In May 2001 the State Demographic Center issued a widely disseminated report that clearly documented a virtual doubling between 1990 and 2000 of the number of Minnesotans who identified themselves as either nonwhite or Hispanic (McMurry, 2001). Further, the report went on to document that the number of Minnesotans who identified themselves as Hispanic increased by 166% during the decade, increasing from approximately 54,000 in 1990 to over 143,000 in 2000. And 2004 estimates place the Hispanic/Latino population in Minnesota at 175,000, or more than 3.5% of all Minnesota residents.
This report was designed to examine the influence of a growing Latino enrollment in Minnesota’s public schools. Using data from the Minnesota Department of Education, we observed that while overall enrollment numbers in Minnesota have declined approximately 3% since 2001, Latino enrollment actually grew by more than 38% during this same time period. Accordingly, Latino students, who comprised 3.7% of Minnesota students 5 years ago, now comprise 5.3% of all public students.
For more, access the full report here.
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