Although the number of Hispanic students that drop-out of school is increasing due to immigration and higher birth rates, the drop out rate among Hispanic students born in the United States has gradually decreased, according to a study by the Pew Hispanic Center.
“There are a lot of challenges for Latinos that have just arrived here. Eighty percent do not know English or know very little English,” said Richard Fry, researcher at the Pew Hispanic Center and author of the study, “Hispanic Youth Dropping Out of U.S. Schools: Measuring the Challenge.”
The challenge for foreign-born Hispanic students seems insurmountable and is becoming more serious with time according to the study.
The good news is that for those that were born here, the drop-out rate has not increased.
The report shows that the school drop-out rate among Hispanic students born in the United States is alarming--15 percent higher than the rate of white students--but it is considerably less than that of foreign-born Hispanics, which is 34 percent. Although other studies have shown that the foreign-born drop-out rate can be as high as 40 percent, Fry believes that those numbers include a large number of immigrants who never enrolled in high school in this country.
According to data from the 2000 Census and surveys conducted in the course of the study, approximately 34 percent of immigrant Hispanic students between the ages of 16 and 19 did not graduate or did not enroll in high school in 2000. This number was the same in 1990.
However, among Latinos of the same age who were born in the United States, 14 percent dropped out in 2000. This percentage was 15 percent a decade earlier.
For foreign-born students the challenges are greater. In addition to not knowing English, the necessity of working to send money home to family members in their country of origin—or to support their families living here—explains the difference in numbers of drop-outs between these two groups said Fry.
Immigrant adolescents usually come to this country because of poverty and often become good workers who do not have an interest in studying, explained Fry.
Besides a lack of interest in studying, it is important to mention that violence in schools and fragile family structures are additional factors that push students out of schools at an early age.
Central Americans
The highest drop out rate found by the study is in the Central American community. Immigrant adolescents from this group leave school at rates as high as 25 percent. However, only 7 percent of students of Central American descent who were born in this country do not finish high school, a rate similar to that of Anglo-Saxon students.
This is a reality widely reflected in communities where the immigration of Central American students is constant, as it is in Brentwood, Central Islip, Hempstead, Freeport, Long Island, and New York.
How long their families have been in the United States makes a difference. Students whose families immigrated in the 80's and the beginning of the 90's have a more stable atmosphere—in large part due to their status as legal residents. The children of families who have recently arrived, who often only have one parent and sometimes have uncertain immigration status, are more often likely to drop out.
Roberto Suro, director of the Pew Center, said that the data on school drop out rates among Hispanics always includes those that were born in this country and immigrants. Therefore, making this distinction offers a more exact view of the problem.
“You have to distinguish between those that came here and those that were born in this country,” Suro recommended.
Fry noted that the government should not ignore immigrant adolescents that leave school, but instead should offer alternative educational programs to this group such as, for example, school for adults.
Successful at Work
On the other hand, according to Fry’s data, 90 percent of immigrant adolescents that leave school or who do not enroll in school have full time jobs and, although they speak little or no English, tend to be successful at their jobs, in comparison to other groups.
The study found that a white student who drops out of school earns $7,300 per year, compared to $6,500 earned by a U.S.-born Hispanic student who dropped out of school. In contrast, an immigrant adolescent who left school, or who never attended school, earns an average of $10,000 per year. This difference is usually due to their productivity in manual labor, which is appreciated by employers.
Among African-Americans, drop out rates decreased from 14 percent to 12 percent and among Anglo-Saxons from 10 percent to 8 percent. Among Asians, this number went from 5 percent to 4 percent.
The researchers also said, although to a lesser extent, a high number of adolescent Latino women dropped out of school due to pregnancy.
In 1990, the Latino population doubled due to high birth rates and immigration. One in every six children in the country is Hispanic. This trend will increase to one in every four children in 2020, according to the report.
Important findings
Because of the enormous growth in the number of Hispanic youth due to immigration and high birth rates, the number of Hispanics between the ages of 16 and 19 that drop out of school increased from 347,000 to 529,000 between 1990 and 2000.
Approximately a third of all Hispanic youth that were counted as school drop outs are immigrants that had little or no contact with the schools in the United States.
School drop out rates among Hispanics varies considerable by state.
A lack of English-language ability is a prime characteristic of foreign-born Hispanics that drop out of school.
A large percentage of Hispanic drop outs (56 percent) are employed, more than whites (49 percent) or African-American (35 percent) and 78 percent of Hispanics who drop out of school and work are employed 36 hours a week or more, compared to 52 percent of whites and 54 percent of African-American.
