The annual digest of federal education statistics always contains a bunch of useful nuggets, and this year's is no exception. Tucked into its nearly 400 pages of charts are signs of a trend we've noted in the past: Hispanic students are moving to charter schools in large numbers.
Released last month by the National Center for Education Statistics, The Condition of Education 2016 shows that between 2003-04 and 2013-14, Hispanics' share of charter school students jumped from 21 percent to 30 percent.
Source: NCES
Hispanics are the fastest-growing ethnic group in public schools overall, so it's no surprise that they also account for a growing share of charter school students. Still, the federal report shows that, nationwide, the share of Hispanics enrolled in public schools as a whole didn't jump quite as fast, increasing six percentage points.
Source: NCES
The report also notes the share of charter schools with a majority-Hispanic student population rose between the 2012-13 and 2013-14 school years, from 22.6 percent to 23.4 percent. The share of traditional public schools with more than 50 percent Hispanic enrollment also grew, from 14.9 percent to 15.3 percent. Looking over a longer time frame, the pattern is even clearer.
Source: NCES
This trend has all kinds of implications for school choice and public education as a whole. For example, there's the issue of educator diversity. Do the teaching force and administrative ranks match the makeup of the student body? There's at least anecdotal evidence that Hispanic parents favor schools where the answer is yes.
