Dr. Kary Cooper served as the school’s first principal. The school’s namesake, Dr. Doug Otto, who retired from a 40 year career in education in 2012, began his tenure as Plano ISD superintendent of schools in 1995, moving to Plano with his wife Bobbi and their family. Leading the then 55,000 student district for 17 years, he oversaw its rapid growth in student enrollment during a challenging state school finance system. The American Association for School Administrators recognized Dr. Otto with its Leadership for Learning Award in 2000 for his dedication to the total integration of technology into the Plano ISD elementary curriculum. Dr. Otto was named in eSchool News as one of “12 Tech-Savvy Superintendents” from across the nation; and he was selected as the Region 10 Service Center’s nominee for Texas Superintendent of the Year in 2001. He was inducted into the Illinois State University College of Education Hall of Fame in 2002, and in 2008, Dr. Otto was named as one of “21 Leaders for the 21st Century” by Inside Collin County Business. Dr. Otto has served as president of the Texas Schools Finance Coalition and on the board of directors of the Horace Mann League and Superintendents Advisory Panel for the College Board.
