After growing up in the Verde Valley and starting her law enforcement career three and a half years ago — as of Dec. 2 — Clarkdale Police Department Officer Jakii Montijo, 29, has been assigned as a school resource officer at Clarkdale-Jerome School.
SRO Derek Johnston has returned to patrol as a night patrol supervisor.
“Derek is a lead officer and we were looking to get him back onto the streets but we didn’t want to do it until we were sure we had somebody the same quality as him going to the school,” CPD Chief Randy Taylor said. He added that Montijo spent a year working at Synergy Public School in Phoenix through a state grant while continuing to work for CPD.
“She wasn’t just a presence in the school, she became a major part of the school,” Taylor said. “They could have had anybody in there off duty from Phoenix to Tucson to Flagstaff work during that school, and they demanded that be Jakii. So we realized that we had a diamond in Jakii, and she fits in school really well.”
“I’m excited and happy to be there at Clarkdale-Jerome school. [People] can look forward to some minor changes coming,” Montijo said.
Montijo said that she joined law enforcement for the same reasons as many — to help people — and that she imagines being the SRO at her daughter’s school will be the proudest moment of her career, adding that her other daughter motives her.
“I think the students [seeing] someone in uniform publicly, or someone that they can talk to, and that is able to relate to them, and something that they can connect to is very beneficial for the kids,” Montijo said. “My main priority at the school is just trying to keep the kids out of trouble and seeing where they need that guidance, connecting with everyone and hopefully preventing any ongoing issues.”
Montijo said that she has been discussing how to improve traffic flow during drop-off and pick-up times with Superintendent Matt Schumacher.
“She’s very humble, but yet loving officer. From my perspective, and I think she will agree, not only does she she communicate well and and handle the youth well because of her charisma and her empathy, but she also is extremely caring,” Taylor said. “When she says she got into it to help people, she did, but she really cares about what she does.”
“Being in the gym is my hobby,” Montijo said. She previously worked at a boxing and kickboxing gym and organized a six-week kickboxing program for the Clarkdale community.
“She helped coach softball a couple years ago, and we recognized at that time that she has a great connection with the younger population,” Taylor said. “Even though she went through the process to select the process, as well [as] Superintendent Schumacher we knew that [Montijo] was perfect for
the job.”
Montijo will be training at a SRO training school in Corona, Calif., this summer. She said that “being able to go to work every day with my daughter” would be the most rewarding part of the job for her.
