Columbia County commissioners approved a pay raise for school crossing guards

Columbia County commissioners approved a pay raise for school crossing guards

For the past 15 years, longtime school crossing guard Nathalie Krenz has arrived, rain or shine, to her post near Blue Ridge Elementary School, where she helps students safely cross Blue Ridge Drive in addition to performing traffic duty, twice a day.

Krenz is currently one of 12 crossing guards with the sheriff’s Road Patrol Division, who works for $10 an hour in highly trafficked school zones across Columbia County.

Come August, five new crossing guards will join the ranks with Krenz, and all will get a pay increase to $15.20.

The change comes after the Columbia County board of commissioners OK’d a request from the sheriff’s office to add the positions. And due to the department’s difficulty in finding qualified applicants to fill the positions, commissioners also approved a pay increase to $15.20 an hour.

“Once we implemented these new positions, of course that’s going to be tough trying to fill them, so we felt that we definitely needed a pay increase for this position,” said Columbia County sheriff’s Capt. Andy Shedd. “These new positions are very important and helpful to the sheriff’s office.”

Shedd said that the crossing guards fulfill safety roles near school zones, freeing up deputies to respond to other calls.

“A lot of times you will see a deputy directing traffic in a school zone. We are trying to free those deputies up because we have so many calls for service,” Shedd said. “We have thefts and burglaries and accidents with all the construction we have in Columbia County, and we need these deputies actually handling calls for service.”

The increase will go into effect July 1, according to Shedd, and Krenz said the increase is a show of appreciation for the work they do.

“That’s what it’s always been for me, is spending money, and I spend it on the kids,” Krenz said. “On hot days I’ll bring Popsicles. Usually if they see the trunk of my car open, they know there’s something back there for them. For other people, now, $150 a week, that’s definitely better than $100.”

Krenz said being a crossing guard has been truly enjoyable. Krenz said that the job does come with some risks in dealing with traffic; however, Krenz said she goes the extra mile and puts up signs on the side of her vehicle warning people to slow down. Blinking caution lights that are activated by the push of a button have also been installed near Krenz’s post.

“Some people don’t pay attention at all and it can be dangerous,” Krenz said. “But I kind of have no fear. Like I said, I’ll step in front of a car and almost kind of scare them a little bit, and they’ll hit the brakes.”

After a battle with breast cancer this year, Krenz said she was forced to miss the last day of school for the first time in her 15 years as a crossing guard.

“I hated not being there the last day, because I always have a little something for the ones graduating, but they come visit me,” Krenz said.

While she is recovering this summer from several procedures, Krenz said that she plans to continue to be a crossing guard at what she calls her spot.

“I get used to these kids and they’re in fifth grade now. Then meanwhile you’ve got this third-grader that’s coming up and you’ve been used to him, too, so you’re going to wait until he’s done because he doesn’t want me to leave, and then there’s always one. … So it’s kind of like I’m stuck there; I’ll never be able to leave,” Krenz joked.

Her advice to others interested in becoming a crossing guard is to keep it about the kids.

“I guess if you really love kids, that’s a fun thing to do. You just kind of have to ignore the drivers or you’ll be throwing tennis balls at their cars,” Krenz said.

Shedd said that some of the five positions are still available. Interested applicants can email their résumés to [email protected].