Is Simi Valley Board of Education President Dawn Smollen Ignoring Student Safety?

SAFETY AT RISK: Open Gates and Unaddressed Dangers at Justin Early Learners Academy

FEATUREDEDUCATION

1/10/20266 min read

A troubling pattern of security negligence has emerged at the Simi Valley Unified School District Special Education TK Center, Justin Early Learners Academy, raising serious concerns about student safety at the preschool facility. It appears that Simi Valley Unified School District Board of Trustees President Dawn Smollen has failed in her duty to create a safe learning environment for the special needs students and TK at Justin. Despite California school safety guidelines emphasizing secure campuses, reports indicate that school gates are routinely left open and unattended during school hours.

WHY IT MATTERS

The stakes couldn’t be higher: Over 100 registered sex offenders reportedly live within a three-quarter-mile radius of the Justin Early Learners Academy. Among these offenders, records indicate several have been convicted of serious crimes, including “Rape” and “Child Involvement” offenses. At least one offender was specifically convicted of “Rape through fear” - a particularly disturbing charge when considered in the context of a preschool facility.

The proximity of these offenders to an early childhood education center with inadequate security protocols creates an unacceptable risk to the district’s youngest and most vulnerable students.

LEADERSHIP ACCOUNTABILITY

School Board President Dawn Smollen has allegedly turned a blind eye to these security failures, despite her responsibility to ensure district-wide safety protocols. Under her watch, Superintendent Hani Youssef has been permitted to ignore safety policies at Justin Early Learners Academy, potentially endangering students by failing to maintain basic security measures.

On the ground at Justin Early Learners Academy, Principal Sean Goldman and on-site administrator Laurie Cariker have reportedly allowed school gates to remain open and unattended during school hours - a direct contradiction to the school’s own published emergency information which emphasizes student safety as a priority.

"Every staff member at every campus regularly trains in emergency procedures for numerous scenarios. They will do everything possible to keep your child safe,” states the school’s emergency information page - yet the most basic security measure of maintaining secured entry points has allegedly been ignored.

CRIME CONCERNS COMPOUND RISKS

The security failures at Justin Early Learners Academy are particularly alarming given recent criminal activity in Simi Valley. Multiple violent incidents in the community underscore the potential dangers of inadequate school security.

On December 8, 2025, a stabbing occurred in the 2900 block of Tapo Canyon Road, just minutes from Justin Early Learners Academy. According to the Simi Valley Police Department, a 17-year-old confronted and stabbed another juvenile in the arm following a verbal altercation after exiting a city bus. The victim was transported to a trauma center with non-life-threatening injuries. While authorities indicated the attack was not random, with the suspect and victim knowing each other, the incident demonstrates how quickly violence can erupt in public spaces.

Just weeks earlier, on November 15, 2025, a man was attacked and robbed outside the Chase Bank branch at 2398 Sycamore Drive just blocks from Justin Early Learners Academy. The victim had just cashed checks at a nearby Wells Fargo and was carrying money in a Chase Bank envelope when he was grabbed from behind, pushed to the ground, and robbed. The robbery occurred at approximately 9:44 a.m. – in broad daylight – highlighting that criminals are operating boldly within the community.

SCHOOL SECURITY: LESSONS FROM NATIONAL TRAGEDIES

The devastating lessons from school tragedies across America have made one thing abundantly clear: secure access points are not optional—they are essential first lines of defense. Security failures, particularly those involving unsecured entry points, have repeatedly been identified as critical factors in allowing unauthorized access to school grounds.

The Sandy Hook Elementary School tragedy of December 14, 2012, stands as one of the most devastating examples of how critical entry point security is for schools. On that day, 20 children and 6 staff members lost their lives when a shooter forcibly entered the school by shooting through a glass panel adjacent to the locked front doors.task_1 The school had implemented a security system requiring visitors to be buzzed in, but this measure proved insufficient against a determined attacker who found a vulnerable access point.

In the aftermath of Sandy Hook, schools nationwide were forced to reconsider their security protocols. The incident highlighted that locked doors alone are insufficient if other vulnerabilities exist in the perimeter. Security experts emphasized the need for layered security approaches, with multiple reinforced barriers between potential threats and students. Many schools subsequently installed shatter-resistant film on glass panels, reinforced entryways, and implemented comprehensive access control systems.task_1

The tragic events in places like Uvalde, Texas, where security protocols failed catastrophically, serve as stark reminders of what can happen when school access points aren’t properly secured and monitored. In Nashville, another devastating case demonstrated how quickly an intruder can enter a campus without proper access control measures. The Minnesota school shooting similarly highlighted vulnerabilities that could have been addressed through rigorous security protocols.

These tragedies share a common thread: security breakdowns that allowed attackers to enter school grounds with minimal resistance. School safety experts have consistently emphasized that properly secured and monitored entry points are among the most critical preventative measures schools can implement.

According to security specialists who have studied these incidents, the difference between an attempted breach and a successful one often comes down to basic physical security measures:

Secured perimeter fencing and gates that remain locked during school hours
Controlled single-point entry systems with proper monitoring
Regular security audits to identify and address vulnerabilities
Clear protocols for access management that are consistently followed
Adequate training for staff on security procedures

Federal and state guidelines developed in response to these tragedies consistently emphasize perimeter security as a fundamental safety measure. Yet the alleged practices at Justin Early Learners Academy—gates left open and unattended—create the exact vulnerability that has been exploited with devastating consequences in schools nationwide.

Simi Valley School Board President Smollen and Simi Valley Unified School District Superintendent Hani Youssef appear to have taken the naive “It won’t happen here” approach to school safety rather than taking every measure to keep Simi Valley students safe. This complacency represents a dangerous mindset that has preceded numerous school security failures across the nation. History has repeatedly shown that no community is immune to the possibility of violence, and assuming that Simi Valley somehow exists in a protective bubble defies both logic and evidence.

When school administrators like Principal Goldman and on-site administrator Cariker allegedly neglect these basic security protocols, they’re not just ignoring best practices—they’re potentially putting children in harm’s way. School Board President Smollen’s apparent failure to address these security lapses represents a profound abdication of leadership responsibility.

WHAT’S NEXT?

Safety guidelines are irrelevant if they are not followed. This fundamental truth lies at the heart of the security crisis at Justin Early Learners Academy. The district can publish the most comprehensive security protocols in the state, but if gates remain open and unattended during school hours, those protocols amount to nothing more than empty promises.

Parents and community members deserve answers from district leadership about these alleged security failures. While the district’s published materials emphasize that “We can work together to keep your child safe,” the reality on the ground suggests a troubling gap between policy and practice.

The situation raises critical questions: How many days are gates left unsecured? What specific policies exist for monitoring campus entry points? Why haven’t school officials addressed these vulnerabilities despite the known risks in the area?

It’s easy to publish security protocols online, but when basic safety measures are ignored in practice, who is truly being held accountable?

Parents of Justin Early Learners Academy students should demand immediate action to secure all campus entry points and implement consistent monitoring of access to the facility. With over 100 registered sex offenders living in close proximity to a preschool serving our community’s youngest children, there is simply no room for security lapses of this magnitude.