November 6, 2023 By Carol Britton Meyer
The School Committee held it’s regular meeting at METCO headquarters in Boston recently, participating in a workshop and listening to a program update by Hingham METCO Director Amy Jackson.
METCO is a state funded program that allows students from racially segregated schools in Boston to join racially isolated schools in the suburbs.
The current enrollment for the Hingham Public Schools program is 49 students, including 21 in the elementary grades, 10 at the Middle School, and 18 at the high school — 7 of whom are seniors.
There are 6 students at East, 3 at Foster, 3 at Plymouth River, and 9 at South. Enrollment in each elementary school depends on available seats. “This year, we added 10 new students to the program from first to ninth grade,” Jackson said. “Next school year, we will continue to petition — as part of the Fiscal 2025 METCO grant, with School Committee approval — to increase our enrollment by 30 new students. Hopefully we will get funding and state approval.”
“We are so fortunate to be one of the communities that is able to participate in this program. In Hingham, we do not have an overly diverse student body,” School Committee Chair Nes Correnti told the Hingham Anchor after the meeting. “I believe our students are placed at a disadvantage as the makeup of our student body does not reflect the makeup of Massachusetts or the United States as a whole. Fast forward to the workforce, studies show more inclusive environments are more profitable. Our children will be better equipped to work in more diverse environments if they experience them growing up.”
A K-8 METCO interventionist is working in all of the elementary schools as well as the Middle School alongside teachers in the classrooms to provide academic and social-emotional support for METCO students.
Jackson is planning a one-day leadership retreat for the Middle and High School in December to focus on leadership development, improving communication, and building strong relationships.
She is also working with Director of School Counseling Heather Rodriquez to bring 15 METCO and Black Hingham resident students not enrolled in the program to Boston for the Historically Black Colleges University college fair, with more than 15 HBCU colleges and universities participating.
Building community
“I will continue to partner with the Hingham Unity Council to plan family events in Hingham and Boston each year,” Jackson said. “The goal is to have one event in the fall and one event in the spring as a way to build community with the Boston METCO families and the Black Hingham resident students’ families while learning about one another’s communities.”
In addition, Hingham METCO is partnering with the Boys’ Room, a mission-based affinity program designed exclusively to support Black and Brown boys “as they navigate their school journey and beyond,” according to Jackson. “The program is designed to mentor, support, and empower these boys during a critical time in their development through building relationships with a group of peers. . . . We are also exploring other leads to identify leaders for possible groups for girls and also additional affinity spaces at the high school.”
Parent workshops
Jackson is continuing to partner with New Generations Consultants & Associates for the Hingham METCO Parent Support Group, offering a confidential safe space for parents to talk about issues they face “as their children live and learn in two polar opposite environments,” she explained. “Parents will have an opportunity to bring their topics to meetings for discussion,” facilitated by counselor, life coach, and trainer Sonya Patton.
“I am so impressed by the students in our METCO program and believe they are heroic. It’s a commitment to step onto a bus each weekday morning, earlier than some are even awake, and only get home late in the afternoon/early evening,” Correnti said. “These students take the long trek to another community and work, not only on the daily curriculum, but also to integrate into a community that is not their own. We owe it to these kids to make them feel welcome. We owe it to these kids to learn about their days, their nights, their communities, and their lives.”