WASHINGTON — While black and white children are graduating from high school in increasing numbers, the dropout rate for Latinos remains an alarmingly high 30%, only slightly less than what it was 25 years ago, according to a government report released Thursday.
Factors traditionally thought to account for the high level of Latinos who don't complete high school--such as immigrant status and limited English proficiency--do not fully explain the difference in graduation rates between them and their black and white peers, the report added.
The study, compiled by the U.S. Education Department's National Center for Education Statistics, found a high dropout rate persists even among Latino students who were born in the United States and speak English fluently.
Of Latinos ages 16 to 24 who speak English well, 21.4% did not finish high school. Of those who were born in the United States, 17.9% did not finish. While these rates are considerably lower than the overall rate for Latinos, they still are notably higher than the dropout rates of 8.6% for white students and 12.1% for blacks, according to the report.
"This is the puzzle that we're left with," said Marilyn McMillen, the report's author. "Why are Hispanic dropout rates still high?"
On a positive note, the study found a significant decrease in dropout rates among blacks, to the point where the figure is close to that for white students. The dropout rates among both groups have decreased, but the rate for black students has done so more rapidly.
The report found that the nation's overall dropout rate in 1995, the latest year for which figures were available, was 12%, down slightly from 14.6% in 1972. California's dropout rate is about 20%, according to the state Department of Education. In Los Angeles County, more than 28% of students drop out, and in Orange County, 13% of students do so.
In California, 10% of Asian students, 12% of whites, 28% of Latinos and one-third of black students do not complete high school.
The new federal report includes as dropouts those immigrants who entered the U.S. as children without a high school degree and never entered U.S. schools. While this may partially account for the 30% Latino dropout rate, it does not diminish the figure's significance, according to the report.
"Regardless of the reasons behind their lack of high school credentials, the impact is the same: These young adults do not have the basic level of education that is thought to be essential in today's economy," the report says.
