USA Funds-Sponsored Report Promotes Higher-Education Support for California Latinos

Recommendations for a statewide effort in California to accelerate higher-education attainment, particularly for Latinos, are the focus of an Excelencia in Education research report presented at the Tomás Rivera Policy Institute annual education conference Nov. 10.

California Policy Options highlights institutional and policy recommendations to enhance postsecondary access and success for California students, with a focus on Latinos.

USA Funds^® supported the research project, which Excelencia in Education conducted in association with the California Policy Research Center and TPRI.

The resulting report concluded that, while many activities are taking place in California to enhance educational preparation and opportunities for Californians, there continues to be a need for a concerted statewide effort to expand higher-education attainment for the workforce. The report noted that there is a special need for an effort to expand higher-education achievement for Latinos.

Based on analysis of recent data and literature reviews, as well as interviews with selected policy-makers and institutional leaders, the study team outlined three recommendations for accelerating Latino-student success in higher education, including the following:

• Ensure that all students and parents understand the benefits of a higher-education degree and the steps necessary to prepare for college.
• Ensure that college is affordable for students from all economic backgrounds.
• Increase the number of Californians — especially those from underrepresented groups — who have postsecondary degrees.

The report provides a variety of suggested steps to take to meet those recommendations — from creating a new grant program, to providing college-planning information to new parents in hospitals.

California Policy Options may be downloaded starting Dec. 4 by visiting the Excelencia in Education Web site.

“Once the brief is released, we begin another stage of important work for this piece,” says Deborah Santiago, Excelencia in Education vice president, policy and research, who led the study team. “We hope to widen dissemination of the information and facilitate more conversations around taking action to address the converging trends, not just identifying and talking about them.”