In 1966, the city of Boston started the Metropolitan Council For Educational Opportunity (METCO) program in an attempt to break down racial barriers. Currently, the program buses students from Boston to 37 school districts throughout Massachusetts.

“In recent years, it’s become more of a tool for parents to seek better resources for their children academically,” METCO coordinator Mark Liddell said.

This year, there are 134 students taking part in the METCO program in Wayland. There are 39 students at WHS, the lowest it’s been in Liddell’s seven years here.

To be part of the program, parents submit the names of their children to METCO Inc. in Boston. At random, the 37 district directors tap into the files of the children who have been submitted. They select the students based on the district’s need for students.

“For example, if we have a need for students in this district at the third grade level, we’ll pick some third grade students,” Liddell said. “It’s a little bit of a lottery in that you have to be the right age at the right time in the right district. It’s based on the need of the town and the luck of the draw.”

As part of the METCO program, WHS students often meet with Liddell. All of the students also take a course called Cultural Identity Group Seminar (CIGS), which Liddell teaches.

“It’s a class that has several purposes. The first is to get students acclimated into the high school once they come in as freshmen,” Liddell said. “Another goal is to prepare students for college and ensure they’re taking the courses necessary. We also talk about cultural affirming topics as well as any other topics that might come up in current events.”

In addition, Liddell credits many of the Wayland families for the success and continuation of the METCO program in town.

“There are a lot of families in Wayland that are very solicitous, whether it’s giving us help by going to our fundraising events or assisting students in having a place to stay after school,” Liddell said.

However, Liddell has also faced many struggles regarding the METCO program. One issue is the absence of a METCO room in the new school. In the old school, the METCO program had its own large room for meetings. As of now, Liddell has an office in the Media Center. In addition, during the 2011-2012 school year, the freshmen history curriculum changed to exclude a world cultures portion.

“[World cultures] was taken out a few years back, and with that, some of our history was taken out of it, so I have been battling to get that back,” Liddell said.

Transportation, especially for after-school activities, is another issue.

“We have a variety of extracurriculars here, and it’s difficult for students from Boston to make it to events or to go to practices or to get involved in productions,” Liddell said. “It’s a logistical problem that we have here.”

Despite these difficulties, Liddell thinks that it’s been a strong year for the program.

“If I took a snapshot of this year, I’d say this is a great year we’ve had so far. There are wonderful students who have been working really hard academically,” Liddell said. “It’s been socially great as well. A lot of the students are close to their Wayland counterparts, so that’s been awesome.”