LAS VEGAS — The Clark County Board of County Commissioners voted on Tuesday, October 20, to amend the county's crossing-guard services contract and add $715,557 a year so more guards can be hired for school zones across the Las Vegas valley, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported, in coverage carried by News In Las Vegas on October 20 and the Las Vegas Focal on October 22.

Source: Las Vegas Review-Journal via News In Las Vegas

The amendment raises what the county can spend on crossing-guard services to a ceiling of nearly $64 million under the contract, which began in July 2025 and runs through June 2028, with renewal options that could extend services into 2035. The county said the safety of children travelling to and from school is a top priority for the Board, and that the change is meant to ensure more guards can be hired when schools need additional personnel.

Why the county acted: 122 students struck this school year

Data compiled by the Clark County School District Police Department count 122 students struck by vehicles since the current school year began on August 10, and 432 children hit by vehicles in the previous school year, according to the Review-Journal reporting. Yaani: the county is adding roughly three-quarters of a million dollars every year — about $0.72 million — because more than a hundred schoolchildren have already been hit by vehicles in just over two months of classes.

Advocates welcomed the increase while warning that money alone will not staff every crossing. Krista Holloway, founder of the nonprofit Walk Safely LV, said parents have asked her for help with safety concerns in county school zones, and she hopes the added funding supports hiring and retaining guards and staffs more locations, the Focal reported. Holloway began volunteering after 18-year-old McKenzie Scott was killed while crossing North Buffalo Drive near Arbor View High School. She said the crossing tied to that loss still has one guard per day, while the location needs at least two because drivers sometimes pass while a guard is in the middle of the road.

Recruitment and retention are difficult, Holloway said, citing pay of about $17 an hour, limited work hours and the dangers guards face from drivers who continue to speed through crosswalks. She also called for more flashing pedestrian signals near schools. Specifics on how many new guards will be hired, where they will be placed and when they will start were still being sought from the county on Tuesday evening, the Laughlin Source reported.

Source: Las Vegas Focal