Anne Rodriguez was back directing traffic outside South Lakes High School on Tuesday, Sept. 1, hours after a car struck a 16-year-old student walking to school that morning.

Rodriguez, a Fairfax County crossing guard for 22 years, told Patch she was instructed to return to South Lakes and resume her duties that afternoon. As we reported Tuesday, the crash reignited debate over the county's decision to cut crossing guards at high schools this spring.

The Board of Supervisors approved a budget in May that eliminated crossing guards at high schools, cutting $1.89 million and 13 full-time positions from the Fairfax County Police Department, FFXnow reported. South Lakes was among the affected schools.

Rodriguez had continued reporting to nearby Langston Hughes Middle School after the cuts but could not perform her former duties at the high school.

"The kids will watch looking at me like, 'Hey, the crossing guard' … Like, I can't do it," Rodriguez told Patch.

Her reinstatement came after Supervisors Pat Herrity (R-Springfield) and Jimmy Bierman (D-Dranesville) asked County Executive Bryan Hill to immediately restore guards at schools where police have identified significant safety problems. Herrity called the move temporary while supervisors consider his proposal to restore guards at certain high schools.

The formal decision point is a public hearing on the 2026 Carryover Budget, scheduled for Sept. 15 at 10:30 a.m. Herrity said he plans to bring his proposal to the hearing. County Executive Hill told the Budget Policy Committee on Sept. 1 that restoring guards at all affected schools would cost roughly $900,000. About $400,000 may be earmarked as a placeholder in the carryover budget, according to FFXnow.

Fairfax County police said the Sept. 1 crash happened at 7:54 a.m. near the entrance from South Lakes Drive. The student sustained minor injuries and was taken to a hospital. The driver stayed at the scene and was charged with failure to stop before entering a highway, a citation that carries a $97 fine.

Police emphasized the student was not in a crosswalk and not at a location that had ever been assigned a crossing guard. Board of Supervisors Chairman Jeff McKay (D-At-Large) echoed that point in a statement, adding that the original 9-1 vote to eliminate the guards was based on a police safety assessment.

Hunter Mill District School Board Member Melanie Meren, who was outside South Lakes during Tuesday's dismissal, disputed that framing. She said a guard at the established crossing helps regulate traffic farther along the road by periodically stopping vehicles.

Reston parent David Michaelson, who said he had been showing up at South Lakes since the second day of school to draw attention to conditions, welcomed Rodriguez's return but wants the change to stick.

Fairfax County Public Schools said in a statement that the crash underscored the importance of crossing guards and that the district had asked the county to restore them at schools with the greatest safety concerns, including South Lakes, Northern Virginia Magazine reported.

It was not clear as of Tuesday afternoon whether guards had been reinstated at any other high school. The Sept. 15 hearing is the next scheduled opportunity for the Board of Supervisors to act.