OPS Selects Dr. Margaret Coates to Serve as Interim Superintendent Upon Dr. Amy Fichtner’s Resignation
CHAMBER APPRECIATION: Owasso Chamber of Commerce President Gary Akin gives thanks to Owasso Public Schools Superintendent Amy Fichtner for her talk at an Owasso Chamber of Commerce luncheon at the Tulsa Tech Owasso campus.
Dr. Margaret Coates has returned to Owasso Public Schools to serve as Interim Superintendent until the Board of Education selects a full-time replacement for Amy Fichtner who resigned in early November.
Before retiring last June, Coates was Owasso’s assistant superintendent with responsibility for overseeing the district’s teaching and learning curriculum. Her first day on the job will be Jan. 1, 2022 and she has agreed to serve through this fiscal year.
The search for a permanent superintendent is currently underway.
Following its November meeting, the school board issued a statement saying “We know this news comes as a surprise and raises some questions. Dr. Fichtner has always stated that if the Board desires a change in superintendent leadership, she would step aside. This has occurred, and Dr. Fichtner has graciously submitted her resignation.”
It was accepted with three members voting “yes” and two members abstaining.
Fichtner served as assistant superintendent for three years before being promoted.
A letter to district families said, “The board of education recognizes the positive contributions Dr. Fichtner has made during her tenure with Owasso Public Schools and would like to thank her for over six years of service to the district.”
Born in Del City, Fichtner did not begin her career in education until she was in her mid-30s. She took a job as a fifth-grade teacher at Arrowhead Elementary School in Broken Arrow in 1996 and spent the next 18 years serving as an assistant principal, principal and assistant superintendent.
After leaving B.A., Fichtner began teaching a class for aspiring principals once a week at Southern Nazarene University and took a 17-month break to care for an ailing family member before accepting the assistant superintendent position in Owasso.
