When Lolli Lucas, Ed.D. walked onto the Laguna campus at 

the start of the 2015-16 school year, she thought it would be a 

temporary assignment. Lolli was hired as the Interim Head of 

Upper School while Laguna leadership undertook a national 

search for the ideal candidate. Yet just six weeks into the job, 

Laguna knew they’d already found their top candidate. 

“It was a mutual love affair,” Lolli says. “I loved how much the 

faculty embraced the school’s students, and the fact that students 

remained central to every educational decision. I was proud to 

be the leader they needed to provide a solid structure for that 

student-centered ideal.”

Indeed, in her first year at Laguna, Lolli focused on building 

a strong foundation of support for the school’s faculty, helping to 

put policies in place to empower their creativity and development. 

Moving forward, she hopes to continue building bridges of 

collaboration and shared vision throughout the school.

“We have the right people in place,” Lolli says. “We’re 

tightening up the entire school’s relationship with itself, from 

the Lower School upward. I want our entire community to know 

that the changes we’re making are good ones. I couldn’t be more 

excited about where we’re going.”

Lolli comes to Laguna with an extensive history in educational 

administration, including a Doctorate of Education from UCLA. 

But she also brings a unique perspective on college admissions 

to our Upper School students. Earlier in her career, Lolli served 

as director of college counseling at Brentwood School in Los 

Angeles and says her goal is always to prepare students for the 

next level. And for her, that means university.

“Will they be ready? Will they be able?” she asks. “It’s our 

job to ensure that they are. And we are grateful that Laguna 

understands that education, character-building, and co-curricular 

opportunities all play an essential role in ensuring success in our 

students’ next chapter. To me, that truly is the Laguna experience.”

In the future, Lolli says Upper School faculty will continue 

to pursue project-based learning, with a continued emphasis on 

reaching students in new and different ways. This includes not 

just making learning fun and interesting, but finding new ways to 

assess how well kids are actually learning. 

“One of the most exciting things about our faculty is that they 

are not afraid of change,” Lolli says.  “It doesn’t matter if we’re 

amping up the school’s writing and college counseling programs, 

or looking at new ways to bridge our Middle and Upper School 

curricula—our teachers are on board and excited by the challenge. 

They know they have a voice, and I am so proud to support them 

in using it.”

 I want Laguna 

students to have  

a higher sense of 

where they fit into  

the world.

Before joining Laguna Blanca, Lolli served as Upper School 
Director at Sierra Canyon School in Chatsworth, California. 
In addition to her work in administration and college 
counseling at the secondary level, Lolli has held positions 
in the admission offices of The College of William and Mary 
and Pomona College. She holds a Bachelor’s in Psychology 
from Vassar College, and a Doctorate of Education from 
UCLA. She is the proud mother of son, Beckett Clark ’26, 
who is a third grader at Laguna Blanca.

And just like the faculty, Lolli wants Laguna students to know 

they have a voice as well—not just on campus, but in finding 

their place in the rest of the world. The school’s public speaking 

seminar and senior project program go a long way in teaching 

those qualities.  

“I want Laguna students to have a higher sense of where they fit 

into the world,” Lolli says. “Our seniors will have an opportunity 

to vote in the November presidential election. I don’t care who 

they vote for—but I do care that they have an understanding for 

why this is a historical election."

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