Mo. board rejects school transportation hardship

The state Board of Education has denied a school district transfer for a southwest Missouri family in a case that some officials claimed could have encouraged parents statewide to try to switch districts.

State Education Commissioner Chris Nicastro had said a kindergarten pupil should be shifted from the Blue Eye to the Shell Knob district because of a transportation hardship. Nicastro said Table Rock Lake posed a natural barrier resulting in a long bus ride that was a hardship.

The board on Wednesday overturned the commissioner's decision, noting that many students face 40-minute bus rides. The board's action means the family will have to continue paying tuition to attend a Shell Knob school, which is a shorter drive.