Oakton High School is one of nine Fairfax County high schools that lost their crossing guards this fall. On Tuesday, Sept. 1, the first day of classes, a car struck a 16-year-old student near South Lakes High School in Reston.

The crash happened around 7:54 a.m. near the school entrance on South Lakes Drive, FFXnow reported. The Fairfax County Police Department said the teen was taken to a hospital with minor injuries and that the driver stayed at the scene. Social media posts from witnesses described the collision sending the student into the air.

Police said the student was not in a crosswalk. The crash occurred near doors three and four, not a spot where a guard had previously been stationed.

The driver was charged with failing to stop before entering a highway, a citation that carries a $97 fine. Officers continued to investigate.

Budget cuts hit nine schools

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors approved a fiscal year 2027 budget in May that cut $1.89 million from the police department and eliminated 13 full-time crossing guard positions at nine high schools: Annandale, Centreville, Chantilly, Edison, Oakton, South County, South Lakes, West Potomac and West Springfield.

Crossing guards remain at elementary and middle schools, where private contractors now fill vacancies in place of uniformed officers.

Supervisors debate restoring funds

Hours after the crash, supervisors took up the issue at a Budget Policy Committee meeting. Several pushed to restore guards at schools with the worst traffic problems, naming Edison, South Lakes, West Springfield, Centreville and West Potomac.

County Executive Bryan Hill told the committee the full cost to restore guards at all school crossings would be about $900,000. He also described a severe hiring problem: of 235 applicants over the past two years, the county hired 10. The positions start at just over $36,000 a year.

"I think saying it was a choice between co-responders and this was a false choice," Springfield District Supervisor Pat Herrity said at the meeting. "We could have cut something else in the budget."

Board of Supervisors Chairman Jeff McKay pointed to the fact that the teen was outside a crosswalk and the driver was cited. He called pedestrian crashes a broader problem of "people, drivers, and pedestrians understanding what they're supposed to do and not supposed to do."

Legislators demand action

State Sen. Stella Pekarsky (D-36) and Del. Laura Jane Cohen (D-15), both former Fairfax County school board members, released a joint letter Sept. 1 urging supervisors to reinstate crossing guard funding, warning of worse consequences if the board does not act.

Hunter Mill District School Board member Melanie Meren, who told WJLA she observed "chaotic and dangerous" traffic at South Lakes on the first day of school, posted video of the teen sitting at the curb after the crash. She said school staff had to step in to direct traffic.

WTOP reporter Mike Murillo said on X that a crossing guard appeared to be back at South Lakes later that morning. No official county statement confirmed the return.

The Board of Supervisors is scheduled to consider allocating $400,000 in carryover funds for crossing guard solutions at its Sept. 15 meeting. Residents can report traffic safety concerns to the Fairfax County Police non-emergency line at 703-691-2131.