Row New York’s School Day Para-rowing Program takes place each spring and fall, and provides 16 weeks of land-based and on-water rowing activities to middle school students with cognitive or physical disabilities. This week, we celebrated an amazing fall season. Ten classes from across the NYC DOE’s District 75 schools – the most to date! – convened at our Queens boathouse for a high-energy afternoon of friendly competition. The culminating event gave everyone a chance to shine, whether through dancing, jumping rope, cheering or rowing!
Due to the warm weather this autumn, this season’s students enjoyed much more time on the water than in years past. Students were exposed to many aspects of rowing, including indoor and outdoor workouts, running, and rowing on the barge – a larger, more stable rowing option, ideal for beginners and those with disabilities. Students also completed projects to learn about the muscles used in rowing.
RNY coaches mixed up the team lineups for races, so students were able to showcase their rowing abilities, while also making new friends. Coach Catherine Hicks happily noted, “It’s great to see students socializing, racing, and cheering with students from other schools and parts of the city! I get to see how far the girls have progressed in terms of skill and fitness level. I love seeing smiles on their faces while they’re rowing and seeing them getting into the racing spirit. They always surprise me with how hard they row, how long they row, how well they row and how many meters they can get it in a set time.”
Coach Denise Aquino was impressed by the students’ progress over the course of the semester. “It’s amazing to see both old and new students grow and learn valuable lessons of teamwork in this sport. We can’t wait until the spring!”
Thank you to all of the students for their hard work and positive attitudes, and to their coaches and teachers for being so supportive! We hope to see you all on the barge next season!
Check out more photos of this year’s celebration in our new Facebook album.
