Latinos, Education & Gender Equality In 'Deep Thoughts'

In our latest installment of Deep Thoughts, Blogamole contributor Michael Lopez channels "Stand and Deliver" to remind you that knowledge is power.

By Michael Lopez

We know it’s still summer break and the last thing any of us want to think about right now is school. But let's get serious for a minute — the results of a new study have revealed that the number of Latino students expected to return to school this fall is way lower than we would have expected.

The American Council on Education (ACE) recently released their Gender Equality in Higher Education: 2010 report, a followup to studies conducted in 2000 and 2006. Unfortunately, the results are showing some very discouraging college stats for both Hispanic men and women.

Believe it or not, only 42% of Latino men ages 24 or younger are in college right now. And that figure has dropped since 2000, when the percentage was at 45. Yes it could be worse, but c'mon fellas! Don’t you think we’re more than capable of beefing that stat up?

College education leads to more opportunities, intellectual enrichment, and phatter paychecks once you grab that diploma! And don’t get us started on high school. Only 51% of Latino young adults born outside the U.S. have earned their diploma.

Male immigrants, who represent one out of every three Hispanic young adults, are at a particular disadvantage. But listen to this one: Only 81% of U.S. BORN Latino young adults actually complete high school. 81%? What’s up, all you in the remaining 19%? Get that diploma and keep it moving!

Remember, a person with a Master's degree earns about $31,900 more per year than a high school graduate — a difference of as much as 105%!

Things are a little bit brighter for American Latinas. According to ACE, while only 9% of Hispanic young men go on to earn their bachelor degrees, young women total 14% (the same percentage as African-American females).

The people behind the study take these figures seriously, and so should you. Jacqueline E. King, an assistant VP at ACE said, “Raising the attainment rate of Hispanic men-and women-looms as one of the most significant challenges facing American education.”

Blogamole doesn’t like going for the whole preachy vibe, but we KNOW Latino young people are capable of a lot better than that. So go ahead, enjoy your summer, but when you get back to school STUDY HARD! Work toward college and that degree, because if there’s anything we love, it’s showing all naysayers that we mean business!

For more information on how to pay for your college education, visit the Hispanic Heritage Foundation web site.

What do you think about the results of this study? Sound off in the comments or @MTV3!

Tags College, Deep Thoughts, Education, Latinos, Surveys