Fryeburg Academy Alumni Association President, Nita Craig-Carsley ’70, awarded the 2022 Distinguished Alumni Award to Fryeburg Academy faculty member and alumna Kathy Wilson Dunham’77 at the Reunion Brunch held on Aug. 20, 2022. 

Family and friends gathered with her to join in the celebration, including her mother, Mary Lorton Wilson ’52, attending her 70th reunion! 

During her four years at Fryeburg, Kathy was an involved student and athlete, playing field hockey, softball, and track, but even then, her greatest passion was teaching. Her mother always told her that she knew what she wanted to do with her life by the time she was in second grade. As a student, Kathy volunteered in the special education department during her study halls and also helped out in the local elementary schools. 

After graduation, Kathy attended the University of Maine/Farmington before transferring to Leslie College where she received her degree in Special Education. Kathy taught briefly in New Hampshire before returning to the Fryeburg area to teach kindergarten, speech therapy, and special ed. She joined the Academy’s special education department in 1987. 

Throughout her long career, Kathy has been a tireless advocate for her students whose needs range from reading support, to wellness, to everyday life skills such as dressing and cooking. Currently, her Independent Living Program at the Academy enrolls 6 to 10 students a year and covers a broad spectrum of needs with the goal of helping students become “as independent as they can be.” 

In 1996, Kathy became involved with Special Olympics as another way to engage and challenge her students. She has served as head coach/head of delegation, coaching over 60 students in sports such as golf, bowling, alpine skiing, Nordic skiing, basketball, swimming, track and field, and bocce. When budgets tightened, Kathy obtained her school bus license to drive her Special Olympic teams to competitions. 

Thanks to Kathy’s efforts, Fryeburg Academy has hosted the Oxford County Special Olympics Track meet for eight of the past nine years. Additionally, under her leadership, the Academy’s Unified Sports program was started. Unified Sports combine student-athletes with intellectual disabilities and athletes without intellectual disabilities as teammates on school sports teams. The groups train and compete, providing meaningful involvement for athletes and partners together on one team with one goal. 

In 2018, four years after Kathy introduced the idea of establishing a unified program — Fryeburg Academy was the first school in Maine to be honored as a national unified champion school by the national Special Olympic Committee. Currently, the Academy offers four unified sports: golf, basketball, track, and bocci. The program promotes inclusivity, acceptance, and compassion. 

When not busy with her FA responsibilities, Kathy is an active member of her community. She has been a member of the Lovell United Church of Christ choir since high school, volunteers at the church thrift shop, was a Lovell Youth Group volunteer for almost 30 years, volunteered for almost 30 years as a Lovell Youth Group leader, and enjoys her morning walks though the roads of Lovell, always picking up litter along the way. 

Kathy has always put her students’ needs first and celebrated their abilities. 

“We thank her for her time, energy, compassion, and enthusiasm and all she brings to her program and its students – making their world better and easier to navigate,” the Academy said.