DATOS 2005

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The Arizona Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and SRP present the 10th Annual Focus on Arizona’s Hispanic Market in DATOS 2005, which includes the latest demographic information on purchasing power, birth rates and other consumer and business trends within the Hispanic population both in Arizona and the nation. The publication includes the latest statistics about this growing population. Join Arizona Hispanic Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Harry Garewal for a discussion about DATOS 2005.

>> José Cárdenas:
Good evening and welcome to "Horizonte". I'm José Cárdenas. Buying power, birth rates and other consumer and business trends for Hispanics in Arizona and across the nation. We'll talk about the latest information on these topics and more in "Datos 2005". Also, the country's only Hispanic higher education conference comes to Phoenix this week. And meet a husband and wife dedicated to helping people in need. All these stories coming up next on "Horizonte".

>> Funding for "Horizonte" is provided by bank of America, who applauds those who strive for excellence. Bank of America, higher standards. And by SRP.

>> Announcer:
SRP's business is water and power but our dedication to the community doesn't stop there. SRP, the leader in water and power.

>> José Cárdenas:
The Arizona Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and SRP have released "Datos 2005". The focus is on Arizona's Hispanic market and its decade of growth. Nadine Arroyo tells us about some highlights in this year's study.

>>José Cárdenas:
The Arizona Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and SRP have released "Datos 2005". The focus is on Arizona's Hispanic market and its decade of growth. Nadine Arroyo tells us about some highlights in this year's study.

>> Nadine Arroyo:
The Arizona Hispanic Chamber of Commerce has released this year's Datos, the information guide that offers a window to Arizona's Hispanic market. From consumer preferences to business ownership and outreach. According to Datos, Hispanics are the fastest growing minority group in Arizona. Hispanics students have the largest and fastest growing minority group in grades K through 12. And Hispanics have the highest birth rate in Arizona among all groups. According to Datos, over the past decade, Hispanic purchasing power in Arizona rose from 8 billion to $21 billion. In the U.S. Hispanics spend more than $5 billion shopping online annually. Of all new home buyers within the next 10 years, 40% will be ethnic and immigrant, with Latinos doubling their numbers in just 20 years. And this year's Datos makes one thing clear, the Hispanic population in Arizona is growing significantly as well as their impact on the state's economy and community Development.

>> José Cárdenas:
Joining us tonight to talk more about Datos 2005 is president and CEO for the Arizona Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Harry Garewal. Welcome to "Horizonte".

>> Harry Garewal:
Thank you.

>> José Cárdenas:
A different looking Datos than in the past. First, just a thumbnail sketch of the chamber itself that's responsible for putting together this report.

>> Harry Garewal:
The Arizona Hispanic Chamber of Commerce has been in existence for 57 years. We are currently statewide. We have just recently brought on three new board members, one from Nogales, one from Flagstaff and one Prescott, so we're truly a statewide agency today. The organization has around 600 members on our roll right now, and we also operate Arizona's Minorities Business Development Center, that provides technical assistance to minority business enterprises that are at $500,000 in gross revenue and above.

>> José Cárdenas:
Certainly one of the things the center has been known for the last decade is Datos, the annual report. Who else participates with the chamber in this endeavor?

>> Harry Garewal:
It was put together about 10 years ago, because the business community kept asking for demographics on the Hispanic community. No one had them. About 10 years ago, '94, under Sandy, when she was in the position as president, started to compile the data. We contract with the W.P. Carey school of Business at Arizona State University, under the leadership of Dr. Luis Olivas and his graduate students that we commissioned in January to start collecting this data. By May they have all the data put together. This year, we had 170 data points this year that we wanted to look at and review and we brought it down to about 50 data points which is in the book. The significant difference in the book this year is that we take the data and have put content next to it. It makes it easier for people to read the charts.

>>José Cárdenas:
What's the goal of Datos? Which means data in Spanish.

