Many Latinos Pursue Their Dreams in Community Colleges

Latinos represent about 17 percent of the nation's 6.6 million community college students. Nonresident aliens of unspecified ethnicities represent 1.5 percent.

As the Latino numbers swell, the ultimate success of these students - whether judged by degree completion or transfer rates - is proving to be one of the nation's biggest educational hurdles.

President Barack Obama's pledge that the United States will again have the world's highest proportion of college graduates by 2020 has only upped the stakes. By then, the Census Bureau predicts, Latinos will be 22 percent of the nation's college-age population - making low graduation rates a threat to the mission.

"Now's the time that we're looking at Latinos rather than just as a footnote, but we're looking at them as a central point to meeting our nation's goals," said Deborah Santiago, vice president for policy and research at Excelencia in Education. "It was a perfect opportunity to say, 'You can't meet this goal without Latinos.' "