Sara Kulumani will lead Ventura County's expanding network of Family Justice Centers, including a new location planned for the California Lutheran University campus in Thousand Oaks.

District Attorney Erik Nasarenko announced Kulumani's appointment on Oct. 28 in a press release from the Ventura County District Attorney's Office. Chief Assistant Lisa Lyytikainen administered the oath of office.

Kulumani will oversee the Judge Colleen Toy White Family Justice Center in Ventura. She will also lead two centers under development: the Carmen Ramirez Family Justice Center in Oxnard and the East County Family Justice Center at Cal Lutheran. She will oversee Safe Harbor, the county's 24-hour sexual assault response centers.

The appointment comes as the county grows its family justice center system from one to three locations. The Ventura center opened in 2019, and the Board of Supervisors approved a second center in Oxnard in 2023, according to The Acorn.

East County center at Cal Lutheran

The East County center will occupy a 3,109-square-foot house at 26 Faculty St. on the Cal Lutheran campus. The Board of Supervisors voted 5-0 on Aug. 4 to enter a lease agreement with the university and spend $1.2 million to convert the building, The Acorn reported.

Monthly rent will be $3,700 for 60 months, with a 3% annual increase and an option to extend for five more years, according to The Acorn.

Thousand Oaks and Simi Valley both competed to host the center. Thousand Oaks pledged $2 million toward the project. Nasarenko said financial pledges were not the only factor. Thousand Oaks recorded 2,859 law enforcement calls related to domestic violence in 2024, compared with 2,081 in Simi Valley, Nasarenko said, according to The Acorn.

An opening date has not been announced. The Cal Lutheran announcement said the timeline depends on completion of refurbishment work at the site.

Kulumani's background

Kulumani most recently served as an executive leader within the California Department of Human Resources in Sacramento, according to the District Attorney's Office. Before that, she was director of special programs for the Commonwealth's Attorney's Office in Alexandria, Virginia. In that role, she created and led a division handling victim services, community-based initiatives and rehabilitative programs. She also served as a frontline victim advocate.

Kulumani began her career as a logistics officer in the U.S. Army's 101st Airborne Division, supporting combat missions. She holds a bachelor's degree in psychology from the University of Illinois, an MBA from Norwich University and completed the Executive Leadership Program at UC Berkeley's Haas School of Business.

What the centers offer

The Family Justice Centers, operated by the District Attorney's Office, bring law enforcement, prosecutors, victim advocates and community partners under one roof. They serve victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, child abuse, elder and dependent adult abuse, human trafficking and hate crimes. All services are free and available as drop-in, whether or not a crime has been reported to law enforcement, according to the center's website.

Residents seeking services can visit fjc.venturacounty.gov or contact the Ventura County Family Justice Center directly.