TA Celebrates 80th Annual Founders’ Day (Watch the Video!)
February 09, 2023
On Monday, February 6, 2023, Thetford Academy celebrated its 204th birthday and its 80th annual Founders’ Day. Former Head of School Carl Anderson started the Founders’ Day tradition in 1944, after fire destroyed the school’s original campus. His idea commemorate the school’s history was an opportunity to lift the spirits of the community and to celebrate TA’s resilience through hard times.
Many of the original traditions from that first Founders’ Day remain in practice today, from the candle lighting ceremony to the many school wide competitions. Students still compete each year to earn the title “Founders’ Day champion” and, of course, the bragging rights that go along with it. They work in committees to build floats, paint murals and banners, bake cookies, write skits and songs, and make costumes and crowns, ice sculptures, and centerpieces.
Every year, the events center around a student-selected theme; this year’s theme was “Thetford Academy departments.” The 12th grade gets first pick of a sub-theme and this year, the Class of 2023 chose the sub-theme of the “Administration”. The remaining classes chose the Social Studies Department (2024), the Athletics/PE/Outdoor Program (2025), the Arts (2026), Science (2027), and the IT/Library/Buildings and Grounds/Cafe departments (2028).
The competitions are evaluated by a volunteer panel of Founders’ Day judges. This year’s slate included alumni from the Class of 1963 all the way to 2021. Big thanks to our esteemed judges: Ted Peters ’63, Charlotte Adams ’65, Marsha Blake ’70, Sarah Adams ’01, Megan Snider ’04, Tyler Wojcik ’20, and Max Higgins ’21 for volunteering to be our judges this year. This year’s competitions were close in every division – a testament to the quality of the work by each grade. Congratulations to our Founders’ Day winners (below). And happy birthday, TA!
Shout out to Thetford Academy’s Founders’ Day Committee, led by Stacy Barton, for organizing another fantastic event this year.
RESULTS
Upper Division: Seniors 774, Juniors 771
Middle Division: Sophomores 724, Grade 9 729
Lower Division: Grade 8 744, Grade 7 675