As Covid-19 spread across Ontario in 2020, extracurricular activities were also cutback at schools—including the CAA School Safety Patrol® program, which for more than 90 years has helped to keep children safe on their way to and from school.

But Lucienda Kohler, a Grade 3 teacher at W. Sherwood Fox Public School in London, Ont., thought the pandemic made the program more important than ever.

“It would be the only activity they can do,” Kohler says. “Some of the kids really thrive on extracurriculars. And, of course, the safety aspects are important, too.”

So, she worked with school administrators, police and students to create a socially distanced patrol program that would turn out to be the only fully active School Safety Patrol program in London during the pandemic. That dedication led CAA to name Kohler the 2021 School Safety Patrol Supervisor of the Year, an award that recognizes the exceptional teachers who administer the program at the school level.

Kohler was nominated by London Police Service Constable Chris Golder.

“Lucienda has gone above and beyond what any other patrol supervisor has done in the City of London,” Golder wrote on her nomination form. “She has worked hard to encourage school administration to allow the program and she has worked tirelessly in adapting to the constantly changing and unpredictable school schedule.”

Launched in 1929, the CAA School Safety Patrol program typically sees more than 20,000 student volunteers from 900 Ontario schools participating in the School Safety Patrol program. Students monitor school crossings and school buses, ensuring that their classmates are safe as they travel to and from school.

Kohler has been running the CAA School Safety Patrol at W. Sherwood Fox for five years. She’s looking forward to the seeing the program back at full strength in the fall and plans to continue educating students about the importance of road safety.

“I'll keep working with the program until I retire," she says.

Image credit: FatCamera/iStock

Learn more about the CAA School Safety Patrol program and how to ensure safer school zones for everyone.