Dr. Kathleen E. Ott, 71, of South Whitehall Township, died April 21, 2022. She was the wife of Robert S. Ott.

She was the daughter of the late William M. and Mary Jane (Bortz) Mackes.

She graduated from William Allen High School. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in secondary education from Kutztown University in 1986. In 1990, she earned a Master of Education/Secondary Education degree in biology from Lehigh University. In 2001, she received a Doctor of Educational Leadership and Administration from Widener University.

She was a high school biology teacher at Lehigh Career and Technical Institute. She served as assistant principal at Pottsgrove Senior High School and then became an assistant principal at Emmaus High School in 1993. In 1999, she was named Northampton Area High School principal. She was Northampton Area School District’s director of data, grants and special programs 2007-20, where she secured millions of dollars in competitive grants for the district. During her tenure in Northampton, she established the district’s alumni directory and was a founder of Northampton Konkrete Kids Education Foundation.

She was a member of the New Covenant Christian Community Church, Macungie. She was a member of the Rotary Club of Allentown West. She sat on the board of directors of Hawk Mountain Sanctuary Association in the late 1980s and most recently on the board of directors of the Parkland Education Foundation.

She was the self-published author of the whimsical “Casinos, Capers and Cakes: Hitting the Jackpot of Love and Adventures in Atlantic City.”

She is survived by three siblings, Thomas J. Mackes and his wife Carolynne, Corinne Emmett and Jody Gehringer; three sons, Robert S. II and his wife Lisa, Michael B. and his wife Cindy and Stephen J. and his wife Suzanne; a daughter, Jacqueline S. and her husband John Mohr; eight grandchildren, Mikayla, Darci, Lindsay, Sydney, Addison, Robert, Elizabeth and Jacob; and two nieces and four nephews along with their families.

Contributions may be made to either the Rotary Club of Allentown West or Family Promise of Lehigh Valley, c/o the funeral home, 1625 W. Highland St., Allentown.

There will be calling times 6-8 p.m. April 27 at the funeral home and 9-10 a.m. April 28 at New Covenant Christian Community Church, 126 S. Church St., Macungie. Services will be 10 a.m. April 28 at the church.

Arrangements were made by Trexler Funeral Home Inc.