A member of the faculty since 1993, Bill Dunham is currently the Associate Director of College Counseling, Chair of the English Department, English teacher, Head Varsity Coach for wrestling and golf, and recipient of the Phillips Smith Endowed Humanities Chair. Over the years, he has also served as a dorm parent and head coach for baseball and soccer. Dunham epitomizes a teacher dedicated to student success.
Contributing writer Hunter Baran ’25 recently sat down to talk with Mr. Dunham about college placement and wrestling:
College placement updates:
College placement has gone quite well this year for the members of the senior class. With many students getting into their first picks through early decision and early action, the acceptances continued to come. As of this date, seniors have been accepted into schools such as Williams College, Amherst College, Wesleyan University, Cornell University, Johns Hopkins University, University of North Carolina (Chapel Hill), University of Virginia, University of Chicago, and New York University amongst other schools. This year’s senior class sent out their applications smoothly and swiftly, and the college essays written by the students were very good. Mr. Dunham would also like to thank the teachers and faculty for constructing strong, effective recommendations.
Wrestling team success:
The ’24 wrestling team was mostly returners aside from three newcomers, Avi Meltzer ’26, Tyler Peterson ’25, and Tyler Fromm ’25. Those individuals, coupled with returners Joe Tumolo ’25, Axel Caramico ’26, Ethan Collura ’25, John Berlandi ’27, Asa Caramico ’24, Maxx Miller ’25, Angus Deely ’24, Trey Boula ’24, AJ Turner ’25, and Kweku Arthur-Mensah ’25, to produce “one of its best seasons in years,” said Mr. Dunham. He praised captains Trey Boula ’24 and Angus Deely ’24 for their leadership and help in uniting the team this year as well as the energy that senior Jaylani Woolridge ’24 often brought into the room. He noted that the team was filled with homegrown wrestlers last year who really stepped up to help the team find success. The team took 3rd place at the Avon Tournament, 3rd at the Tabor Tournament, and 2nd at the Brunswick Invitational in the early stages of the season. In the middle of the season, there were several season-ending injuries that knocked starters out of the lineup for the remainder of the season. However, that did not affect the team, as it managed to earn 3rd place at the Western New England Tournament, and 5th place at the New England Tournament. The future looks very promising for Trinity-Pawling wrestling, as the majority of the team, and of its New England place winners will be returning.
by Hunter Baran ’25