Educational progress and challenges students face in the United States by race and ethnicity

The number of students finishing high school has increased over time for students in all racial/ethnic groups. However, the rate of progress has varied and racial/ethnic gaps persist. The National Center for Education Statistics released a new report today (February 20) entitled Status and Trends in the Education of Racial and Ethnic Groups 2018. This report provides details on the educational progress and challenges students face in the United States by race and ethnicity. The report presents 36 indicators on topics ranging from prekindergarten through postsecondary education, as well as labor force outcomes. In addition, the report features two new spotlights on the characteristics of public school teachers by race/ethnicity and the characteristics of postsecondary institutions serving specific minority racial/ethnic groups. The new report shows that public schools are becoming more racially and ethnically diverse. Between fall 2000 and fall 2015, the percentage of students enrolled in public elementary and secondary schools decreased for students who were White (from 61 to 49 percent) and Black (from 17 to 15 percent). In contrast, the percentage increased for students who were Hispanic (from 16 to 26 percent) and Asian/ Pacific Islander (from 4 to 5 percent) during the same time period. Other key findings include: In 2015–16, public elementary and secondary schools that had more racial/ethnic diversity in their student populations also tended to have more racial/ethnic diversity among teachers. The percentage of minority teachers was highest at schools that had 90 percent or more minority students (55 percent) and was lowest at schools that had less than 10 percent minority students (2 percent). In 2016, the percentage of children under age 18 living in poverty was higher for Black children than Hispanic children (31 and 26 percent, respectively), and the percentages for both of these groups were higher than for White and Asian children (10 percent each); In 2015, about 4.9 million public school students were identified as English language learners (ELL). Over three-quarters of ELL students were Hispanic (77.7 percent, or 3.8 million students); From 2000 to 2016, the high school status completion rate for 18- to 24-year-olds increased from 64 percent to 89 percent for Hispanic students, from 84 percent to 92 percent for Black students; and from 92 percent to 94 percent for White students. Despite this progress, the completion rates for Hispanic and Black 18- to 24-year-olds remained lower than the White rate in 2016; In 2016–17, there were 4,360 degree-granting institutions in the United States, including four types of institutions serving specific minority racial/ethnic communities: 102 historically Black colleges and universities, 290 Hispanic-serving institutions, 35 tribally-controlled colleges and universities, and 113 Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-serving institutions. The number of bachelor’s degrees awarded to Hispanic students more than tripled between 2000–01 and 2016–16. During the same period, the number of degrees awarded also increased for students who were Black (by 75 percent), Asian/Pacific Islander (by 75 percent), and White (by 29 percent); and In 2016, unemployment rates among adults ages 25 to 64 were higher for American Indian/Alaska Native adults (11 percent) than for Black (8 percent), Hispanic (5 percent), Asian (4 percent), and White (4 percent) adults.