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Fairfax County will stop assigning crossing guards to high schools this fall, a cost-cutting decision that has raised safety concerns and fueled an unusually personal clash among county leaders.
Guards will remain at Fairfax County’s three secondary schools, as well as its elementary and middle schools. Eliminating the high school assignments is expected to save nearly $2 million, according to initial budget documents.
The change is part of the fiscal 2027 budget adopted by the Board of Supervisors earlier this month. The new budget year begins July 1.
High school crossing guards were also debated during the previous budget cycle. Supervisors ultimately used one-time funding last spring to preserve the positions for another year.
The Fairfax County Police Department administers the crossing guard program through a contract with All City Management Services, which staffs 31 schools. As of mid-March, the program had 17 vacancies being covered by sworn police officers.
Police officials told supervisors that Fairfax is the only Northern Virginia jurisdiction providing traditional crossing guards at high schools. They also said no crashes had been recorded at high school crossings and that available crash and injury data did not indicate removing the guards would have a negative effect.
According to the department, pedestrian risks for teenagers are driven mainly by distractions away from supervised crosswalks, where crossing guards cannot intervene.
Prince William County’s police department also oversees crossing guards. A department spokesman said guards work at two high schools there, primarily to assist with traffic rather than perform traditional crossing duties. The county is likely to limit its program to elementary and middle schools soon, he said.
Dispute spills into private messages
The budget decision drew objections from some parents and School Board members.
In a newsletter earlier this month, School Board member Melanie Meren praised Supervisors Walter Alcorn and Rodney Lusk for opposing the county’s budget markups and trying to preserve high school crossing guards.
“So in the exact locations with the newest drivers, safety precautions are being removed!” Meren wrote.
The disagreement escalated in private messages that Meren later posted on social media. Board of Supervisors Chairman Jeff McKay criticized her newsletter comments and told her to apologize to County Executive Bryan Hill, who works on the county budget.
McKay then shared a screenshot of his messages in a group chat with Meren and Hill, writing, “What I sent the bimbo.”
When Meren asked whether he was referring to her, McKay answered yes and said she had angered others and that “it costs the schools.”
Meren said by email that she was shocked by the insult but more troubled by what she described as McKay’s belief that he had unilateral authority over public spending.
McKay apologized, acknowledging that he had used an inappropriate, disrespectful term. He said disagreements are legitimate subjects for discussion but that he should have expressed himself professionally.