Today's Promise, Tomorrow's Future: The social and educational factors contributing to the outcomes of Hispanics in urban schools

The report, released in October 2011 by the Council of Great City Schools, scrutinizes data on how Hispanic students in urban school systems are performing academically compared to white students nationally. Hispanic students account for 37 percent of all students in the Great City Schools, a coalition of the 65 largest urban school systems in the nation.

In addition to examining the achievement of Hispanic students, the report reviews the achievement of Hispanic students who were former English Language Learners (ELLs) and ELLs who are Hispanic.

The report finds that Hispanic students face several challenges compared to their white peers. Math and reading achievement for Hispanics and Hispanic ELLs on the National Assessment of Educational progress were generally lower than their white peers in public schools nationally. Hispanic students were also reportedly at a much higher risk of dropping out of high school than their white and black peers.

The report does not offer recommendations for improvement, but the Council intends to convene a panel of schools officials and policymakers to address the disparity in academic performance between Hispanic students and their peers.

The Council of the Great City Schools is a coalition of 65 of the nation’s largest urban school systems. The organization advocates for the improvement of public education in the nation’s major cities.

Read the report (pdf).