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School crossing guards in South San Francisco.
Crossing guards for South San Francisco schools, posted at the crosswalk for morning drop-off and afternoon pickup, and back again on game and concert nights.
Two short windows, every school day
Drop-off and pickup are the two most crowded stretches of a school day. Parents double-park, kids roll up on scooters, siblings cut between cars, and commuters who just want the freeway ramp get stuck behind all of it. Ten minutes later the street is quiet again.
A crossing guard owns those windows. The guard is on the corner before the first car pulls in, wearing a high-visibility vest and carrying a stop paddle, and stays until the last student has crossed. Drivers learn the routine fast: one person in charge of the crosswalk, every morning and every afternoon.
Our crossing guards are unarmed and background-checked, and each one is briefed on your campus before the first bell. The job is steady attention and a clear signal, not a show of force.
When a school brings in a crossing guard
The need usually shows up as a change. A parent-volunteer rotation stops filling its slots. Enrollment grows and the car line backs up into the street. A new campus opens on a busier block. A construction detour moves the safest crossing to a different corner. A staff member who used to hold the crosswalk is now needed inside.
Private and charter schools, preschools, day-care centers and after-school programs all run into the same moment: the curb is getting busier and somebody has to be out there on time, every day, without pulling a teacher off the schedule. A dedicated guard takes that off the staff list.
Working to your school’s own plan
Your school already has a drop-off plan: which gate opens first, where the car line forms, which curb is for loading and which corner families should use. The guard works inside that plan. Teachers and aides on the curb stay in charge of the students; the guard is in charge of the crossing.
It starts with a free walkthrough at drop-off time, so we see the real traffic instead of an empty street. From there we write post orders: the corners, start and end times, where the cones go, who to call if a parent is late or a child is upset, and what changes on rainy days, minimum days and early dismissal.
Supervisors do quality inspections at the corner, checking that the guard is where the post orders say, on time and visible. If your plan changes mid-year, send it over and the post orders change with it.
Game nights, concerts and graduations
Evening events bring a different crossing problem. It is darker, the cars are coming from every direction at once, and families are walking in from overflow parking several blocks away. Back-to-school nights, games, concerts, open houses and graduations all deserve the same crossing coverage as a normal morning.
A guard can be booked for just those nights, and for a big event the crossing post pairs well with event security at the gate and in the lot. For a single week, such as a summer program or a campus move, temporary security guards can often start within 24 hours.
What the guard watches and reports
A crossing guard sees the street the same way every day, which makes changes easy to spot. On every shift the guard keeps an eye on:
Drivers rolling through the crosswalk or stopping on it. Children darting out between parked cars. Blocked curbs and cars idling in the bus or loading zone. An adult lingering near the gate who does not seem to belong to anyone.
Anything that matters goes to the school office right away, and into the timed shift log. Your team gets a daily report by email, and an incident report with photos when something happens worth writing down. If the crossing keeps having the same problem, the reports give you what you need to raise it with the right people.
Part of the wider campus plan
Crossing coverage is often one piece of a bigger picture. Our school and campus security page covers the officer at the front office, visitor check-in and after-hours rounds. Between school days, mobile patrol can check the doors, fences and lot overnight and on weekends.
We post crossing guards across South San Francisco, from Westborough, Rancho Buri Buri and Winston Manor in the hills to the blocks around downtown Grand Avenue.
What a crossing post costs
A crossing guard is billed as on-site guard time, at $36 to $50 an hour depending on the number of corners, the hours and the season. Plan on two short windows on each school day, plus any evening events you add.
After the walkthrough you get a written quote that shows each window and each corner. Coverage runs month to month, so it can follow the school year. We are insured, bonded and carry workers’ compensation, and your office gets a certificate of insurance for its file. The unarmed security guards page explains how our officers are staffed and supervised.
A few useful answers
Common questions
Can the same guard handle our mornings and afternoons?
Yes. Your schedule can pair a morning window and an afternoon window on the same school days, both written into one set of post orders for one guard.
Who decides where the crossing guard stands?
Your school does. The walkthrough maps the corners and gates in your drop-off plan, and the post orders follow it exactly.
Can we add a guard for a game or graduation night?
Yes. Event crossings are booked for the nights you name, and the guard stays until the crosswalk and the lot have cleared.
What happens on minimum days and early dismissal?
Send us your bell calendar. The guard’s start time moves with it, and one-off changes are confirmed by email.
How do you screen the guards at our crosswalk?
Every guard is background-checked before assignment and holds a BSIS guard card, and a supervisor checks the post during the term.