Fast Facts: Hispanic Heritage Month (1142)

Hispanic Heritage Month

Question:
For Hispanic Heritage Month 2024, what data do you have on the learning experiences of Hispanic/Latino students throughout their education careers and on the characteristics of Hispanic/Latino teachers and faculty?

Response:

Early Childhood Education

In 2022, some 54 percent of Hispanic/Latino 3- to 5-year-olds were enrolled in school (source).¹

Elementary/Secondary Education

Students

Of the 49.6 million preK–12 students enrolled in public schools in fall 2022, some 14.4 million (or 29 percent) were Hispanic/Latino students (source).²
In fall 2021, some 12 percent of K–12 students enrolled in private schools were Hispanic/Latino students (source).³
In fall 2022, some 60 percent of Hispanic/Latino students attended public schools where students of color comprised at least 75 percent of total enrollment (source).
As a percentage of all preK–12 public school students in school year 2022–23, some 15 percent of Hispanic/Latino students received special education services under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) (source).
The average NAEP mathematics assessment score of Hispanic/Latino 8th-graders was 16 points higher in 2022 (261 points) than in 1990 (source). The average NAEP reading assessment score for Hispanic/Latino 8th-graders was 10 points higher in 2022 (251 points) than in 1992 (source).⁴
In school year 2021–22, the adjusted cohort graduation rate (ACGR) was 83 percent for Hispanic/Latino public school students. The ACGRs for Hispanic/Latino students ranged from 69 percent in the District of Columbia, Minnesota, South Dakota, and Louisiana to 88 percent in Texas (source).⁵

Adjusted cohort graduation rate (ACGR) for public high school students, by race/ethnicity: School year 2021–22

The data in this figure is described in the surrounding text.

— Not available.
¹ Includes imputed data for New Mexico and Oklahoma.
² Estimated assuming a count of zero American Indian/Alaska Native students for Hawaii.
³ Reporting practices for data on Asian and Pacific Islander students vary by state. Asian/Pacific Islander data in this indicator represent either the value reported by the state for the "Asian/Pacific Islander" group or an aggregation of separate values reported by the state for "Asian" and "Pacific Islander." "Asian/Pacific Islander" includes the "Filipino" group, which only California and Hawaii report separately.
⁴ Due to nonreporting in several states, data for students of Two or more races are not available at the national level.

NOTE: The ACGR is the percentage of public school 9th-graders who graduate within 4 years of starting 9th grade with a regular diploma or, for students with the most significant cognitive disabilities, a state-defined alternate high school diploma. The U.S. average ACGR is for the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Race categories exclude persons of Hispanic ethnicity. Figures are plotted based on unrounded data.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, EDFacts file 150, Data Group 695, and EDFacts file 151, Data Group 696, 2021–22. See Digest of Education Statistics 2023, table 219.46.

Teachers and Principals

In school year 2020–21, some 9 percent of all public K–12 school teachers and 8 percent of all private K–12 school teachers were Hispanic/Latino (source).
In school year 2020–21, some 14 percent of teachers in public K–12 city schools and 9 percent of teachers in private K–12 city schools were Hispanic/Latino (source).
In school year 2020–21, some 9 percent of all public K–12 school principals and 6 percent of all private K–12 school principals were Hispanic/Latino (source).
In school year 2020–21, some 16 percent of principals in public K–12 city schools and 8 percent of principals in private K–12 city schools were Hispanic/Latino (source).

Postsecondary Education⁶

Students

In fall 2022, there were 3.8 million Hispanic/Latino students enrolled in degree-granting postsecondary institutions. Twenty-one percent of U.S. resident students enrolled in degree-granting institutions were Hispanic/Latino (source).
Some 59 percent of Hispanic/Latino students who began seeking a bachelor’s degree full time at a 4-year institution in academic year 2016–17 completed that degree at the same institution within 6 years (i.e., by August 2022) (source).
In academic year 2021–22, postsecondary institutions awarded 106,892 science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) degrees/certificates to Hispanic/Latino students (source).
In academic year 2021–22, some 18 percent of bachelor’s degrees conferred to Hispanic/Latino graduates in the 50 states and District of Columbia, were in a STEM field (source).

