Otha Thornton

Otha Thornton, immediate past president of National PTA, has recently presided over 22,000 PTA chapters (about 20 million parents) and over 4 million dues paying PTA parents. His work as President over the past two years was as a volunteer on leave as a senior operations analyst with General Dynamics in Fort Stewart, Georgia. He is a retired United States Army Lieutenant Colonel and his last two assignments were with the White House Communications Agency and United States Forces-Iraq in Baghdad. Thornton earned the Bronze Star Medal for exceptional performance in combat operations during Operation Iraqi Freedom 2009-2010. He is a life member of the National Eagle Scout Association and has more than 25 years of active service in the scouting program across the United States and around the world. Thornton received his bachelor’s degree in urban studies from Morehouse College and a master’s degree in communications from Michigan Technological University. He was awarded an honorary doctorate degree from Michigan Technological University in 2009.