Yet despite their representation in the U.S. workforce, Latinx workers earn the lowest weekly salary when compared with other races and ethnicities in the U.S. Latinx employees are also more likely than any other racial group to work manual labor jobs.
“This disproportionate representation of Latinos relative to management and professional fields shows where we are, but also shows the opportunity to make sure there is wider representation across occupations in fields across the country,” said Dr. Deborah Santiago, CEO and co-founder of Excelencia in Education, a nonprofit organization dedicated to the support and success of Latinx students in higher education.
That’s why Excelencia has issued four new reports in its continuing investigation into the relationship between institutions, Latinx students, and the workforce. This year, Excelencia also examined three specific areas of industry projected to grow by roughly 10% by 2031: STEM (statistics, technology, engineering and mathematics), healthcare, and educational professions.
Excelencia’s reports have identified the top institutions that are not only recruiting, supporting, and graduating Latinx students, but following through after graduation and connecting their students with well-paying jobs. Excelencia’s leadership recommended these institutions should be models for others, to create more pipelines from which promising Latinx talent can connect with high-wage earning jobs. Experts said that philanthropists and policy makers should also ensure that the institutions who produce Latinx talent receive the resources they need to continue.
“From our data, it’s clear that the majority of institutions graduating Latinos overall in STEM, health, and education are Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSIs),” said Santiago. “Increasingly, we are seeing an increase in institutions that are Seal certified for intentionality in serving students.”
HSI is a federal designation for institutions with at least 25% Latinx student populations. Excelencia also established its Seal of Excelencia to bestow upon institutions doing remarkable jobs of purposefully serving their Latinx students. Currently, 572 institutions qualify as HSI, but only about 7% of those have received Excelencia’s Seal.
