Laurel High School Nets New Principal

A long-time local counselor will take the reins of Laurel High School this August.

The Los Alamitos Unified School District has named Tustin resident Heidi Olshan the new Laurel principal.

"Heidi's background and leadership skills make her an ideal principal for Laurel,” said Sherry Kropp, LASD superintendent.

For the past ten years, Olshan, 59, served as a Los Alamitos High School counselor.

Before arriving at the district, Olshan taught high school special education for four years in Beverly Hills, then developed and taught a program for at-risk youth for 2.5 years in Birmingham, Alabama, and after that was a teacher and counselor in Irvine for two years.

Olshan has a bachelor’s degree from Queens College, City University, New York, and a master’s degree from California State University, Northridge, as well as credentials in teaching, pupil personnel services and administration.

At Los Alamitos High, Olshan served on the Substance Abuse Task Force and the Bully Prevention Task Force, and served as the chair of the school’s Western Association of Schools and Colleges Chapter.

She also developed the Support Personnel Accountability report card for the school, has been the student study team leader and serves on the Threat Assessment Team, which helps identify students who may be a danger to themselves or others.

Olshan has been married to her husband, Jeffrey, for 32 years and has two children.

Her daughter lives in Huntington Beach and is an autism behavior specialist in Newport Mesa Unified School District, and her son lives in San Francisco and is an operations manager for the major league soccer club, The San Jose Earthquakes.

In her spare time, Olshan plays tennis, goes on hikes and loves to read.