LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Parents are pleading with the public to apply for open school crossing guard jobs; this comes after Louisville Metro Police (LMPD) announced earlier this week that being short-staffed means some 30 schools won't be covered come next week.
"I fear that our children are at risk of not getting across that street safely. And that concerns me dearly," JCPS Parent Bobbi Jo Kingery said.
What You Need To Know
- LMPD says the department is short on school crossing guards, so much that 30 schools won't be covered next week
- Without a back-up plan, some parents are urging folks to go to work to fill the gap
- One parent, whose own mother is a crossing guard, is also concerned over how crossing guards' posts could be changed due to the shortage
Busy paths converge onto the Stuart Academy campus, creating what can be a hectic intersection.
"Imagine a kid crossing that intersection," Kingery comments, watching traffic. "That bus should have stopped on red."
Kingery's mother is usually the after-school crossing guard at the Valley Station Road campus entrance. However, Kingery fears the staffing shortage could mean her mother is assigned to another post. That's not the end of her worries, either.
"If they take our crossing guards away, then how are our children protected across that road? And that's what scares me the most," she remarked.
Kingery has some theory on why there aren't enough able-bodied staff to do the work: "during the pandemic you know people needed a job, and people went looking for a job." Now, she's urging people to apply for the open jobs, and for parents to be aware there's a chance their child's commute isn't covered.
The news of the shortage came to light earlier in the week in a public meeting. LMPD said officers won't be able to provide backup either, as patrols are also low on staff.
"I might only have 8 to 10 officers working in that division, so that is not possible. We would not be able to send an officer to every school. We do not have the staffing unfortunately. We have to have the officers on the streets responding to calls for service, so that is our big concern. It just comes down to staffing. We don't have bodies to do it," Lt. Col. Andy McClinton said in a Metro Council Public Safety Committee meeting Wednesday.
"To me it's unacceptable," Kingery said. "And we've got to find a way to protect our babies."
Spectrum News 1 reached out to LMPD for more details on any plans to work around this crossing guard shortage, but was told they don't have the personnel to accommodate an interview.