ATGLEN – The Octorara Area School District voted Monday night to hire Dr. Michele Orner as its next superintendent, to replace the retiring Tom Newcome.
“We are excited to welcome Dr. Orner as the next superintendent of the Octorara Area School District,” said Lisa Bowman, president of the Octorara Area School Board. “After consulting with stakeholders across the district we are confident in Dr. Orner’s excellent communication skills, her extensive background as an educational leader and her student-centered approach to education. These are just some of the qualities which made her the best choice for superintendent of our district,” said Bowman.
“The decision to appoint Dr. Orner as the next superintendent of the Octorara Area School District is the result of an extensive search. Dr. Orner stood out for a number of reasons. She is coming from a district which is demographically similar to Octorara, she has extensive experience with budgeting, she has a strong career & technical education background and her outstanding character are all things which both our stakeholders and the School Board felt were essential for our next superintendent,” said Bowman.
Orner will be replacing Dr. Tom Newcome, who is retiring at the end of the school year. Dr. Newcome has been with the Octorara Area School District for 15 years. During his time with OASD, he has served as the middle school principal and then assistant superintendent before becoming superintendent in 2003.
“We thank Dr. Newcome for his service to the Octorara Area School District. We are grateful for his leadership and we wish him the best in his retirement,” said Bowman.
Dr. Orner is expected to begin her duties as superintendent at Octorara Area School District on July 1, 2018.
Dr. Orner is currently the superintendent of schools in the Halifax Area School District (HASD) in Dauphin County, Pennsylvania. She has served as superintendent at HASD since 2014. Prior to HASD, Dr. Orner served as the director of career and technical education and staff development coordinator at the Center for Careers and Technology in the Carlisle Area School District in Carlisle, PA. She has additional administrative experience as an assistant superintendent and middle school principal.
“I am excited and honored to be the next superintendent of the Octorara Area School District. I appreciated the extensive interview process that allowed me to interact with the School Board in a number of different settings. The Board’s questions and comments clearly demonstrated how proud they are of their school district and how much respect they have for every member of the school community. I was very impressed with their service to the district, not only as a Board member, but also as volunteers in all aspects of school life,” said Orner.
“From the very first interview, I knew I had found a world class school district. It will be my privilege to ‘catch the baton’ from retiring superintendent, Dr. Thomas Newcome,” said Orner.
Orner holds a bachelor’s degree in Theatre Arts from California University of Pennsylvania, a masters in English Education from Shippensburg University and a doctorate in Education Leadership from Duquesne University. She is certified as an English teacher, K-12 principal, supervisor of language arts, vocational administrative director and superintendent of schools.