>> Harry Garewal:
It's to provide that demographic information on the Hispanic community, primarily to the business community.

>>José Cárdenas:
We're talking about the business community at large, right?

>> Harry Garewal:
he general business community, because the question has always been asked, how can we market and what do Hispanics buy? How much buying power do they have? Where are they located? This is helpful for anyone looking to do business in the Hispanic community.

>>José Cárdenas:
SRP sponsored the conference at which this year's Datos was unveiled, and they released their own report on Hispanic business. What is the difference between SRP's study and Datos?

>> Harry Garewal:
The biggest difference really is that SRP's study was a profile on Hispanic businesses throughout the state of Arizona. For the first time in the history of the state, there has been a compilation of information that helps you to understand what does Hispanic business look like. That's what SRP studied. Datos is accumulation of data of the population, fertility rates, household ownership, that kind of information.

>> José Cárdenas:
Focus more on the consumer?

>> Harry Garewal:
On the consumer so businesses can look at and try to develop marketing strategies to be able to go in and market.

>>José Cárdenas:
We recently had Max Gonzalez and Dr. Olivas participate in that study as well on to talk about the SRP study. One of the things that surprised them was that Pima County versus Maricopa County, there were some suggestions were more affluent Hispanic businesses in Pima County versus Maricopa County. That surprised me a bit. Do you see the same thing in the consumer base in those two counties?

>> Harry Garewal:
The number of folks in the Hispanic community in both counties, Maricopa County we have 25% of the population, in Pima County it's 30%. I think that would probably contribute to that number.

>> José Cárdenas:
Let's talk about some of the data. Birth rate. What did you find?

>> Harry Garewal:
Hispanics have the highest birth rate in the United States. To put it in perspective, 50% of the Latinos are under 25. 70% of Latinos are under the age of 36. We're a very young community. The real significance is when you look at it from a consumer perspective, since they're that young, there has been a very large increase in the number of computers that are being purchased and the amount of online shopping because these younger Latinos really do and are very savvy about using -

>> José Cárdenas:
What about Hispanic households?

>> Harry Garewal:
55% of the United States Hispanics own their own homes. And the Phoenix metro, the Hispanic household controls about $14.9 billion in spending. And the average annual household income is around 51,000.

>>José Cárdenas:
In terms of numbers, we've got one of every three households?

>> Harry Garewal:
It is. There is nearly one in every three households in the city of Phoenix and one in five in the state.

>>José Cárdenas:
Pima County?

>> Harry Garewal:
I don't have that complete break down.

>> José Cárdenas:
Maricopa County would be around 20%?

>> Harry Garewal:
It would be around 20%, and I would say Pima would be closer to about 30% because of the demographics on them.

>>José Cárdenas:
Data on the religious breakdown?

>> Harry Garewal:

That was interesting. We found was that by 2050, Latinos will account for 85% of the Catholic population in the United States.

>> José Cárdenas:
Why would Datos be interested in that?

>> Harry Garewal:
It's helpful to understand where folks gather. What are their beliefs, what they value. I think by understanding the religious principles they are ascribing to, you have a better understanding of how you might want to market to them.

>>José Cárdenas:
The key note speaker was Phil Archer. He made some rather provocative statements at the conference. Tell us about that.

>> Harry Garewal:
He did, in regards to the way that marketers are marketing to the Hispanic community, he basically said you should look at the Hispanic community like any other market. If you're going to do it, you have to go at it 100%. Most of the times what happens is that if you see a population for example of 14%, most marketers will put together a budget that says 14% of our budget is going to go to marketing to Hispanics. The other thing I thought was good in the presentation was the fact that taking away some of the stereotyping. By that I mean, there was a slide in particular that demonstrated what I think most of us have seen in the past and that is you see mariachi, you see people sitting around, eating guacamole and drinking a Corona.

>> José Cárdenas:
It's a much different population.

>> Harry Garewal:
It is.

