NEWS RELEASE
Latino Student Success Effort in ALBUQUERQUE, NEW MEXICO
The Key to our Economic Future
ALBUQUERQUE, NM – Latinos are the fastest-growing student population in America and Lumina Foundation is pleased to support the Unidos Project, whose project is designed to increase the post-secondary attainment of Latino students. Lumina is investing over $11.5 million in Latino Student Success (LSS) efforts across the country. The Unidos Project in Albuquerque received $600,000 from Lumina Foundation for a “no wrong gate” approach that allows students to flow freely through our educational system, with appropriate support and direction to remain on course, and with minimal barriers to impede their success.
Under the specific LSS effort, Lumina is supporting local partnerships at 14 sites in 11 states that demonstrate a commitment to their growing Latino community. This grant effort encourages community leaders across key policy, education, business and nonprofit sectors to build, implement and sustain “place-based partnerships” that capitalize on their local talents. The Foundation is pleased to work alongside Excelencia in Education and FSG to provide technical assistance and evaluation support to each partnership.
“Lumina’s Latino Student Success effort is an integral part of our commitment to Goal 2025,” said Lumina President and CEO Jamie Merisotis. “Through these partnerships, we aim to build bridges among leadership groups already working to improve Latino college preparation, access and attainment.”’
“The Unidos Project is focused on creating a culture of collaboration and collective impact across numerous entities to achieve its overall goal of producing 55,000 post-secondary degrees and credentials for Latinos in Bernalillo County by the year 2025,” said Dr. Jozi De Leon, Vice President for Equity and Inclusion, University of New Mexico and Principal Investigator of the Unidos Project.
“The goal can only be met by increasing Latino high school graduation rates, enrolling more Latinos in postsecondary education, and graduating more Latinos from our institutions of higher education.”
At more than 50 million, Latinos represent the largest and fastest-growing population group in the United States. By 2025, half of the nation’s workforce will be of Latino descent. At that time, 63 percent of all jobs in the United States will require some form of postsecondary education or training, according to labor economist Anthony Carnevale of the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce.
The strength of this focused Latino student success effort is due to the dedication of many partners striving to reach a national college attainment goal.
“The collective support and commitment of our institutional and community partners is the only possibility we have to ‘move the needle’ on increasing educational attainment among Latino students and creating sustainable change,” added De Leon.
The Unidos partners include representatives from six key sectors: Albuquerque Public Schools (K-12 education), the University of New Mexico (higher education), Central New Mexico Community College (higher education), the Center for Education Policy Research (higher education), El Centro de la Raza (higher education), the College Board (higher education), Youth Development, Inc. (community-based organization), the Albuquerque Hispano Chamber of Commerce (employers), ENLACE (community-based and Latino-serving organizations), Innovate+Educate (employers), the Albuquerque-Bernalillo County Community Schools Partnership (policy leadership), and State Representative/NM House Education Committee Chairman Rick Miera (policy leadership).
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About Lumina Foundation: Lumina Foundation, an Indianapolis-based private foundation, is committed to enrolling and graduating more students from college—especially 21st century students: low-income students, students of color, first-generation students and adult learners. Lumina’s goal is to increase the percentage of Americans who hold high-quality degrees and credentials to 60 percent by 2025. Lumina pursues Goal 2025 in three ways: by identifying and supporting effective practice, through public policy advocacy, and by using our communications and convening power to build public will for change. For more information, log on to www.luminafoundation.org.
About the Unidos Project: The University of New Mexico Project is built around a “no wrong gate” approach that allows students to flow freely through our educational system, with appropriate support and direction to remain on course, and with minimal barriers to impede their success. By creating a culture of collaboration across numerous entities, the overall goal of the Unidos Project is to produce 55,000 post-secondary degrees and credentials for Latinos in Bernalillo County by the year 2025, by increasing Latino high school graduation rates.
Media contact:
Lorena Blanco-Silva
Project Facilitator, Unidos Project
lblanco@unm.edu
505-277-1238 – Office
505-227-0777 – Cell
E-mail: Unidos@unm.edu
http://unidos.unm.edu and http://www.edexcelencia.org/LuminaLSS/Albuquerque
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Unidos4Success