Finding Your Workforce: Linking College Completion with U.S. Workforce Needs in Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts, and Mathematics (STEAM)
Ruyu (Iris) Yan; Lily Cuellarsola; Deborah A. Santiago
March 2026
Overview
For over 20 years, Excelencia in Education has served its mission to accelerate Latino student success while increasing all student success in higher education in order to address the country’s need for a highly educated workforce and civic leadership. Finding Your Workforce: Linking College Completion with U.S. Workforce Needs in STEAM represents the latest extension of Excelencia’s hallmark work of bringing national attention to higher education institutions and practices that advance Latino talent, strengthen our economy, and ensure America’s future.
Latino talent is vital to our workforce—particularly in science, technology, engineering, the arts, and mathematics (STEAM), where innovation and creativity converge to drive economic growth. As artificial intelligence (AI) accelerates changes across industries, the future of work will rely on an interdisciplinary workforce that pairs technical expertise with uniquely human capabilities like creativity and collaboration. Integrating the arts into STEM is essential for national competitiveness; however, Latinos remain significantly underrepresented in these high-wage, high-growth sectors.
This brief presents Excelencia's insights on Latino participation in the STEAM education-to-workforce pipeline and actionable strategies for institutions and employers to close persistent gaps.
The top 5 institutions awarding STEAM credentials to Latinos across all credential levels are:
Miami Dade College in Florida (FL)
Dallas College (TX)
Central New Mexico Community College (NM)
Valencia College (FL)
Lone Star College System (TX)
Institutions can ensure Latinos are included among our future STEAM workforce by:
Including the arts in STEM curricula.
Assessing and increasing Latino participation in STEM and STEAM programs.
Expanding post-completion STEAM support for graduates.
Evaluating and deepening industry partnerships.
Tracking how Latino alumni apply their education in the workforce and using those insights to refine programs and strengthen career readiness.
Collaborating with other stakeholders to strengthen the STEAM talent pipeline.
Employers can ensure Latinos are included among our future STEAM workforce by:
Recruiting from the top institutions graduating Latinos in STEAM.
Investing in interdisciplinary Latino talent ecosystems.
Aligning workforce and academic goals.
Collaborating on data and insight sharing.
Engaging faculty as innovation partners.
Connecting Latino professionals as mentors to support current students’ transitions into STEAM careers.
For the executive summary and lists of Top 25 institutions graduating Latinos in STEAM, visit:
Suggested Citation:
Yan, R., Cuellarsola, L., & Santiago, D. (2026). Finding Your Workforce: Linking College Completion with U.S. Workforce Needs in Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts, and Mathematics (STEAM). Washington, D.C.: Excelencia in Education.