>> José Cárdenas:
We have to leave it with that. Thank you joining us on Horizonte.

>> Harry Garewal:
Thank you.

>> José Cárdenas:
The Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities or "HACU" represents more than 400 colleges and universities committed to Hispanic higher education and success. Their 19th annual conference will be held this week in Phoenix. The theme this year is the future of Hispanic leaders. But as Nadine Arroyo reports, Latino students face many challenges when it comes to completing their education.

>> Nadine Arroyo:
Obtaining precise data on high school graduation completion rates anywhere in the country is difficult and complicated. With a wide array of research conducted in the country and particularly in the State of Arizona, experts have made one issue very clear. Arizona ranks below the national average in this critical area.

>> Dr. Sybil Francis:
We know most kids drop out in 9th and 10th grade. There's also a significant number who drop out between 8th and 9th grade. We don't have a good handle on the statistics. Graduation rates are calculated starting in 9th grade. Most drop out between 9th and 10th grade.

>> Nadine Arroyo:
Where does the Latino population fit in this? According to our expert, also at the bottom. Dr. Sybil Frances is the senior advisor to the president of Arizona State University Foundation. She says, nationally, Latino students lag behind other ethnic groups in completing high school, for the few that go to college, the graduation rate is just as low.

>> Dr. Sybil Francis:
In terms of graduation rates, comparing Latinos to the rest of the population, they're about half as likely to graduate from college. About 23% graduate from college versus about 47% of their white counterparts. So the gap between graduating and college for Latinos relative to their peers versus high school is even larger.

>> Nadine Arroyo:
Experts add that Latino students face the same challenges other students face. Finances, support and knowledge about higher education. But Dr. Frances adds, once the challenges are overcome, success is infinite.

>> Dr. Sybil Francis:
In terms of the challenge of the Latino experience in college, we know Latino kids going to college are as qualified as their counterparts.

>> Nadine Arroyo:
What can be done to increase the number of students graduating from high school and continuing on to college? According to Dr. Frances, educational institutions need to be proactive.

>> Dr. Sybil Francis:
A new program was announced a few months ago, Access ASU, which promises families making $18,000 or less, their children will leave ASU with no debt. That does mean some work-study and some grants and other kinds of financial aid that that commitment has been made.

>> Nadine Arroyo:
At least with such a commitment, Arizona Latino students are given opportunity to overcome financial challenges while allowing them to concentrate on completing their college education and obtaining a degree.

>> José Cárdenas:
With us tonight to talk more about the HACU and the conference is the president and CEO, Dr. Antonio Flores. Also here is Wal-Mart's director of corporate affairs, Delia Garcia. Wal-Mart is one of the corporate sponsors for the conference. Dr. Flores, welcome. Delia. Good to have you back.

>> Dr. Antonio Flores:
Thank you.

>>José Cárdenas:
Dr. Flores, a quick thumbnail sketch of your background.


>> Dr. Antonio Flores:
I'm originally from Mexico. I went to school up to college, came to the U.S. in my mid-20s, in the mid-'70s. I went to graduate school at university of Michigan in Ann Arbor and did my Ph.D. there.

>>José Cárdenas:
What did you do before you became the president of HACU?

>> Dr. Antonio Flores:
I was in an office of education for the state of Michigan, which handled policy, financial aid programs, the range of things that go with higher education in that state.

>>José Cárdenas:
And spent nine years directing HACU.

>> Dr. Antonio Flores:
Now I've been with HACU nine years.

>> José Cárdenas:
Tell us about HACU. What is it?

>> Dr. Antonio Flores:
HACU is made up of more than 450 colleges and universities nationwide and also institutions abroad. We have them in Latin America, Spain, and the Caribbean. HACU is committed to championing Hispanic success in higher education for institutions with Congress and the federal government. We're moving to the states to do the same. So they get better support, fair share of resources to do a better job educating Latinos. In addition, we have best practices, programs helping youth and faculty as well as administrators to improve the performance of the institution.

