HOW METCO IS FUNDED
The vast majority of funding for the METCO program comes from all of us who live in Massachusetts. Massachusetts itself provides the resources to desegregate schools that are "racially imbalanced," according to state law. These go primarily to pay for transportation of the students, and to district staff with administrative, educational, and cultural expertise to ensure the program's success.
STATE LAW
The Racial Imbalance Act of 1965 provided a legal basis for students of color to enroll in schools outside of their own district to remedy segregation.
ALLOCATION
The Massachusetts State Assembly enforces the Racial Imbalance Act with a budget line item, negotiated every year.
DISTRIBUTION
The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education handles the distribution of these funds to participating districts, in proportion of the number of Boston students each has the capacity to enroll. A portion also funds METCO, Inc., an independent non-profit that administers the program across the Boston area.