Fairfax County supervisors will decide Tuesday, Sept. 15 whether to permanently fund crossing guards at McLean High School and nine other high schools where guards were cut in May.

The debate over the funding sharpened after a 16-year-old South Lakes High School student was struck by a car while walking to school on Sept. 2. The teen suffered minor injuries and was taken to a hospital by ambulance, the Fairfax County Times reported. Fairfax County police responded at 7:52 a.m. The driver remained on scene and was charged with failing to stop before entering a highway, a citation carrying a $97 fine.

The student was not in a crosswalk at the time, and the crash occurred at a spot where a guard had not previously been stationed, according to FFXnow.

The Board of Supervisors approved a fiscal year 2027 budget in May that cut $1.89 million and 13 full-time crossing guard positions from the police department's budget. The 9-1 vote eliminated guards at 10 high schools, including McLean.

The Fairfax County Police Department announced Sept. 3 that guards would temporarily return to the 10 schools, covering 11 crossing locations, FFXnow reported. McLean High School was among them. A Dranesville District School Board newsletter sent Sept. 3 confirmed a guard was on duty at McLean.

Dranesville District Supervisor Jimmy Bierman and Springfield District Supervisor Pat Herrity asked County Executive Bryan Hill to immediately reinstate guards at schools where police had identified significant problems, according to Reston Patch.

The bigger question is money.

At the Board's Budget Policy Committee meeting on Sept. 2, Hill said restoring guards at all affected crossings would cost about $900,000. The current carryover budget package includes only a $400,000 placeholder, added at Herrity's request, for a more limited restoration.

In a letter to Hill obtained by the Fairfax County Times, Fairfax County Public Schools Superintendent Michelle Reid said officials should not have to choose between crossing guards and longer-term safety improvements. Reid's letter also noted that FCPS applied the week of Sept. 2 for 10 additional speed camera locations. The school system has 107 school zones, 20 of which have cameras.

Hiring has been a challenge. Deputy County Executive Tom Arnold told supervisors at the Sept. 2 meeting that the county received 235 applications for crossing guard positions over the past two years and hired only 10. The positions start at just over $36,000 a year and may not include benefits depending on hours worked.

Board Chairman Jeff McKay said at the meeting that the issue is broader than schools. "This is not a police problem. This is not a county problem," McKay said, according to FFXnow. He added that pedestrian accidents happen across the county and are often caused by inattention from pedestrians or drivers.

McKay also noted that Fairfax County had been the only jurisdiction in Northern Virginia providing crossing guards at high schools and said the original cut was based on a data-driven police assessment. The board has committed $100 million over six years to walking and biking infrastructure, with more than $80 million already allocated, according to McLean Patch.

The police department is expected to deliver a final assessment and recommendations for future crossing guard coverage before the Sept. 15 vote. The public hearing on the FY 2026 Carryover Budget begins at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, Sept. 15. Residents can testify in person, by phone, by pre-recorded video or by email to [email protected].