Do the math: increasing Latinos' success in college not only benefits lives, but can also be an economic boon for the entire nation.

• Author: Bell, Julie Davis
• Position: HIGHER EDUCATION

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By far the biggest story from the recent 2010 Census is the significant and fast-paced growth of the Latino population. The U.S. population increases by four people each minute, with two of the four being Latino.

States have a lot of work to do to deal with this growth and prepare for this new generation of Americans. Right now, Latinos lag significantly behind Anglo students on every indicator of educational achievement--a trend that if allowed to continue will hamper state economic development for the next decade and beyond.

By 2020, about one in four college-age adults will be Latino. Many will be first generation college students who may need special assistance to be successful. Young Latinos often don't consider higher education a real possibility for themselves and don't know that they may qualify for financial aid. Family and work obligations often prevent them from enrolling in or finishing college.

Former Texas state demographer Steve Murdoch puts it best: "The future of America is tied to the minority population. How well they do is how well America will do." Murdoch, now a professor at Rice University, says his experience in Texas prepared him well for understanding the changing American demographics. "The Texas of today is the U.S. of tomorrow. If you think Hispanic growth is a Texas, California or Florida issue, you're wrong. Even in the suburbs and rural areas, most of the population growth is Hispanic."

In short, the Latino population is growing everywhere, making college completion issues important for all states.

Murdoch explains that most of the growth in the United States is because of more births than deaths. This natural phenomenon accounts for 62 percent of the growth, while immigration

accounts for 38 percent. The United States would actually be declining in population if not for minorities, he says.

"Diversity has been the key to growth in states for the last two decades," Murdoch says. "If you weren't diverse, you weren't growing."

Because the under-18 Anglo population is decreasing, while the under-18 Latino population is growing rapidly, "the aging Anglo population needs the growing younger minority population to help pay for Social Security and Medicare," he says. "And the younger minorities need the aging Anglos to help them get the education they need to be competitive."

Return on Investment

The challenge for states is to identify what works to ensure these new citizens succeed. The...