Kristin D. Olson, Esq.
Vice Chancellor, Human Resources
Kristin D. Olson, J.D. was appointed Vice Chancellor, Human Resources for the Rancho Santiago Community College District (RSCCD) in July 2024. In this role, Ms. Olson serves as the district's chief human resources officer overseeing all aspects of the district's human resources department.
Her responsibilities include all aspects of the district's human resources and employer-employee relations which include labor negotiations, employee recruitment, selection and discipline, fringe benefit administration and risk management. Ms. Olson also oversees the district's Equal Employment Opportunity, Title IX and ADA/504 activities, executes board policy and regulations of the district and provides leadership for district-wide professional development programs.
Ms. Olson has served in public education for the past 21 years, working as an administrator for 19 years. In addition to her experience at the community college level, she also has experience working in K-12 school districts and at the county office of education. Prior to her current role, Ms. Olson was employed at the Long Beach Community College District, where served as the Associate Vice President of Human Resources since 2018 and served as the Executive Director of Classified Human Resources prior to that. Under her leadership in her role as Associate Vice President of Human Resources, the College was notably awarded the EEO Best Practices Grant. Her previous employment experience included the Santa Clara County Office of Education, the Lynwood Unified School District and the Bassett Unified School District.
After earning her law degree from Loyola Law School, Ms. Olson became a member of the State Bar of California. She also received certification as a mediator from Loyola Law School's Center for Conflict Resolution She holds a Master of Arts degree in Industrial-Organizational Psychology from California State University at Long Beach (CSULB) and a Bachelor of Arts degree in both Psychology and Communication Studies from the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA).
While attending Loyola Law School she was selected to represent Loyola on their Moot Court Team and placed second internationally as well as being awarded High Honors for achievements in Legal Writing. She attended CSULB on a fellowship and graduated summa cum laude at the top of her class. Notably, while at UCLA, Ms. Olson was selected for and won an award for student honors research.
Ms. Olson is an active and involved member of the professional community as well and currently serves on the Board of Directors for PCASC (Personnel Commissioners Association for Southern California), on the Board of Directors for Southern California 30 as the EEO Officer, on the Advisory Committee for EEODAC, and on the EEO/DEIA advisory committee to the California Community College State Chancellor's Office, which meets quarterly to review and advise on EEO/DEIA employment initiatives impacting the California community college system. She is also a sought-after presenter within her profession often presenting on the topics of the use of competencies in selection and evaluation, leveraging technology within human resource operations, test utility, reliability and validity, and return on investment strategies.
July 2024
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