Campus incident forces NPHS community to examine safety policies
Introduction:
Every day, Newbury Park High School provides a second home for thousands of students. Students who partake in classes before school, along with after school activities, often find themselves spending more time on school grounds than at home. Therefore, many have concluded that campus safety should be a top priority. However, recent events have interfered with the comfort of students and faculty. Members of the NPHS community share their opinions on potential risks on campus and how safety measures can be improved to reduce these prospects.
December 5:
On the night of Thursday, Dec. 5, deputies responded to an alert that a naked man was on the Newbury Park High School football field. Later identified as Zuberi Sharp, 24-years-old, the suspect was arrested on suspicion of killing a minor. Earlier that night, Ventura County firefighters and emergency personnel found a minor with blunt-force trauma to the head, Sheriff’s Capt. Ken Truitt said. Sharp fled on foot to NPHS. Sharp had entered campus via the gate by the back of Borchard Park to escape authorities. Stephen Lepire, NPHS principal, said that many extracurricular activities and sports were taking place. “We had youth track going on, we had a dance concert going on, we had just wrapped up a wrestling match, and we were just about to wrap up a cheer banquet,” Lepire said. “So gates [were] open because people [were] coming in and out.”
While the sheriff’s department dealt with the incident on the field, NPHS was placed on a “soft lockdown.” Lepire noted that there was some confusion between the spread of information around campus, as well as with the sheriff’s department, which caused difficulty when it came to the understanding of what was occuring, but student safety was ensured. The teachers and administration that were present during the time of the incident were able to calm down the audience at the concert while alerting them about the “soft lockdown.” “I want to commend Coach Cameo for being able to maintain and get through that situation and actually get the dance concert wrapped up as well. To me, a lot of people did a lot of good things under a crazy situation,” Lepire said.
Following the incident, on Dec. 6, Lepire sent an email to students and teachers regarding the safety procedures and events that took place. Lepire commended all that were on campus for adhering to safety protocols. “We are especially grateful to our local law enforcement officials for their quick actions and strong partnership in keeping our school community safe,” Lepire wrote.
One of the students on campus during this incident was Allison Young, freshman, who was performing in the Winter Dance Concert for her intermediate dance class. In between dances, her group was ordered to remain in the NPHS weight room. When the campus was placed on a soft lockdown, certain safety precautions were taken. “The one adult in our room put us in a corner and turned off all the lights and locked all the doors. [The teacher] was at one door of the weight room, and [a student] was on the other door, and he was holding a weight pole to knock down the intruder if they ever came in,” Young said.
Another student who was on campus at the time was Victoria Barnes, eighth grader at Sequoia Middle School. Barnes was running on the track during the incident, as her practice took place on NPHS campus. Barnes plans to attend NPHS next year, so this event raised concern for her future safety on campus. “I was feeling kind of scared, also confused and not really knowing what was going on. That incident made me nervous to go to high school next year,” Barnes said.
In the email that was sent out, Lepire reminded students that school will be in session the next day with a regular day of learning schedules. He also wrote that school counselors and mental health clinicians would be available if any students needed a safe place or a trusted adult to whom they can speak. “Everyone in our close-knit community plays an important role in maintaining public safety, and we encourage families to engage in conversations about safety and well-being with their children,” Lepire wrote. Lepire gave families a resource on helping youth after a community trauma. Lepire also stated that the safety and overall well-being of the school community remains the school’s top priority.
January 13:
At around 3 p.m. on Jan. 13, the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department was dispatched to a call for service at Newbury Park High School, regarding a report made by a juvenile female student. The student reported that an unidentified adult male suspect had been inside the girl’s locker room area and committed a lewd act in her presence, according to the report from the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office. The man was later identified as 55-year-old James Silver and was arrested by detectives for suspicion of committing a lewd act. Silver was booked into the Sheriff’s East County Jail and later released. He is awaiting arraignment in Ventura Superior Court on March 14, 2025, according to the report.
After school on that Monday afternoon, the student entered the girl’s locker room to change in preparation for sports practice, when she saw a naked man in the locker room. “I was confused, and I didn’t know what to do, and then I started running away. And then I got scared, because I didn’t know if he was running away after me, because I couldn’t see him because of the lockers, but he wasn’t, so it’s okay,” the student said. Following this, the student reported the incident to the water polo coach and the swim coach who were on campus, who responded quickly and began looking for the man in the locker room.
