A bi-partisan bill would make it easier for charter schools in North Carolina to get disadvantaged students to class.House Bill 644 would establish a grant program to funnel state transportation funds to charter schools where at least half the students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch programs.
Marcus Brandon is executive director of the educational nonprofit CarolinaCAN and a former state legislator.
"You can have the greatest school in the entire world, but if you cannot access them it means nothing," Brandon said.
The bill would allot $2.5 million in recurring funds for the grant program. The grants would cover 65 percent of a selected school's transportation costs.
In North Carolina, charter schools are currently not required to provide bus service to students.