Can We Blame METCO for Boston's Schools?

Thank you for the thoughtful article "Black Parents Resist Calls to End Voluntary Busing," May 27, on the current publicity surrounding the Metropolitan Council for Educational Opportunity (METCO) program in Massachusetts. As METCO parents of two sons, we are concerned about Boston mayoral aide Ted Landsmark's attack on this program.

METCO is not solely a Boston school program. Its dual mission is to benefit both urban minority students and suburban students who have chosen to take part in the program. If suburban residents felt there were nothing to be gained from the program, they would not participate. METCO could not exist year after year without their support.

Why are METCO students and their families being used as scapegoats to explain away the continued failure of Boston's public schools? Are Mr. Landsmark's remarks a trial balloon being floated by someone more powerful to gauge public support for METCO?

If METCO is phased out, which according to law cannot be done until the last child who enters graduates, many parents will either enroll their children in private or parochial schools. Many will leave the city. We will do whatever we can to guarantee that our children receive the best education they can because it is the key to their future. We will fight to keep METCO alive. Larry Green, Dorchester, Mass. Barbara Green

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