In 2008, slightly more than 850 Latino students were enrolled at the UI — that number has grown to approximately 1,600 over the last five years. Latino students are also the leading domestic minority group enrolled at the UI.
Emil Rinderspacher, associate director of UI Admissions, said the growth of minority students is reflective of Iowa’s growing Latino population. According to the State Data Center of Iowa, the estimated Latino population as of July 2012 was 162,894, 5.3 percent of the population.
“A lot of the growth is driven by demographics,” Riderspacher said. “Hispanic families tend to be younger and larger, the influx of new people has certainly hit the school districts, and I think that’s the reason to continue to grow minority recruitment.”
John Moder, senior vice president and chief operating officer for Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities, said the Latino population is one of the fastest growing in the nation and the trend of more Latino students at universities and colleges is becoming more common in many states.