The student said that this incident made her feel unsafe when it comes to being on campus, especially as a teenage girl. “The service road gates are always open, so anyone can just walk in, and there’s no supervision, especially for girls, [and] outside the locker room. So, anyone can just walk in here,” the student said.
Since the incident, NPHS administrators have implemented new safety and security policies while also maintaining previous measures. An email newsletter sent out by Lepire on Jan. 19 listed the priorities being taken by the school to ensure student safety. The first measure implemented involved an increase in locker room surveillance. “We have assigned a campus supervisor to monitor the area outside the girls’ locker room for an hour after school. This added supervision will help ensure that students can safely transition to and from athletic practices and activities,” Lepire wrote. Another measure that was taken was a reminder to coaches and students to always be aware of their surroundings at all times, especially after school hours. Lepire also reminded students to try to remain with a buddy or partner, if possible, when going to the locker room.
Lepire added that NPHS is actively working with the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department [VCSD] to ensure safety for all students. Silver was issued a no-trespassing letter from the VCSD, prohibiting him from being on any school district campus or facility, according to the email newsletter. NPHS also took advantage of their camera system, which was also used as a facial recognition system. “We are going to upload a picture of the alleged suspect into our camera system which will alert us immediately if his face is captured in real-time by one of our twenty-seven cameras on campus,” Lepire wrote. Lepire noted that the camera system worked, and administrators and police were able to track Silver as he entered campus, left campus, and the events that transpired in between. This camera system had an initial investment a few years ago, and was recently upgraded, with the addition of five cameras last year in areas that NPHS administration felt were most important. “To us, we don’t have somebody sitting in front of the cameras and monitoring them all the time. It’s for us to be able to review or see what things happen,” Lepire said.
Admin response:
While this event has raised uncertainty in the student body about the safety of NPHS, members of NPHS staff and administration hope to keep students on site safe through a variety of measures.
Beginning in the front office, office manager Linda Abilez is one of the personnel that visitors see when entering the school. “I control who comes in the front door and then who is allowed to enter the office once they have been screened,” Abilez said. Abilez ensures that there are safeguards preventing people from entering campus without admin approval via the front office. “We have a ring doorbell system which allows us to see who is at the door… All adults who are not employees or district personnel must be screened at the front desk,” Abilez said. “If they need to go beyond the front office, they will be given a visitor’s badge. No one is allowed on campus without an appointment, prior approval or without a visitor’s badge.”
Lepire also highlights the various measures currently in place at school. “Once school starts, we close all of the gates and we have the front door locked… Any visitors have to check in and use a sign-in, they have to give us a drivers’ license, and we scan their information through a system called a raptor system,” Lepire said. Lepire believes that the nature of the event was unique, impacting the school’s response. “[The] incident [on Dec. 5] was kind of a big anomaly, in the sense of what happened, because it had nothing to do with us as a school,” Lepire said. “In terms of safety protocols, I wouldn’t say that we would change much,” Lepire said.
Speaking to the incident on Jan. 13, Lepire believes that there is an unpreventable aspect to such events, which limits the action that can be taken. “You can go to a public school, you can go to a private school, the back and forth and the people entering in and out is going to happen,” Lepire said. “So, just for the sake of being able to function as [a high school], where there’s a ton of things going on. So, I think it’s more of awareness [than a protocol].” In the face of these episodes, Lepire highlighted precautions for students to take. “One of the most important things is people knowing what to do in a situation like that, because that can happen anywhere. It can happen at the mall, it can happen anywhere. Know your surroundings. Know what to do,” Lepire said. “Obviously, it can be a highly stressful situation. Try to take in, if something happens, try to know what happened so you can actually give that information back to people to help deal with the situation.”
Jan. 13’s locker room incident has left Assistant Athletics Principal Ethan Gray, who specifically works with student athletes, to personally improve safety measures. “We’ve increased campus supervision, campus security staff specifically… near and around both boys and girls locker rooms after school hours,” Gray said. “We always have had after school hours staff, but we’ve increased the number and the location closer to and around the pool [and] locker rooms.” Gray has personally briefed employees within NPHS’s athletics department after these incidents to boost preparedness in an effort to take precautions. “I’ve worked with all our coaches, of all our sports teams, to make sure that our coaches are reiterating the safety standard, things that they should be aware of, [and] just always keeping their eyes and ears open at all times,” Gray said. However, Gray acknowledges that there are many steps students can take to better ensure their safety. “Travel in pairs or more, if possible, keeping an eye [on your] surroundings at all times. [It’s] just good practice for life,” Gray said.
