Introduction

The National Latino Children’s Institute (NLCI), in partnership with the National Education Association (NEA), Southwest Airlines, and Univision, provided an opportunity through the forum for young Latinos, policymakers, and local and national partners working with or on behalf of Latino children and their families, to develop strategies and solutions to ensure healthy communities and schools in which children can succeed.

According to the Pew Hispanic Center’s report, Between Two Worlds: How Young Latinos Come of Age in America, “Hispanics are the largest and youngest minority group in the United States. One-in-five schoolchildren is Hispanic. One-in-four newborns is Hispanic. Never before in this country’s history has a minority ethnic group made up so large a share of the youngest Americans. By force of numbers alone, the kinds of adults these young Latinos become will help shape the kind of society America becomes in the 21st century.” Unfortunately, the high school dropout rate among Latino youths (17%) is nearly three times as high as it is among white youths (6%) and nearly double the rate among blacks (9%).

In order to increase the high school completion rate, the public and private sectors must work together with the community to improve schools and neighborhoods. A variety of factors affecting Latino children’s education, including language abilities, immigration status of the family, health and safety, as well as the quality of schools were addressed through the forum.

A National Forum

NLCI convened 150 representatives and youth from La Promesa organizations (programs that utilize best practices for working with young Latinos), its national network of Latino children’s service providers including stay-in-school programs, after school programs, health care, mentoring, and tutoring. A joint advocacy agenda was created with and on behalf of young Latinos. This forum provided youth and stakeholders the opportunity to dialogue directly with policy makers, media representatives, funders, and other national and local leaders to leverage community assets to improve educational opportunities for young Latinos.

The purpose of the forum was to promote a children’s agenda to ensure that all children succeed. The outcome was to make recommendations to establish a common advocacy agenda for NLCI and its community partners.