Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, last weekend I had the pleasure of visiting Bridges Academy, a charter school in State Road, North Carolina. The school was celebrating the decision by the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction unanimously to renew its charter for an additional 10 years. Bridges Academy opened in 1997 as one of the first charter schools in North Carolina. Established by a local community group, it is overseen by a grassroots, local board of directors. It serves a rural population from surrounding systems in Alleghany, Surry, Wilkes, and Yadkin counties, and Elkin city. The mission of Bridges Academy is to provide all students with the opportunity to develop an academic foundation that empowers students to reach their full potential. It has focused on students that are struggling in the traditional school setting. The school is doing great work, especially in regard to serving students with disabilities who, on average, make up 45 percent of the student body. There is a teacher assistant in each class providing accommodations and modifications to all students. End-of-grade proficiency among the subgroup of students with disabilities is in the top 3 percent of the State. Bridges Academy is fairly unique for a charter school in that it provides transportation for students in three counties.…”