Latino children now constitute a majority or near majority of first graders in nine of the nation’s largest cities, according to analysis conducted by the Tomás Rivera Policy Institute (TRPI) at the University of Southern California. In cities such as Los Angeles and Dallas, the percentage of Hispanic first graders is even higher – three out of four first graders in these school districts are Latino (see Table). In 2020, this demographic wave of Latino first graders will graduate from high school and enter collegiate education or the labor market.
Education
Hispanics become more prevalent on College Campuses.
Hispanic students comprised 12 percent of full-time college students (both undergraduate and graduate students) in 2007, up from 10 percent in 2006, according to U.S. Census Bureau tables released today. Hispanics comprise 15 percent of the nation’s total population.
Income gap between whites, Latinos has grown at universities.
Over the past three decades, the income disparity between Latino and non-Hispanic white students entering four-year colleges and universities has increased fourfold, with the difference in median household income growing from $7,986 in 1975 to $32,965 in 2006, according to a new UCLA report on Latino college students.
Relationship between Latinos and Public Libraries.
Los Angeles: TRPI, in partnership with WebJunction and OCLC surveyed more than 2,860 Latinos in six U.S. states about their library use and perceptions of libraries. The results indicate that 54 percent of the Latino population visited libraries in the past year, and that Latinos hold positive perceptions of libraries.
