Upon graduating from Gloversville High School, Donna attended FMCC. She worked part time for Evelyn Gibbons, an upscale boutique in the downtown area. It was this experience that allowed her to meet and greet many community members who were active in the YWCA and the Jewish Community Center. She loved having the opportunity to help out at these facilities.

She was elected president of the Student Government Association at FMCC and in that capacity networked to help high school students learn about FMCC as a stepping-stone to post high school education.

as a Speech-Language Pathologist in New York, Massachusetts and Florida for more than twenty years. She earned a masters degree in special education and attended Simmons College to study Inclusive Educational Practices. Donna is currently the Director and Inclusion Facilitator of Literacy Learning Academy for the Polk County School Board in Florida. She is part of the Florida Inclusion Network (FIN) and works with the Florida Department of Education on best grading practices in inclusive classrooms.

Some of Donna’s many accomplishments include co-authoring a guidebook on Speech and Language Development birth to age 12 entitled Rainbows for Rosie; writing and receiving a “Social Inclusion Project” grant from the state of Florida for Haines City High School; contributed to the writing of a three year $500,000.00 grant awarded by the Melinda Gates Foundation to Haines City High School; establishing a consulting company, Educational Planning and Consulting Services (EPACS); and has presented at State and National Conferences such as Association of Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD) and the National Association of Bilingual Education (NABE). In April of this year, Donna was inducted into Gloversville High School Hall of Fame.

She is married to George Fraley and together they have four children, Brett Circe, George, Dan and Suzanne Fraley as well as five grandchildren.

Personal Message from Donna Gatto Fraley

I have a wonderful, warm, loving family of which I am so very grateful; it is the added bonus of my sustained (forty years plus) FMCC friendships that has helped to shape me into the individual I am today. To Rosemary Andreana, Cathy Dicruttalo, Jeanne Digiacomo and Mary Jane Balzano, we are the “sisterhood” that started in the halls of GHS and continued through FMCC and we will forever grow. Through good times and bad it is nice to know we will all be there for each other. Thank you FMCC for the gift of friendship as well as great academics and professors who placed an emphasis on “you can succeed.” A very special thank you to Mr. Vadney and Dr. Fabiano who believed in my leadership skills and encouraged me to run for SGA president at FMCC. This shy Gloversville High graduate blossomed into a confident college student with the help of the
professors and administrative staff at FMCC. Thank you all!