Grants and Other Financial Assistance Programs

FY2027: METCO

Fund Code: 0317

Purpose:

The purpose of the state-funded METCO Program is to expand educational opportunities by fostering the opportunity for children from Boston and Springfield to attend public schools in neighboring communities for students to develop a deeper understanding of one another in an integrated public school setting. The METCO program provides students of participating school districts the opportunity to experience the advantages of learning and working in a racially, ethnically, and linguistically diverse setting.

Priorities:

The priorities of this fund source are to provide Boston and Springfield students further opportunities to achieve at high levels the learning standards of the state curriculum frameworks and enrich both the urban and suburban communities by providing opportunities and support for cross-cultural understanding and appreciation.

Applicants for this grant opportunity should be deliberate and intentional in the use of grant funds to support the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) standards and priorities. Specifically, this program may include, but not be limited to, the following priorities:

  1. Academic & mental health supports for METCO students, including:
    1. 1.1. Regular day and after-school tutoring and mentoring programs
    2. 1.2. Initiatives that bridge opportunity gaps between and within METCO program students and in-district resident students
    3. 1.3. Other programs and services that support family engagement and community engagement events
  2. Hiring needs and professional development for METCO community members (all school and district-based staff and students), designed to support racial integration efforts, including:
    • 2.1. professional development geared towards building a culturally and linguistically responsive school culture that contributes to increased cross-cultural and racial understanding,
    • 2.2. professional development for new and current METCO staff, and
    • 2.3. memberships to and participation in professional organizations focused on diversity and reducing racial imbalance within METCO school communities.
  3. Transportation
Eligibility:

School districts participating currently in the METCO Program are eligible to continue their participation in the program. These districts are Arlington, Bedford, Belmont, Braintree, Brookline, Cohasset, Concord, Dover, East Longmeadow, Foxborough, Hingham, Lexington, Lincoln, Longmeadow, Lynnfield, Marblehead, Melrose, Natick, Needham, Newton, Reading, Scituate, Sharon, Sherborn, Springfield, Sudbury, Swampscott, Wakefield, Walpole, Wayland, Wellesley, Weston, Westwood, Concord Carlisle, Dover Sherborn, Hampden Wilbraham, Lincoln Sudbury, Southwick Tolland Granville.

Please reach out to the Program Unit Contact (listed below) if your district is interested in participating in the METCO Program.

Funding Type:

State: Once the FY27 budget has been approved, the line-item language can be found at The 194th General Court of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts

Funding:

Funding is contingent upon availability and state line-item appropriations. All dollar amounts listed in the initial FY27 allocations are level funded from FY26 and are considered estimates/approximates that are subject to change based on the final state budget. Increase or decrease adjustments to the allocations may be required in accordance with final state budget funding, which will be calculated, using the current funding formula, once funds have been received by the Department.

Boston and Springfield METCO districts seeking to expand their program either by grade and/or available student seats must contact DESE and obtain approval before doing so.

This RFP is the governing document for these grant funds.

*Please note, while the final FY27 METCO Allocations will be calculated using the current METCO funding formula, the Department is reviewing the formula and may propose changes in the future. Additional information regarding potential changes to the METCO funding formula will be shared with METCO districts prior to any changes taking effect.

Fund Use:

Grant funds must be aligned to the purpose of this grant (see "Purpose" section) and priorities (see "Priorities" section). Funds may be used for local district costs incurred as a result of the participation of METCO students, METCO transportation costs, and for supplemental services that will contribute in a measurable way to enhanced educational opportunities and academic achievement, as well as enrichment.

Funds can be used to supplement but not supplant the costs of district participation in METCO. All budgets must be reviewed and approved by the district METCO leader. Please note that due to the origin of these funds, MTRS is not an allowable expense.

Project Duration:

Upon Approval** – 6/30/2027***

** Grant start date cannot be prior to DESE receiving a substantially approvable Application Submission as directed in this RFP's Submission Instructions. Goods and Services cannot be procured prior to DESE receiving and approving an application submission. Funds cannot exceed the project duration end date. The Grant Award Notice (GAN) issued in GEM$ is the official award notice for grant funds.

*** If PAC funding is approved in the FY27 state budget, grantees must reduce their grant in the spring of 2027 to free up funding, which will then be rolled into their FY28 FC317B METCO PAC Grant allocation 7/1/2027 – 12/31/2027. If PAC funding is not approved in the state line item, the information in this paragraph should be ignored.

Program Unit:

Office of Strategic Initiatives

Contact:

Sylvia Lam , Strategic Initiatives Coordinator

Phone Number:

(781) 338-3567

Date Due:

Friday, June 26, 2026, by 5 p.m.

Proposals must be received at the Department by 5 p.m. Eastern on the date due. To ensure a 7/1 grant start date, we recommend submitting the application in GEM$ in advance so that your LEA Fiscal Representative has enough time to review and approve the submission, given that the start date reflects the date the LEA Fiscal Representative approves the submitted grant in GEM$.

Submission Instructions:

The FY27 FC0317 METCO Grant must be submitted in GEM$. GEM$ is a cloud-based fiscal and program management grant system that will eventually phase out the use of EdGrants.

Grants for Education Management System (GEM$)

Grant Submission at the LEA level requires roles to be established for Grant writer for the specific fund code, LEA fiscal for financial review/approval, and Superintendent/Chief Executive sign off. All roles should be established prior to the grant due date and all appropriate forms should be either uploaded to GEM$, maintained at the LEA level, or sent in to the DESE RFP contact as described on the individual forms.

The user guidance documents and forms are found on the GEM$ homepage under DESE Resources. These forms can be accessed without logging in to the system.

Last Updated: June 5, 2026

Top