Equal Opportunity. Brighter Tomorrow.

METCO Works!

If you are interested in pursuing excellent educational opportunities as a part of the country’s oldest voluntary desegregation plan, learn how our program works and start your application. In METCO, your children will:

  • Get a great education

  • Make lifelong interracial friendships

  • Appreciate diversity and break down racial barriers and stereotypes

  • Learn together through shared experiences

  • Prepare to become global citizens

Apply to METCO

Why METCO?

From kindergarten through high school graduation, METCO students:

  • Take rigorous classes

    Honors and AP, world languages, electives

  • Join engaging extracurriculars

    Amazing sport facilities, arts, music, dance, international trips

  • Learn confidence and leadership

    Support and opportunities for Black and Latinx

  • Make lifelong friends with people of all backgrounds

    Make connections that enhance your child’s education and future

#WorthTheRide

Explore Partner Districts

Use our interactive map of our 33 partner school districts committed to encouraging diversity and inclusivity in education. As part of the application process, you may choose up to three preferred districts.

Explore Your Options

Start Your Child’s Application

Application Process Overview

1

Before You Apply

Admissions Policy

Review our admissions policy before applying to this voluntary integration program.

Parent Agreement

Review our parent agreement.

Special Education

If your student requires a 504 plan or IEP, please refer to the Special Education Technical Advisory from the Dept. of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE).

Explore Districts

Use our METCO Explore tool to research and learn more each of our partner districts. You may select up to three district preferences.

2

Applying

Eligibility Criteria for Students in Grades K2-10 to Participate in this Voluntary Integration Program

Students must be:

  • Students must be at least five years old on or before August 31 of the school year; AND
  • Students must be residents of Boston.

Gather Required Documents

Apply Now

Complete the online application from any device or in-person at METCO Headquarters in Roxbury.

3

After You Apply

Verification & Lottery

At the end of each window, everyone whose documents are complete and verified has an equal chance to be referred through a random lottery. If your lottery number comes up, your student will be referred to one of your preferred districts if there is space available in their grade.

Referral to a school district for consideration

METCO places students from racially segregated Boston neighborhoods into racially isolated suburban schools as described in the Racial Imbalance Act of 1965 and the METCO Bill of 1968.

Partner districts calculate the number of marginal seats available in each grade. Between January and October of 2024, each district requests applicants, and METCO Headquarters refers applicants who selected that district in order by lottery number.

Referred families can attend orientation and meet teachers and administrators, and may be asked to provide additional information. Districts will offer seats to some referred students, and keep others in reserve in the event of cancellation. Referral does not guarantee placement, so families should keep their options open.

Once accepted, students in the METCO program are fully enrolled in their new school, with the support of their METCO Director. They can also access special programming provided by METCO Headquarters in Boston and online throughout the year.

You are joining the oldest desegregation program in the country!

CLICK HERE TO APPLY FOR THIS RENOWNED INTEGRATION PROGRAM

Apply Now

CLICK HERE TO APPLY ONLINE
Background Element

METCO FAQs

Need help with the application? We’re here to help!

METCO’s purpose is school integration. Boston students will be among a relatively small number of students of color in a school with a predominantly white student body and faculty. The long commutes can be challenging for children and make being an engaged parent more demanding than it already would be. Read the METCO Parent Agreement for more information.

Yet, the advantages are also real: excellent resources and quality of teaching, skills in navigating a multicultural world, and lifelong friendships.

Make an informed decision about what is right for your child.

Yes.

METCO is only available to students who permanently reside in the City of Boston.

No.

You will not be asked any information about your income during the application process. METCO is designed to increase racial diversity in suburban schools, so a cross-section of socio-economic statuses is desirable.

Yes.

All Boston school-aged students are eligible to apply to the METCO program.

Only a parent or legal guardian may complete a METCO application for their child.

You may select up to three METCO partner districts and rank them in order of preference. Then, if your top preference requests a student in your child’s grade and your lottery number is up,  you will be referred to that district.

You may also choose not to rank your school preferences. In this case, you will be referred to the first METCO district that has space availability when your lottery number comes up.

Applications can be submitted online during our two application windows: July—November and December—May. No applications are accepted outside of these windows.

You only need proof of guardianship (e.g., a birth certificate) and three proofs of Boston residence. You no longer need to provide academic or attendance records to apply to METCO.

Download the list of required documents here.

Yes.

All school-aged students must apply every year in order to verify their eligibility.

First, all eligible applicants in each grade level who have complete and verified documents are assigned a random lottery number.

Then, beginning in January and continuing through September, each of the 33 METCO partner districts determines the available seats in each grade in the coming year.

As each district requests students in a given grade level, METCO Headquarters refers applicants from that grade who ranked that district as preferred, in order of their lottery number.

Districts may conduct an interview, request a teacher recommendation or discipline records, and/or require an orientation to the district before an offer of admission is made.

Referral to a district is not a guarantee that your student will be enrolled; you may be held on “stand-by” in case of a new slot opening up.

Students are referred to districts as space becomes available in each grade, in order of lottery or status number.

For the first time, families are able to select up to three METCO partner districts and rank them in order of preference. Then, if your top preference requests a student in your child’s grade and your lottery number is up,  you will be referred to that district.

You may also choose not to rank your school preferences. In this case, you will be referred to the first METCO district that has space availability when your lottery number comes up.

Yes, if the guardian indicates that preference, and if space is available in the district in the sibling’s grade.

Siblings are not guaranteed a place in METCO.

Districts enroll students at any time between January and October 1 before school starts. You should move forward with other school plans until enrollment in a METCO district is confirmed.

Yes, but only to limited bus stops in Boston (primarily Mattapan, Dorchester, and Roxbury).

Each district arranges its own bus route, and families are responsible for bringing students to a bus stop and picking them up when they return.

No.

Each student can be referred to a maximum of one district per school year.

No.

METCO does not transfer students between districts once they are enrolled.

For enrolled students to be considered for admissions in any other town, the enrolled student must completely withdraw from the METCO program by unenrolling from the current METCO partner school district, and then apply during the next application cycle.

If the student is no longer a resident of Boston at any point during their schooling, they are no longer eligible to participate in METCO and must withdraw from the school. They can enroll in a school in the district where they live.

Boston School Finder is a non-profit organization helping families find and enroll their child in a great-fit school, no matter what type of school it might be. Translated into eight languages, Boston School Finder’s website, online School Finder tool, and comprehensive resource library guides families to make their own school registration and enrollment plans.

Learn more at their website to get started at bostonschoolfinder.org.

Site Map