Smart Start
Smart Start is a licensed child care center in Santa Monica, CA, licensed for up to 68 children and serving preschool-age children. It has held its California license since 2000. Since February 2021, state licensing staff have inspected it 2 times and investigated 1 complaint, 0 of them substantiated. The state issued 2 citations, 0 of them Type A (the most serious). None came in the last 12 months. Measured by weighted citations per inspection, it is tied for #22 of 37 centers in Santa Monica and better than 32% of licensed centers statewide.
Inspection record
Every state visit
What inspectors cited most
Citations, newest first
Based on LPA Clayton staff file review the licensee did not comply with the section cited above in which poses a potential health, safety or personal rights risk to persons in care.
Based on LPA Clayton's record review of the staff files, the licensee did not comply with the section cited above which poses a potential health, safety or personal rights risk to persons in care.
Complaint investigations
About this center
Common questions
Does Smart Start take infants?
Not under this license, which covers preschool-age children.
Has Smart Start had any serious violations?
No Type A citations since 2021. It has 2 Type B citations, listed above.
Have there been complaints about Smart Start?
California investigated 1 complaint since 2021 and substantiated 0. Allegations are shown only for substantiated complaints.
How does Smart Start compare with other daycares in Santa Monica?
It is tied for #22 of 37 centers in Santa Monica by weighted citations per inspection, and is better than 32% of licensed centers statewide (out of 10,948 California centers with enough inspection history).
When was Smart Start last inspected?
Jul 15, 2025. The state issued at least one citation during that visit.
How much does Smart Start cost?
California does not publish individual centers’ prices, so ask Smart Start for its current tuition. For comparison, the median full-time price at licensed centers in Los Angeles County, which includes Santa Monica, was $1,087 a month for preschoolers (about $1,370 today) in the state’s 2021 Regional Market Rate Survey.
Who runs Smart Start?
The licensee is Early Start Preschools INC., and the administrator listed with the state is Sharon Lowery.
Licensed centers nearby
1343 Ocean Park Boulevard, Santa Monica · ZIP 90405 away · 97 spotsNo citationsFirst School, Ocean Park, The
1733 Ocean Park Blvd., Santa Monica · ZIP 90405 away · 63 spotsMore citations than mostJohn Adams Child Development Center
2320 17th Street, Santa Monica · ZIP 90405 away · 65 spotsToo few inspections to compareGrowing Place - Marine Park Children's Center, The
1406 Marine Street, Santa Monica · ZIP 90405 away · 12 spotsToo few inspections to compareGrowing Place - Marine Park Children's Center, The
1406 Marine Street, Santa Monica · ZIP 90405 away · 39 spotsToo few inspections to compareFirst School, The
731 Pine Street, Santa Monica · ZIP 90405 away · 44 spotsNo citations
Citations are quoted from California Department of Social Services inspection and complaint reports. Type A citations are the state’s most serious category (an immediate risk to children’s health, safety or personal rights); Type B citations are a potential risk. A citation is a finding about one rule, not a judgment about a center overall. Complaint allegations appear here only when the state substantiated them.
To read the full state reports, search facility number 197407560 on the California Care Facility Search. Data refreshed Oct 2, 2026.