Ann Coody (December 12, 1937) is a politician from the U.S. state of

Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...

. A member of the

Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa *Republican Party (Liberia) * Republican Part ...

, she was elected to the

Oklahoma House of Representatives The Oklahoma House of Representatives is the lower house of the legislature of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. Its members introduce and vote on bills and resolutions, provide legislative oversight for state agencies, and help to craft the state's b ...

in 2004, and represented the 64th district until she was term limited in 2016. Before serving as Oklahoma

State Representative A state legislature is a legislative branch or body of a political subdivision in a federal system. Two federations literally use the term "state legislature": * The legislative branches of each of the fifty state governments of the United Sta ...

, Coody was a longtime educator, counselor, and assistant principal for

Lawton Public Schools Lawton Public Schools is a public school district based in Lawton, Oklahoma, United States. The district serves most of the city of Lawton, a small portion of Medicine Park, and surrounding rural areas in central Comanche County. Secondary s ...

. To date, Coody is the primary author of 125 bills.

Early life

Ann Coody was born in

Shreveport, LA Shreveport ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is the third most populous city in Louisiana after New Orleans and Baton Rouge, respectively. The Shreveport–Bossier City metropolitan area, with a population of 393,406 in 2020, is ...

and lived there until she was twelve years old. The family moved to San Antonio, TX where her father was stationed at Randolph Air Force Base. Coody graduated from Alma Heights High School in San Antonio.

Education

Before departing for Hardin-Simmons University in

Abilene, TX Abilene ( ) is a city in Taylor and Jones Counties in Texas, United States. Its population was 125,182 at the 2020 census, making it the 27th-most populous city in the state of Texas. It is the principal city of the Abilene metropolitan stat ...

, Coody met her future husband, Dale Coody, on a blind date. He followed Ann to Hardin-Simmons and the two dated throughout her freshman year. Ann's father was transferred to Tachikawa Air Force base in

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

and she was expected to join her family there. After spending a year abroad, Coody returned to Hardin-Simmons and finished her Bachelor of Arts degree in speech and drama and minor in English.

Married life and career

Soon after graduation, Dale and Ann married and spent their first year in

Seagraves, TX Seagraves is a city in Gaines County, Texas, United States. Its population was 2,417 at the 2010 census. History A post office at the home of S.J. Blythe occupied the area known as Blythe, Texas. In 1917, the Santa Fe Railroad moved into the vic ...

, while Dale served as the music and educational director at the First Baptist Church in Seagraves. The two moved around in Texas for a time before returning to Tulsa, OK in 1962. In 1963, after both of their children were born, Dale and Ann moved to

Lawton, OK Lawton is a city in and the county seat of Comanche County, in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. Located in southwestern Oklahoma, approximately southwest of Oklahoma City, it is the principal city of the Lawton, Oklahoma, metropolitan statistical a ...

, where they have lived ever since. While teaching at Tomlinson high school, Coody received her Master's in guidance and counseling from the University of Oklahoma. Soon after, Coody was hired as the school counselor at MacArthur High School and remained there for 26 years. While in this position, Coody obtained her certificate in secondary education from the University of Oklahoma. After 9 years as the counselor, she was hired at MacArthur as the Assistant Principal. Eventually Coody was hired as the principal at MacArthur high school and served in that position for 9 years. In 2000, Coody retired as principal after 39 years in education.

House of Representatives

Coody originally ran for office in 2002 as a registered Democrat and lost. In 2004, Coody was elected to the

, and was the first female as well as the first Republican to hold the seat in her district (64th). During her first session, Coody got 4 of the 8 bills she presented passed into law. To date, Coody has been the primary author of 125 legislative bills. Coody was term limited in 2016.

Committees

*Common Education, Chair *Conference Committee on Common Education, Chair *Appropriations & Budget *A&B Education *Conference Committee on Veterans & Military Affairs *General Conference Committee on Appropriations & Budget *Joint Committee on Appropriations & Budget *Veterans & Military Affairs

Community Involvement

Coody is also a member of various organizations, including: * American Legislative Exchange Council *Comanche County Retired Educators Association *Oklahoma Retired Educators Association *First Baptist Church of Grandfield, Oklahoma