>>José Cárdenas:
The institutions, one is known as Hispanic serving institutions.

>> Dr. Antonio Flores:
Correct. Hispanic serving institutions are those that have 25% or more Hispanics enrolled. And we have about 442 of those nationwide. In addition, we have associate members that have 10 to 24% Hispanic enrollments or at least 1000 Latinos enrolled.

>> José Cárdenas:
ASU, despite having a very large population, because the school is so big would be in that category?

>> Dr. Antonio Flores:
Exactly. They are about 12% Hispanic enrollment out of 45, 47,000 students.

>> José Cárdenas:
How many students nationwide are represented by institutions that are members of HACU?

>> Dr. Antonio Flores:
In our association, we have institutions that concentrate about 1.6 million of the 2.2 million Hispanics in higher education today.

>>José Cárdenas:
Delia, is that part of the reason Wal-Mart is involved with HACU, because it reaches so many students?

>> Delia Garcia:
Absolutely. HACU is a tremendous organization and it is very important, in the legislative issues of quality and access to education for Hispanics but also in supporting students and their success through the educational process, making sure they are getting into college and graduating and having some preparation for the work force. As you know Wal-Mart is growing so rapidly and talent fuels our growth. We find a good connection with HACU and their support for students and their preparation for the work force.

>>José Cárdenas:
Wal-Mart is sponsoring this year's conference?

>> Delia Garcia:
We are. It's our second year sponsoring the conference. We have had a relationship with HACU for several years in the scholarship area.

>>José Cárdenas:
Can you explain that?

>> Delia Garcia:
Sure. We are giving $40,000 to HACU to use for scholarships for Hispanic students that meet the criteria for the scholarship program. We're hoping to help them get to that graduation goal and make sure they're getting out to the work force and hopefully coming to work for us.

>>José Cárdenas:
Doctor, can you give us more specifics of the scholarship program, how big is it?

>> Dr. Antonio Flores:
HACU manages 11 different scholarship programs, Wal-Mart is one of those 11. That program is targeted to students who are studying business administration. We want them to have at least a 3.0 GPA, leadership skills, a good track record of community service and demonstrated leadership skills. That program is geared to that particular sector of the student population. However, we have other programs that are very important to our students. Such as what I consider to be not only the largest but the best internship program in the nation. We serve annually, up to 650 different colleges and universities that send us as many interns across the country.

>>José Cárdenas:
You place them in federal government agencies and --

>> Dr. Antonio Flores:
We have established working and contractual relationships to place Hispanics in professional level experiences through an internship program. HACU basically becomes a temporary employer because we process payroll and we help them develop a work plan for the experience.

>>José Cárdenas:
For the participants, corporate and government --

>> Dr. Antonio Flores:
Exactly.

>> José Cárdenas:
In your opinion, one of the best in the country, why is that?

>> Dr. Antonio Flores:
For at least two reasons. One is that the students we attract to the program is a high quality pool. The average GPA is 3.4 in a scale of 4. All come with tremendous wealth of experience in community service, leadership skills. The placement of the interns is the second important reason. It provides a very high quality professional experience and actually allows their supervisors to learn from them, as well, and to dispel some of the stereotypes of where Hispanics are not normally employed. And thirdly, because the rate of those who are employed after the experience is done and they graduate from college is very high. And so we have all of those three main reasons to conclude it is one of the best.

>> José Cárdenas:
Wal-Mart participates in the program?

>> Delia Garcia:
We are starting to develop that relationship in the internship program. One of the great things about the conference is some of the activities that the students will be involved, the resume writing work shop, the mock interview session which is preparing them to go into the work for and hopefully work for us. Wal-Mart is growing, we're going to create 100,000 jobs in the next year.

>> José Cárdenas:
You need people with higher education.

