Hispanic Students Headed To College At Record Rate

Photo Credit: The Tomorrow Fund HS

From USA Today:

"In the span of just 12 years, the percentage of Hispanic students headed to college has exploded, for the first time surpassing that of white classmates, a new report shows. 

Nearly seven in 10 Hispanic members of the high school class of 2012 — 69% — enrolled in either a two- or four-year college last fall, up from 49% in 2000, even as overall rates remained nearly flat. In 2012, 67% of white graduates headed straight to college, up from 64% in 2000. 

The Pew Hispanic Center analysis, out Thursday, offers a glimpse of silver lining in the USA's down economy: Since 2008, the rate of Hispanic high school graduates going on to college has actually accelerated, even as overall college-going rates for white and Asian students have dropped. 

What's more, the sheer number of Hispanic students graduating from high school has actually risen, so the higher college-going rates don't simply reflect a more select group of students, said Richard Fry, a senior Pew researcher. In 2012, he noted, U.S. Census data showed five Hispanic high school "completers" for every dropout, up from three in 2000. 

The recession and economy's sluggish recovery may actually be key to the changes, he said. It has likely played out differently in Hispanic students' lives: U.S. Census data show that more Hispanic students live in states hit hard by the nation's housing bust and subsequent high jobless rates. As a result, Fry said, completing high school and going immediately on to college looks more attractive."

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