Rockvale Academy is a coeducational boarding school located in the hill town of Kalimpong in the district of Darjeeling, West Bengal, India. It was founded by the late Mr. B.B. Pradhan in 1984 and celebrated its silver jubilee in 2009. English is used as the medium of instruction. Rockvale Academy is affiliated to the I.C.S.E. and I.S.C. Board, New Delhi, and offers prescribed course in Science, Arts and Commerce at the +2 level. It has classes from nursery to XII. It is a member of the AHLIS which has a strength of 28 schools from the district of Darjeeling and neighbouring Sikkim. Rockvale opened an affiliated tertiary education institution, the B.B.Pradhan College of Management Studies, in 2003. Students come from as far away as Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Thailand.
History
The institution was established in 1984 by the late Mr. Bhanu Bhakta Pradhan. He discovered a plot of land for sale in the 9th mile area of Kalimpong. His initial plan was to set up a hotel. This is apparent from the small size of some rooms in the main building. However, he was persuaded by his closest friends to set up an educational institution.. The school opened on 11 March 1984 with just over 30 students. The school was granted permanent affiliation to the ICSE Board in 1992 and became an examination centre in 1998. It was the first privately owned school in Kalimpong to be awarded the permanent affiliation. The school introduced the +2 level in 1997. In 2008, Rockvale Academy was chosen as an IELTS centre by the British Council. The school's founder, Bhanu Bhakta Pradhan, held the post of Director of Rockvale Academy until his death in 2002.
School motto and song
The motto of the school is ‘Optima Thule’ which stands for "Aim for the Highest". The school song is titled ‘Wings of an Eagle’. It was composed by Mr. S.Rasaily and Mr. Y. Ghatani. The Nepali version is titled ‘Gyaan Ko Batti’. It was written by Mr. B.B. Pradhan and the tune was given by Mr. Gyan Lopchan. ENGLISH SCHOOL SONG Wings of an Eagle Optima thule! Optima thule! Oh! Rockvalites, go flying high To touch the bright blue sky Let’s try and try to touch the sky Like an eagle soaring high. Optima thule! Optima thule! CHORUS: Let’s go with love Be like the dove To spread the word of peace In every race and every place And bring joy to every face. REPEAT CHORUS Optima thule! Optima thule! Let’s spread the light To make it bright Every hour of night and day Let’s and try to bring the light To drive the darkness away REPEAT Optima thule! Optima thule! Oh! Rockvalites, go flying high To touch the bright blue sky Let’s try and try to touch the sky Like an eagle soaring high. NEPALI SCHOOL SONG "GYAN KO BATTI" STAHI: Gyan-ko bat-ti baa-lay-ra, ha-mi ag-ha-ri ba-rd-nay chau Bidh-ya-ko jyoti pau-na-lai, ha-mi kshi-tiz-ma poug-nay chau REPEAT STAHI: Gyan-ko bat-ti baa-lay-ra ANTARA: Per-na ha-mi lak-shya-ma poug-nay dhya-ya-lai rakh-nay chau Sam-jha-na ham-ro sa-kar hu-nay bidh-ya-lai rakh-nay chau Gyan-ko bat-ti baa-lay-ra Bha-wishy a ham-ro u-jya-lo gar-nay hey-tu-lai li-ye-ra Ba-lak ha-mi bish-wa-ka ta-ra ek din bann-nay chau REPEAT STAHI AND END
Apart from the main building at 9th mile, Kalimpong, the school is constructing a Sports Complex and Rockvale International Hostel at Chiboo Busty, Kalimpong.
