 When Steve Rohrer and Robert
Kidd of the District 27 board met with aldermen on Nov. 15, Kidd
asked the mayor to put his proposal for a solution in writing and
have it to the board for their meeting the next day. Snyder's
original proposal included the dividing of the crossing guards into
two groups, those working adjacent to school property and those
working in outlying areas. However, during the Tuesday night
meeting, Rohrer continued to assert such a division would not be
acceptable to his board. Therefore, Snyder amended his written
proposal, making it less about geography and more about sharing
responsibility.
In the new proposal, which District 27 has approved, the two
parties will pool their cash resources into one account, to be
administered by the city. The guards will once again be employees of
the city. The city, through the police department, will manage the
payroll for the guards, do the hiring and offer training. District
27 will be responsible for daily staffing issues.
Snyder said the city has a budget of $15,000 for the guards, and
District 27 will add another $7,000, to make a total annual budget
of $22,000.
Snyder said the funding was enough for only six crossing guards.
He said the District 27 board has committed to forming an ad hoc
committee to look at the crossing guard program and determine what
the true needs of the community are. He also indicated the city
would have representatives on that committee.
At the end of his commentary, Alderwoman Marty Neitzel said she
was glad to see the problem resolved as she had hated the arguing
that had gone on over the issue.
Alderwoman Joni Tibbs also noted she had seen quite clearly the
dedication of the guards to the children they serve. She said the
guards took their duties very seriously, so much so that even when
they were not covered, they showed up anyway to see to the safety of
the kids.
Below is a copy of the letter Snyder presented to the District 27
Board of Education.
(Copy)
November 16, 2011
To the District 27
Board of Education:
The City of Lincoln
would propose the following solution to the crossing guard situation
I had initially
proposed that the City accept financial and administrative
responsibility for any crossing positions located away from the
District 27 school grounds and that District 27 assume financial and
administrative responsibility for all school crossing positions
located at the corners of District 27 school grounds. At our City
Council meeting last night Mr. Rohrer informed us that the Board of
Education had rejected that proposal. He suggested the Board was
unlikely to reconsider that position.
In light of Mr.
Rohrer's comments and the discussion at last night's City Council
meeting, the City would propose this alternative:
The City of Lincoln
and District 27 would create a pool of money (administered by the
City) out of which to pay crossing guards. The City would contribute
$15,000 (the amount constituting the current proceeds from the $0.02
property tax levied for school crossing guards) towards the pool,
and District 27 would contribute an amount you so determine. We
believe the district has already mentioned an interest in
contributing approximately $7,000. If that would be the determined
amount, the pot for crossing guard salaries would hold roughly
$22,000 annually. At a weekly cost of $102.20 ($19/day for salary
and $1.44/day for FICA), that $22,000 would fund somewhere between
five to six guards for an entire school year (assuming a 36 week
school year).
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The location of the
crossing guard positions would be determined by District 27 based on
your needs and the pedestrian and vehicular traffic at various
crossings and around each of your schools. Whereas the previous
assignments had three school crossing guards at the corners of
school grounds and five crossing guards away from school grounds,
perhaps data and experience may suggest different locations that
pose greater risks to students; perhaps the greatest needs are all
at the corners of school grounds. The City would stand ready to
assist District 27 with any information we would have available
(e.g., traffic counts, accident counts, etc.) that could assist in
making a determination of appropriate positions.
The City of Lincoln
would assume responsibility for placing the crossing guards on the
City's payroll, conducting background checks for any individuals who
may be crossing guards ("regular" crossing guards as well as
substitutes), and providing annual training for all crossing guards.
The crossing guards would turn timesheets into the Clerk's office as
they work (as they have done previously) and would be paid out of
the pool of available funds.
District 27 would
be responsible for ensuring that each crossing position is
appropriately staffed each day. There could be a variety of means to
do that. For example, the regular crossing guards could be
instructed to secure their own substitute off of a list of approved
substitutes in the event they were unable to work a particular
shift. If a substitute could not be secured off of the list, that
crossing guard would only then call a District 27-designated contact
within a school or the administrative office to inform them of the
vacancy. At that point, then, the District would do what it could to
fill that vacancy. The District and the City both recognize that
there could be some situations where a crossing is left unguarded
for a shift due to time constraints and/or limited personnel.
The Police
Department is no longer able to monitor crossing staffing on a daily
basis and pull officers off of the street to man school crossings.
The Department employs a Chief, a Deputy Chief, an administrative
assistant, and 23 officers. During some shifts there are only three
officers on duty and on patrol. During times of tight budgets and
limited personnel, the focus and energies of the Police Department
are best directed towards fighting, investigating, and solving
crimes.
This proposal
shares the cost of the program, shares the administrative
responsibility of the program, and seems to divide responsibilities
according to the strengths and skills of each organization.
Thank you for your
consideration of this proposal. We would suggest that we move with
some dispatch towards a fair and equitable solution.
[By NILA SMITH, with text of letter from Mayor
Keith Snyder]
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