[nradov]

False. Charter schools are public schools and often served by school bus routes or other public transit. Walking or cycling can also be options for some students.

The real differentiating factor isn't wealth but simply giving a shit about your children. Parents have to take some minimal effort to enroll their children in a charter school and many simply don't bother.

[mrgoldenbrown]

IME the differentiator is the fact that in most states charters have some way of filtering out the least profitable kids is a huge advantage for them, and concentrates the most expensive kids in the public schools.

[organsnyder]

It's not just giving a shit: it's also the capacity to act on giving a shit. I'm exhausted at the end of the day after getting the kids to bed, and I'm fortunate to be in a stable marriage, live in a large home that my wife and I own, and work a well-paying WFH job. I can only imagine how tiring it must be to not have those advantages.

There are the parents doing heroics that I can hardly imagine, and they should be celebrated. But we need to design a system that provides a sufficient level of support for those families that only have an average level of capacity.

[rayiner]

> I can only imagine how tiring it must be to not have those advantages

Yes, you can only “imagine” what it’s like for people who are less comfortable than you. But that cuts both ways. It could be that you’re also “imagining” the barriers you think exist to people accessing charter schools. In particular, I suspect you’re incorrectly assuming that people work as much as you do, just for less money.

[organsnyder]

Actually, I can more than imagine it. I have friends that are in those situations, and help out when I can.

[GoblinSlayer]

How difficult is it?

1. give a shit

2. enroll

3. ???

4. PROFIT!

[borski]

Have you ever lived below the poverty line? In order to enroll, you’d have to know about it and manage logistics.

Working 14 hours a day so you can clothe and feed your kid doesn’t leave much time for that.

That doesn’t mean you don’t give a shit.

[organsnyder]

There are so many pieces of that step 3 in trying to navigate a school system that isn't accustomed to working with lower-income students.