Education is a point of pride for the MetroWest region, which has overall high elementary reading scores and high school graduation rates as well as an extremely well-educated adult population and strong, varied educational institutions including Wellesley College, Bentley University, Framingham State University and Massachusetts Bay Community College.

But the educational benefits of the region do not pertain to all in MetroWest – all educational metrics are lower for economically disadvantaged students and adults of color. The reasons for such disparities are complex and have historical roots, including inequitable access to high quality schools.

Consider:

• Third-grade reading proficiency in 2021 – which is critical to overall academic success – was at 70% among Asian students, 64% among white students, and just 38% and 31% among Black or African American students and Hispanic or Latino students, respectively. Proficiency rates were lowest in Framingham (35%), Marlborough (39%), Milford (41%) and Waltham (42%) – most of which have more diverse and more disadvantaged student bodies.

• Eighth-grade math proficiency in 2019 was at 72% among Asian students, 41% among white students, and 18% and 17% among African American and Latino students, respectively. These rates were lowest in Bellingham (20%), Marlborough and Boston (21%), Hudson and Milford (both 22%) and Framingham (27%). Rates for all groups in MetroWest were slightly higher than those at the state level, but the region’s racial and ethnic disparities were similar to Massachusetts as a whole.

• High school graduation rates in 2021 are 89% among African American students and 83% among Latino students, lower than the rates for Asian students and white students (97% and 93%, respectively).

• A majority (51%) of adults in MetroWest hold at least a bachelor’s degree, up from 39% in 2000 and far above the national rate of 33%. Yet, much lower shares of people of color have bachelor’s or higher degrees: 36% of African American residents of the region and 28% of Hispanic residents.

• This degree stratification is reflected in admission rates for public colleges and universities in MetroWest: these are not only becoming more selective in admissions, but have lower rates of acceptance for Black (16%) and Latino (19%) students, as compared to white (22%) and Asian (23%) students.

Prekindergarten helps prepare children both socially and academically for school and can be especially important in preparing low-income children for kindergarten. In MetroWest in 2020, 49% of 4-year-olds were enrolled in public or private prekindergarten programs, up from 37% in 2002 and about level with the state rate. The vast majority of these children, or 77%, were enrolled in public prekindergarten programs.

School attendance also is critical to students’ ability to develop key skills and their future success in school. In 2021, 14% of students were chronically absent in MetroWest, below the state rate (18%). Rates were highest in Wayland (35%), Milford (27%), Maynard and Marlborough (26%), and lowest (2%) in Wellesley. A significant year-over-year jump in chronic absenteeism in 2021 as compared to 2020 and previous years, shared by the state and every school district, is undoubtedly related to the COVID-19 pandemic; therefore, 2021 results should be interpreted with care.