A Center for Urban Education (CUE) report argues that reversing the historic underfunding of Hispanic-serving institutions (HSIs) will increase the number of Latino students moving into the science and technology fields because it would lead to improved transfer pathways between community colleges and HSIs.
The study, called “Improving Transfer Access to STEM Bachelor’s Degrees at Hispanic-Serving Institutions Through the America COMPETES Act,” found that although participation rates are increasing, Latinos were awarded just 8.2 percent of STEM bachelor’s degrees in 2007.
“The lack of progress is quite disheartening,” said Dr. Alicia C. Dowd, author of this series of reports and co-director of the Center for Urban Education at the University of Southern California. “The trends are not improving at the rate we would like them to.”
Meanwhile, STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) job growth is on the rise with some estimates saying the sector will grow at nearly twice the rate as other occupations, according to the National Science Board. Latinos are the fastest growing demographic group in the country and the CUE report authors said building STEM programs at the HSIs and community colleges where the majority of these students study is an investment in the nation’s labor force.
“It’s timely given the atmosphere in Washington, where everyone is talking about the role of two-year colleges and transferring students,” said Dr. Lorelle Espinosa, director of policy and strategic initiatives at the Institute for Higher Education Policy (IHEP).
Although HSIs graduate 40 percent of Latino undergraduates, just 20 percent of Latinos earn STEM bachelor’s degrees at HSIs , said co-author Dr. Lindsey E. Malcolm, an assistant professor at the University of California, Riverside.
“This disparity can be explained in part by the fact that HSIs have been chronically underfunded in the distribution of federal STEM research dollars,” the report said, limiting these institutions’ ability to provide research and training opportunities.
