HENDERSON (KTNV) — The City of Henderson unanimously approved funding for middle school crossing guards during a city council meeting Tuesday afternoon.
"I think it's a good idea," parent Tony Cessna said.
Cessna has two young boys who go to school in Henderson and he knows firsthand the dangers students face as they walk to and from school every day.
“It seems that just about every road, everyone drives at a high rate of speed," Cessna said.
Cessna said he has even seen a few close calls while dropping his kids off at school.
“Kids, you know, you can tell them to look both ways, but they get distracted," he added.
But come next school year, parents like Cessna could have some peace of mind.
The Henderson City Council unanimously approved adding crossing guards to all middle schools in the city on Tuesday.
Mayor Michelle Romero said public safety is a top priority for the city.
“We want to make sure that we are adequately covering them to make sure that they are safely going to and from school … that they are aware of the dangers of crossing and that they are paying attention," Romero said.
According to the Clark County School District Police Department, nearly 140 students were struck by vehicles last school year.
District police said some of the top reasons for the incidents were speed and distracted driving.
Erin Breen, the director of the Road Equity Alliance Project at UNLV, said the majority of those incidents involved middle school-aged kids.
“Very often, what you are seeing is the parent of the child who goes to the middle school that’s hitting other students ... It seems that they get far more distracted when their children leave the car. So with crossing guards, you are going to have someone standing in those crosswalks with a big stop sign that reminds people, ‘Hey, you have to stop,'" Breen said.
This comes nearly five months after Clark County commissioners approved adding crossing guards to middle schools.
The county says 84 crossing guards will be deployed to 23 middle schools around CCSD.
And just last month, Henderson approved adding crossing guards to elementary schools.
Cessna said adding crossing guards will make him feel more comfortable letting his kids walk to school once they go to middle school.
“It's good to have somebody there watching," Cessna said.
CCSDPD will also be partnering with Metro to help increase patrolling around schools during the next school year.
