Leaders in the current federal administration as well as key found at ions focused on higher education have recognized the importance of an educated workforce and have articulated goals to increase our n at ion's collective degree completion. The projected population growth of Latinos, their current educat ional attainment levels, and their relative youth all signal the need to pay more attention to this group in higher education. A review of the d at a clearly shows that the n at ion's success in reaching its degree completion goals will rely on its ability to accelerate the degree completion of Latinos.

 Excelencia in Education's mission is to accelerate Latino student success in higher education. This brief takes what we know from national data and combines it with what we hear from elected officials, service providers, and L atino students and puts this inform at ion together to articulate what we can do to address critical policy issues affecting Latino students in the current higher education context.

 What we know: The general profile of L atinos in educat ion emphasizes a minority of the population yet drives the majority of public policy for Latinos. Policymakers seeking to improve Latino higher educational outcomes should consider positioning issues and developing strategies to accelerate Latino student success based on a more representative profile of Latino students.

 What we hear: Listening to the stake holders in higher education yielded the following points:
 * The economic downturn presented challenges to maintaining access and success for elected officials, service providers, and students.

 *Elected officials seemed more focused on persistence in college while service providers were more focused on college access.

 *Both Latino students and elected officials noted that spending more money in higher education did not necessarily mean getting more for the investment.

 * Elected officials shared that improving accountability for the public's investment in higher education must be balanced with providing    access to a quality education.

 * Students did not consider accountability measures such as graduation rates or college rankings as factors influencing their college choice.

 * Many L at ino students valued higher education and balanced work and family responsibilities to get their education.

 * Service providers considered programs tailored to serve Latinos the most effective in engaging Latino students.

 What we can do: Suggested steps to accelerate L atino student success include the following:
 * Develop a media campaign emphasizing the societal and economic benefits for raising the degree completion r at e overall, and for Latinos specifically.

 * Cre at e a n at ional acceleration plan specifically tailored to improve the success of Hispanic students in higher education and track degree completion goals and measures of progress.

 * Focus on the strategic alignment of educational support efforts from the state to community level to increase accountability and effectiveness.

 * Replicate or expand institutional practices that are improving Hispanic student success.

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To download the full report, click here
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