnot disappoint. After an unfortunate start and conceding an early goal, we settled down into the game. A penalty from Daniel Fox and twolong range efforts from Finn Lappin and Daniel again saw us go in at half time 3-2 up. We delivered an outstanding second half involving afantastic application of the countless hours we had spent practicing as a team. We added three more goals and the match ended in a 6-2victory for the men in blue and white. Goal scorers: Daniel Fox with two, Joe Logan, Finn Lappin, Owen O'Hanlon, and Jacob Kennedy. Manof the match went to both Joe Logan and Finn Lappin for their unworldly strikes and overall performances.We are very proud to be members of the Rathmore Year 10 team and look forward to continuing this success in Year 11. Bram McCarthyUnder 14 Northern Ireland Plate Final vs Lagan CollegefootballMan of the matchGoal scorers

footballThe girls' football teams got the chance toattend the Electric Ireland NI, Irish FootballAssociation Women's cup final. This was afantastic experience for the girls to see thetop level of women’s football being playedat Windsor Park. The year 9 team won theElectric Ireland NI regional competitionplayed last year at Brooke Leisure Centre.To crown the experience, the girls had thechance to parade their trophy at half time!IFA women’s cup finalIn November 2022 our Under 16 girls’ team played in theregional section of the Danske Bank Under 16 Girls’Tournament played at Brook Leisure Centre. We wereundefeated on the day as we beat Assumption Ballynahinch, StColm’s Twinbrook and drew with Domincan CollegeFortwilliam. The goals on the day were scored by HannahDonaghy, Luighseach Murnaghan, Azelia Robinson, CaitieMcGurnaghan and Cliodhna Logan.Under 16 Girls In March this year we competed on the finals day of thecompetition played at the Valley Leisure Centre. In the groupstages we were again unbeaten. We drew with Kilkeel HighSchool, beat OLSPK by 1-0, Caitie McGurnaghan scoring thegoal. We also beat Holy Cross College Strabane 1-0 with AoifeKavanagh scoring the goal in that game. Finally, we beat StPatrick’s Dungiven 2-1, Lauryn Gourley and Caitie McGurnaghanscoring again. This meant we finished undefeated and top of ourgroup and would face Parkhall Integrated in the final – our firstfinal after only two years of girl’s football in school.Unfortunately, a very strong Parkhall were victorious in the final.Everyone played really well and were very proud of themselves aswere beaten once in seven games and also in getting to the firstmajor final for girls’ football in Rathmore. Girls’ football is verypopular in school and the numbers at training are increasingeach year. Thanks to Marc and Morganne our coaches who havemade the players and teams stronger this year. Hopefully, oursuccess can encourage other girls to take up football atRathmore.Eirinn Wall, Year 10Under 12/ 14 Girls The Year 10/11 girls had two teams entered in the competition.Both teams came out of the group stages and qualified for thesemi-finals. Team 1 finished top of their group with three winsand a draw and Team 2 finished second with two wins and adraw.The two Year 10/11 girls’ teams then played each other in agrudge match in the Semi Final. Bragging rights were at stakeand Team 1 were victorious with the goal coming in injury timefrom Aoife Kavanagh. Unfortunately, the girls in Team 1 weredefeated in the final by St Dominic’s. A great day for all our girls.NI U16 women’s football squad SELECTIONSCaitie Mc Gurnaghan (Yr11) was selected for the NI U16Women’s Football Squad for 2022-23. Caitie travelled toScotland this year to represent NI in the Bob Docherty Cup.Here is a piece from Caitie about her experience.“The tournament involved matches against England, Scotlandand the ROI. All the teams were very strong and fast, and I feelwe competed well and at times controlled the games. All thetraining our coaches had done with us prepared us well. I reallyenjoyed the trip. The experience of playing for your country andplaying at a high level was brilliant. I got to meet girls who playfor Arsenal and other professional academies which was a realhighlight for me. It showed me that hard work, dedication, anda positive attitude pays off.”The girls Year 8/9 and 10/11 played in the IFA/ Electric IrelandTournament held at Brook Leisure Centre in May. Our Year 8/9team had a fantastic morning with some lovely football playedand goals from Poppy McGarrity, Niamh Lagan and KateWilson.

In March, the students studying ASTechnology and Design (Cormac Burke,Johan Gasper, Fintan Dunniece, RoryHorner, Peter McAreavey, Alex McAvoyand Rachel McCarthy) had theopportunity to become STEMambassadors. Everybody in the class wentthrough a short training process onlinebefore going to Aquinas Grammar Schoolfor the investiture. We are very excited forwhat lies ahead, and grateful for thisvaluable qualification that will allow us togive demonstrations that will hopefullyinspire young people to get into STEM.In February Year 10 pupils were treated to a fantastic presentation from past pupil Eve McCann. She talked about her subjectchoices and how she originally planned to keep Technology and Design for AS level but aspired to study medicine. Eveexplained how her love for Technology and Design flourished which lead her to a degree in Product Design at Glasgow. Sincequalifying, she has worked for a number of high profile companies and is currently employed by EY Seren in London where she isa Lead Service Design Consultant. This was a fantastic opportunity for pupils to hear, and ask questions, about less traditionalcareer pathways.In Term 1 a group of Year 14 pupils worked inconjunction with STEMNET to produce a range ofresources for Primary 7 classes aimed at promotingSTEM in Key Stage 2. Pupils developed a range ofinteractive teaching resources combined with anumber of functional models and challenges forpupils to work on. They presented this at the STEMYoung Innovators competition at Queen’sUniversity, Belfast. Judges were impressed by thechoice of topic (LEVERS) and awarded the teamrunner up for the Senior Challenge category.STEM AmbassadorsEve McCann – Past PupilSTEM Young InnovatorsYear 12 students visiting KME Steelworks Year 12 studentsvisiting KMESteelworks inLisburn to look atapprenticeshipand employmentopportunities.CAREERSA group of Year 14 studentsvisited KPMG to hear aboutApprenticeship opportunitiesInternational Women’s DayRathmore was delighted to celebrate InternationalWomen’s Day with four inspirational women; ClaireHanna MP, a past pupil, Rosalynd Smith, past pupil,Managing Director of Fintru, Dr Caoimhe Carbery, pastpupil, Data Scientist working on Cybercrime at eBayand Michelle O’Neill, First Minister Designate. Ouryoung women and men were inspired by their careerjourneys and delighted to have the opportunity tocelebrate their success. We are very grateful to them allfor giving up time in their busy schedules to join us.