>> Delia Garcia:
We will. We will be recruiting college seniors for entry level management positions. We want them to know there are career opportunities at Wal-Mart, you can look for a long term career at Wal-Mart that has competitive benefits and wages and all the other things you would find at other corporations around the country.

>> José Cárdenas:
Doctor Flores, I want to come back to some of the specifics of the conference. Before we do that, you mentioned the advocacy?

>> Dr. Antonio Flores:
The higher education act is now in process, to have greater inclusion of Hispanics in the various programs. Also we are pushing very hard to make sure that Hispanics have institutions provided with more resources under that act as well as a new component for what is now in place. For graduate education and professional programs.

>> José Cárdenas:
Any participation in the dream act?

>> Dr. Antonio Flores:
Of course and there are other organizations interested seeing that pass. Up to this point it hasn't passed. I don't see that happening this year yet unless some miracle happens between now and December. We are not going to give up because it is such a critical piece of legislation. We have been helping at the state level in some states where legislation has been passed and there are now 10 different states in the nation that allow undocumented students to go to school as regular residents of the state without any questions asked to their immigration status. And providing them with state financial aid. Not federal, just the state financial aid.

>> José Cárdenas:
We have about 30-seconds. Final thoughts on the conference and HACU.

>> Delia Garcia:
It is a tremendous partner for us to promote educational success for Hispanic students across the U.S. and help prepare them for the work force. We are so happy to be a part of the conference, to be a sponsor of that conference and be awarding $40,000 in scholarships.

>> José Cárdenas:
Good luck on the conference.

>> José Cárdenas:
HACU's 19th annual conference is October 15th-18th at the Phoenix civic plaza. In addition, HACU will be hosting a account town hall meeting" on Tuesday, October 18, starting at 10 a.m. The event is open to the public. And it will also take place at the Phoenix civic plaza. And finally tonight, we bring you another Valle del Sol honoree. Each year, people are recognized for their impact on the Latino community. Tonight, a husband and wife dedicated to helping people in the community. 12 News anchor Mark Curtis introduces us to Dr. Jose and Frances Burruel.

>> Mark Curtis:
They're partners in work and in life.

>> Francis Burruel:
We work off of each other.

>> Mark Curtis:
They actually finish each other's sentences. That's not all.

>> Francis Burruel:
Some of our more passionate discussions have been over other people's challenges.

>> Mark Curtis:
They have dedicated themselves to improving the lives of those in need. Several years ago, they set up a program gathering medical supplies for residents in Alamos, Mexico. The couple spearheaded the challenging effort from start to finish.

>> Dr. Jose Burruel:
I don't know how we got it across, but we got it there. And that's just one example of things we were able to get down there. As my wife said, very difficult to do.

>> Mark Curtis:
Red tape delayed the process but through persistence and patience, the donations got to Mexico.

>> Mark Curtis:
The busy couple is dedicated to the arts, breaking language barriers as volunteer bilingual tour guides at the Heard museum. Both work closely with the Scottsdale Unified School District making sure Latino students were not ignored in emphasis.

>> Francis Burruel:
I speak Spanish and I am proud of that. I can operate in the Spanish speaking and English-speaking world. I feel like, how sad and how much people are missing by not participating in that regard.

>> Mark Curtis:
They also wish more young Latinos would take advantage of their ability to make an impact.

>> Dr. Jose Burruel:
I'm looking forward to the day that a lot of our young 18-year-olds, because when you look at the median age of Hispanics, it's very promising. I want to see those 18-year-olds registered to vote and vote in the next election.

>> José Cárdenas:
The Burruels also helped change practices within the Scottsdale school district, allowing minority and women-owned businesses to compete for contracts in the areas of construction, goods and services. For transcripts and other information on the show, go to our website at www.az.pbs.org and click on "Horizonte". That's all for us tonight. I'm José Cárdenas. We'll see you next week on "Horizonte". Have a good night.

Harry Garewal: President and CEO, Arizona Hispanic Chamber of Commerce;

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