Staff Members – Lexington Universal Academy

Our Admin Team

Andy Mirhaj

Principal

amirhaj@luaky.org Mr. Andy Mirhaj is an experienced educational leader with more than 20 years of service in school administration. Throughout his career, he has served in leadership positions- including…
Haitham Issa

Interim Islamic Director

hissa@luaky.org As a founding member of the Islamic Society of Central Kentucky (ISCK), Haitham has been a prominent and active figure in the Lexington community for over 30 years.…
Lubna Shalash

Office Assistant

lshalash@luaky.org Mrs. Lubna Shalash is usually the first face you see when you come to the school. She has been the office assistant for six years and has loved…
Hope Omran

Office Manager

office@luaky.org Mrs. Hope Omran was born in Illinois and moved to Lexington at the young age of three. She graduated from Tates Creek High School and attended the University…
Briana Raissi

Dean of Lower School

braissi@luaky.org Ms. Briana has worked in the education field as a teacher and administrator for over 20 years, teaching at the elementary, middle, high school, and post secondary levels.…
Basimah Shalash

Preschool Director, Middle School Dean

bshalash@luaky.org Basimah Shalash has been part of the LUA staff since 2010. She began as a long term substitute for middle school math and science. Then joined as a…

Shahla Alshakarchi

Pre-K 4 Teacher

salshakarchi@luaky.org Usthathah Shahla Alshakarchi is one of the pre-k 4 teachers at LUA. She has a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering, two CDA (child development association) credentials in Early Childhood…
Islam Al Burai

Pre-K 4

ialburai@luaky.org Ustathah Islam Al Burai is one of the PreK-4 at Lexington Universal Academy. She has a bachelor’s degree in Education. Previously, she worked as an ESL teacher in…
Dana Shalash

Pre-K 3

dshalash@luaky.org Dana Shalash joined the LUA team in 2025. She has taught Pre-K 3 and has a passion for young children. Dana was born and raised in Lexington and graduated…
Amani Shalash

Pre-K 3 Teacher

ashalash@luaky.org Ustathah Amani Shalash has been a teacher at LUA since 2021. She has taught both Pre-K 3 and 4. She is a proud alumnus of LUA and was a…

Sarah Ahmad

Fifth Grade

sahmad@luaky.org This is Ustathah Ahmad’s first year teaching at LUA. She was born in Lexington and attended LUA K-8th grade. She previously taught 4th grade ELA in Fayette County Public…
Cheryl Paul

Fourth Grade

cpaul@luaky.org Mrs. Cheryl Paul is the fourth grade teacher at Lexington Universal Academy. This is her third year at LUA, but her 13th year as a teacher, and her…
Saphia Isa

Third Grade

sisa@luaky.org Ustatha Saphia Isa is the third grade teacher at Lexington Universal Academy. She joined the LUA family in 2012. Ustatha Saphia is a proud mother of four children,…
Heather Bailey

Second Grade

hbailey@luaky.org Heather Bailey is the second grade teacher at LUA. She earned her bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education and Special Education from the University of the Cumberlands. With a…
Heba Suleiman

First Grade

hsuleiman@luaky.org Ustathah Heba is the first grade teacher here at LUA. Heba graduated from the University of Kentucky in 2011 with a Bachelor’s in Psychology and a minor in…
Nowal Allouch

Kindergarten

nallouch@luaky.org Ustathah Nowal Allouch is the kindergarten teacher here at LUA. She has lived in Kentucky all her life and has always wanted to become a teacher. She received…

Sunshine Al-Jumaily

Middle School Social Studies

saljumaily@luaky.org Ustathah Sunshine Al-Jumaily is a Lexington, Kentucky native who graduated from Bryan Station High School. At the University of Kentucky, she received a BA in history and a minor…
Christy Hendrickson

Middle School Language Arts

chendrickson@luaky.org Christy Hendrickson teaches middle school English Language Arts (ELA). She has been a teacher for over twenty vears in both the private and public school systems. Mrs. Hendrickson…
Mahmoud Shalash

Middle School Math

mshalash@luaky.org Ustath Mahmoud serves at Lexington Universal Academy as the Middle School Math Teacher, Middle School Quran Resource, and the 7th Grade Islamic Studies Teacher. After having spent his…
Courtney Crump

Middle School Science

ccrump@luaky.org Ustathah Courtney Crump has been part of the LUA family for over 10 years and has served in many positions. She began her time here as the Pre-K…

Asmaa Kakafi

Arabic

akakafi@luaky.org Ustatha Asmaa Kakafi has been the Arabic teacher for the elementary grades Prek- 4th. She is originally from Egypt. She graduated from Faculty of Arts, Mansoura University in…
Monawar Meriden

Quran

mmeriden@luaky.org Ustatha Monawar Meriden has been a Quran and Arabic teacher for about 20 years. She has a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Damascus, Syria. In 2001, she was honored…
Iman Hadi

Arabic

ihadi@luaky.org Usthatah Iman is the Arabic Language and Quran Resource teacher at Lexington Universal Academy. Alhamdulillah, she has been with LUA since 2004. She was born in Baghdad, Iraq,…
Ali Shalash

Islamic Studies and Tasfeer

alishalash@luaky.org Ustadh Ali Shalash is a Palestinian-American who was born and raised in Lexington. He studied in LUA from first till eighth grade. Ali completed his high school education…
Fathia Shalash

Islamic Studies

fshalash@luaky.org Ustathah Fathia Shalash is an Arabic, Quran, and Islamic Studies teacher at Lexington Universal Academy. She was born and raised in Kuwait, where she completed her high school…

Atef El Gassier

President

Atef Elgassier moved to Lexington with his wife Warda Abuhajer in 2014. Dr. Elgassier currently works as a Hospitalist in the medicine department at Saint Joseph Hospital. He and Warda…
Alaa El Mediouri

Treasurer

Alaa El Mediouri is currently working as an Information Technology Director at the University of Kentucky. He has been a member of the community and this is his eight year…