School Resource Officer [SRO] Jaime Reyes, oversees safety at NPHS and a variety of CVUSD schools. Reyes addresses potential threats with preparedness, a skill she continually enhances. “Continued training is extremely important. SROs get more time on our range and have significant training in threat assessment and risk management,” Reyes said. “It is also important to know current events and just being aware of what is going on around us.” Reyes works closely with NPHS administrators to foster cohesiveness in school safety. “Building a strong relationship with administrators helps tremendously, especially when we are all working towards the same goals of building a safe learning environment,” Reyes said. Taking a similar stance to Lepire, Reyes also believes that the nature of school activities limits prevention of incidents such as the ones that took place on Dec. 5 and Jan. 13. “Unfortunately, with an open campus after a certain hour, the public has access to come watch sporting events and other events happening on campus. Being vigilant is the most important factor in this situation,” Reyes said.
Whether a victim, bystander or affected by a traumatic incident, it is encouraged to speak up if one feels unsafe in a school setting. Dedicated to making sure students feel both emotionally and physically safe on campus, the Wellness Center is open during school hours, with walk-in services and individual therapy sessions available. “They can just walk in on their own, and they can come in and say, ‘You know what, I would like to talk to someone today,’ or ‘I just need a mental health break,’” McTigue said. In the midst of the uncertainty following the two incidents, the facility offers their services for those going through a difficult time or were emotionally shaken by the events. Tracy McTigue, wellness counselor, emphasizes the subjectivity of the reaction to an event, from person to person. “It’s very personal for how you feel safe on campus, but we are all about supporting how students feel safe on campus, and what we can do to encourage that,” McTigue said.
Student athletes and locker room safety:
With students spending an average of six to seven hours on campus each day, safety is just as much of a priority at school as it is anywhere else. Student athletes in particular, often spend more than seven hours on campus, with sports practices taking place after school hours and into the evening.
In the height of swim season, Addison Corcoran, sophomore, finds herself using the locker room daily to change before and after practice and to store her sports equipment. Corcoran acknowledges that although it is impossible to guarantee that a similar incident will never occur in the future, preventative measures can be enforced. “I think maybe more additional security to the actual campus, and maybe not to a specific locker room,” Corcoran said. “So maybe closing the gates after school hours, or having someone stationed at the main gate.”
Due to the multitude of after-school activities that take place on campus, it is necessary for the gates to remain open, which raises safety concerns for students. “I’ve seen that the gates have been wide open right after school, and then for hours after school, and then anything can happen in those hours. So I think just keeping the gates closed for after school hours,” Corcoran said.
As a dancer who goes to and from the locker room regularly, Claudia Frankfort, sophomore, has learned to be wary of entering the locker room during the hours after school, when campus security is not as heavily enforced. In response to the particular locker room incident, Frankfort believes that increased security measures would only benefit her fellow student athletes. “I feel like [admin are] more worried about which students they’re letting into school rather than adults,” Frankfort said. “I feel like if you look confident in where you’re going, the school or authority doesn’t really bat an eye unless you look suspicious.”
Despite talk about motions for increased security outside of locker rooms following the incident, both Frankfort and Corcoran have not observed any changes. “The only thing that my coaches are [enforcing] is having two people go to the locker room at a time. And that’s really the only thing that I’ve seen be in place,” Corcoran said.
Conclusion:
For many students, school is not only a place to learn, but also as a secure area where individuals can be placed in an environment where they are able to thrive and grow. These recent incidents have affected student wellbeing and feeling of comfort on campus. Administration has continued to take strides to ensure student safety in the light of the two recent events. “We have things called The Catapult System that is on the school district website. So anybody can post it, you can post it anonymously as well,” Lepire said. “We always recommend that if somebody feels unsafe, they can always call the sheriff’s department.” These services are in place to ensure that school can be a place where everyone feels secure. School safety continues to be a question and many students believe that more can be done to prevent further risks from occurring. Even with the efforts made by NPHS and CVUSD administration, school safety is not something that can be guaranteed, especially after school hours, when hundreds of students and families are on campus for varying after school activities.
Cameron Winick/Prowler
Taylor Griggs/Prowler
