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National Hispanic Heritage Month: Celebrating Latinx Success at the National Student Clearinghouse

National Hispanic Heritage Month: Celebrating Latinx Success at the National Student Clearinghouse

by NSC Blog | Oct 25, 2021 | Announcements, Clearinghouse News

At the National Student Clearinghouse, we celebrate National Hispanic Heritage Month annually during September and October to honor the achievements and contributions of Hispanic-American champions, who have inspired others to achieve success in education and beyond. We also celebrate to thank and recognize our employees for their contribution to providing Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSIs) with services, data, and insights that lead to positive action and change within the Latinx community.

Clearinghouse President and CEO Rick Torres, who is the son of immigrants and the first in his family to earn a college degree, is “proud to recognize the achievements Hispanic and Latinx students have made in higher education,” but understands that the academic community must continue to “work together to address system inequities facing minority students.”

HSIs are traditionally defined as institutions where 25 percent or more of student enrollment are Latinx students. From implementing a new service, processing enrollment files, analyzing data, to taking steps to increase our diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts (DEI), the Clearinghouse supports HSIs by providing services that offer insights and data that can be used to ignite action and change.

“As a former registrar for several universities, I always looked forward to graduation day when I would see some Hispanic students who had struggled for different reasons, including being a first-generation college student, beaming with pride as they held their degrees,” said Geanine Garcia-Poindexter, who leads process improvement for the Clearinghouse. “All of the hard work we do at the Clearinghouse helps to ensure more students earn certifications or degrees.”

According to Excelencia in Education, to reach the Latinx degree attainment goal of 6.2 million degrees by 2030, there needs to be a tactical plan for Latinx college completion to include closing equity gaps in degree completion and accelerating – not just increasing – Latinx degree attainment.

“Latinx is a young, fast-growing segment of the U.S. workforce, and ensuring they’re well-educated will benefit the whole of society,” says CEO of Excelencia Deborah Santiago. Excelencia’s extensive research provides a snapshot with a Latinx lens of affordability, institutional capacity, HSIs, retention and transfer, workforce preparation, and more.

Because of the pandemic, there have been substantial student losses this year, but there were also some gains. The National Student Clearinghouse Research Center provides data and insights on Latinx K-20 enrollment, transfer, and mobility, and college completion in the following national and state-level National Student Clearinghouse Research Center reports:

“Social equity and transforming student lives have been at the heart and soul of the higher education process,” says Clearinghouse Vice President of Education Solutions, Pepe Carreras. “Removing barriers and offering greater access to all students, including Latinx students, is imperative to helping students advance and obtain the careers they aspire.”