LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — After 18-year-old McKenzie Scott was tragically hit and killed while walking in a crosswalk outside of Arbor View High School last week, parents and students are hoping to see changes to improve safety on the roads around the school.
WATCH | Parents and student demand change to improve road safety near schools
"My son walks out here, and it could've been him," Arbor View parent Chris Copeland told me on Tuesday. "We don't even live that far from here, so I tried to pick him up just to keep him safe."
Copeland said he doesn't want his son walking to and from school anymore in the wake of hearing the news of Scott's death last week and because of the way he sees people driving around the Arbor View campus.
I asked Copeland what he thinks needs to be done to improve safety around the school.
"At least crossing guards at the minimum," Copeland said. "If they can get the flashing lights [on the crosswalk] that'd be cool, and maybe another crosswalk would be good. A lot of kids don't want to walk all the way down here to cross, so they just cut across [Buffalo]."
Parents aren't the only ones who want to see change outside of Arbor View.
"I have had my own incidents — I walk here every day, I've been doing this for four years," Arbor View senior Lola Huntsman told Channel 13 on Monday. "There needs to be crossing guards, there needs to be traffic lights. It breaks my heart that a tragedy like this had to happen in order for us to really recognize that."
WATCH | How fellow Arbor View classmates and community members are remembering McKenzie Scott
A petition started in the wake of McKenzie's death on Friday calling for more crossing guards and traffic control outside of CCSD schools now has over 1,400 signatures.
The City of Las Vegas posted on social media that traffic engineers were out on Monday analyzing the area where Scott was killed, so Channel 13 reached out to the city to better understand what they were doing and how it might eventually improve safety around Arbor View.
In a statement to Channel 13, the city said it worked with Arbor View in 2024 following reports of dangerous driving and U-turns during peak drop off and pick up times.
Their solution at the time was to install roadway dividers along Whispering Sands Drive on the south side of the school, near its front office, which are still there to this day.
The city says they're searching through service requests, but so far they haven't found any requests to improve safety at the crosswalk on Buffalo, but added they will now be conducting a traffic study for the area, which does include flashing school zone lights.
As far as the possibility of assigning crossing guards to Arbor View, right now the City of Las Vegas only staffs crossing guards at elementary schools, but is evaluating whether to expand the program to middle and high schools.
Crossing guards have been placed at Cimarron-Memorial High School and Gibson Middle School since November as part of a pilot program. The city spokesperson told Channel 13 that community feedback has been mixed so far, but they'll continue monitoring the data through the end of the school year and use it to influence their decision making process going forward.
Full statement from the City of Las Vegas
In terms of roadway safety improvements, in 2024 the city did work with the school to install roadway dividers along Whispering Sands at the front of the school. At pick up and drop off times we were getting reports of U-tuns and other dangerous activities on that street while students were arriving or leaving the school.
Our team is searching through service requests, but so far, we do not show having received any requests for the crosswalk on Buffalo. The city will conduct a traffic study for the area. As we discussed, there are flashing school zone lights on Buffalo.
The city works closely with CCSD, CCSD Police and Metro Police to make our roadways safe for pedestrians, bicyclists and motorists. Roadways are a community safety issue and everyone in the community needs to be vigilant and make good decisions when using the streets.
Crossing Guards
Between November 2024 and running through May 2025, the city has crossing guards at Cimarron High School and Gibson Middle School as part of a pilot program. This initiative aims to explore the effectiveness of having crossing guards at secondary schools, beyond just elementary schools, which already have this service in place. The decision for this pilot was based on community input, the number of students crossing, student attendance, and feedback gathered through surveys. We will continue to collect survey responses and traffic data throughout the pilot to better understand the impact.
While the community feedback so far has been mixed, this program is providing valuable insights that will help guide future decisions on how to allocate resources efficiently. By monitoring traffic data and observing conditions at these locations, we aim to understand whether the pilot has improved safety or highlighted new areas of need. This ongoing review will ensure that our crossing guard program is responsive to community needs and aligned with available resources, with findings being considered when evaluating the program’s future in the annual budget process.
Full statement from the Clark County School District
The entire district mourns the loss of this student.
As you know, traffic safety is a community matter, and it will take the entire community to ensure safety to and from school each day. We continuously work with our municipal partners on traffic safety across the community and especially near our schools.
For now, parents and students are being extra cautious around Arbor View High School.
"You might want to slow down even more," Copeland said. "You never know when a kid is going to jump out in front of you, or one of these parents jumping out. It's nuts."
On Wednesday morning at 6:30 a.m., a group will be gathering for a "Justice for McKenzie Scott" rally at the Chipotle north of Arbor View High School, at the intersection of Grand Teton and Buffalo. Organizers say to bring signs and wear flannel — McKenzie's favorite — in a show of support and solidarity with her family.