Percentage of bachelor’s degrees conferred by degree-granting postsecondary institutions in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields, by race/ethnicity and U.S. nonresident status: Academic year 2021–22

The data in this figure is described in the surrounding text.

NOTE: Data are for the 50 states and the District of Columbia. STEM fields include biological and biomedical sciences, computer and information sciences, engineering and engineering technologies, mathematics and statistics, and physical sciences and science technologies. Data are for postsecondary institutions participating in Title IV federal financial aid programs and U.S. service academies. Data in this figure are based on the 2020 Classification of Instructional Programs. Race categories exclude persons of Hispanic ethnicity. Race/ethnicity categories exclude U.S. nonresidents. Figures are plotted based on unrounded data.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), Completions component, Fall 2022 (provisional data). See Digest of Education Statistics 2023, tables 318.45 and 322.30.

Faculty

In fall 2022, there were 24,983 full-time Hispanic/Latino female faculty members at degree-granting postsecondary institutions, compared with 23,685 full-time Hispanic/Latino male faculty members (source).
In fall 2022, Hispanic/Latino female faculty made up 3.3 percent of full-time faculty and Hispanic/Latino male faculty made up 3.1 percent of full-time faculty at degree-granting postsecondary institutions (source).⁷

Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs)⁸

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Postsecondary Education (OPE), Hispanic-Serving Institutions Division identifies and publishes Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI) eligibility annually. Generally, an HSI has an enrollment of undergraduate full-time-equivalent students that is at least 25 percent Hispanic and satisfies criteria for percentage of needy students and expenditures per full-time-equivalent undergraduate student. In fall 2022, there were 2.2 million Hispanic/Latino students⁹ enrolled at 526 Hispanic-serving institutions (HSIs) in 27 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico (source).

Of these 526 institutions, 63 percent were 4-year institutions and 37 percent were 2-year institutions (source).
In fall 2022, Hispanic/Latino students accounted for 48 percent of U.S. resident students enrolled at HSIs (source).
In academic year 2021–22, some 49 percent of first-time, full-time undergraduates received Pell grants at HSIs, compared with 39 percent at all postsecondary institutions (source, source).
In academic year 2021–22, there were 171,211 bachelor’s degrees and 38,475 master’s degrees awarded to Hispanic/Latino students at HSIs (source).
In fall 2022, in the 50 states and the District of Columbia, HSIs enrolled 55 percent of all Hispanic/Latino students at degree-granting postsecondary institutions and conferred 52 percent of all postsecondary degrees to Hispanic/Latino students (source, source, source, source, source, source).¹⁰

The data in this figure is described in the surrounding text.

Adult Outcomes

In 2023, some 87 percent of 25- to 29-year-olds who were Hispanic/Latino had completed at least high school, including 24 percent who had completed a bachelor’s or higher degree (source).

¹ Unless otherwise noted, statistics in this Fast Fact refer to the 50 states and the District of Columbia.
² Total enrollment includes imputations for nonreported prekindergarten enrollment in California and Oregon. Enrollment for Hispanic/Latino students includes imputations for suppressed data in California.
³ Percentage distribution is based on the students for whom race/ethnicity was reported.
⁴ Accommodations were not permitted for assessments in 1990 and 1992.
⁵ Because data from New Mexico and Oklahoma were unavailable, discussion of ACGRs for Hispanic/Latino students excludes these states.
⁶ Throughout this section, information about the race/ethnicity of postsecondary students and faculty refers to U.S. citizens and permanent residents only. Race/ethnicity information was not collected for U.S. nonresidents.
⁷ Percentages are based on full-time faculty whose race/ethnicity was known.
⁸ National estimates throughout this section include the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and outlying areas.
⁹ Includes undergraduate as well as postbaccalaureate students.
¹⁰ In the Integrated Postsecondary Education System (IPEDS), the race/ethnicity of some students is not reported. In this estimate, students for whom race/ethnicity was unknown were allocated to the reported race/ethnicity categories using the known proportion of students in those other reported race/ethnicity categories. Degrees excludes certificates.

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