Education

q The number of Latina/o children under age 18 more than doubled, rising from 21,272 in 1990 to 42,630 by 2000. Latina/o enrollments have spiked in areas of hypergrowth:

Changes in school population 1990-1991 to 1999-2000

Area	Latina/o enrollment 1990-1991	Latina/o enrollment 1999-2000	Number change	Percent change
Southwest Missouri	429	2590	2161	603%
Mid-Missouri	259	939	686	311%
Greater Kansas City	2353	4791	2438	204%

q About half new immigrant Latina/o families are Spanish-speaking. Statewide, Spanish limited English proficient (LEP) enrollments now stand at 5,098 students, almost doubling in five years.

	1996	1997	1998	1999	2000	2001
TOTAL LEP	5,660	6,514	7,269	8,157	10,238	11,542
Spanish – LEP	N/A	2,768	3,311	3,065	4,625	5,098

q In Kansas City alone there were 1,401 Spanish LEP students in 2001. Latina/o students are helping to stabilize public school enrollments in Kansas City:

For the 2002 academic year	White enrollment	Latina/o enrollment	African-American enrollment
Kansas City	4,607 (17%)	3,808 (14%)	18, 614 (67%)
Kansas City, Kansas	4,345 (21%)	4,881 (24%)	10,226 (50%)
North Kansas City	14,124 (83%)	1,041 (6%)	1,201 (7%)
Grandview	1,692 (40%)	266 (6%)	2,216 (52%)
Olathe	18,841 (85%)	1,139 (5%)	1,311 (6%)
Raytown	5,331 (63%)	334 (4%)	2,695 (32%)

q Spanish LEP enrollments for 2001 in top 10 school districts outside of Kansas City:

County & school districts	Total student enrollment	No. Spanish LEP students	% Spanish LEP of total
Senath S.D., Dunklin Cty	858	147	29.2%
Verona S.D. Lawrence Cty	356	89	25%
Milan S.D., Sullivan Cty	669	119	17.8%
Monett S.D., Barry Cty	1971	184	9.4%
McDonald County S.D.	3374	282	8.3%
Marshall S.D., Saline Cty	2581	174	6.8%
Wheaton S.D., Barry Cty	437	25	5.8%
Carthage S.D., Jasper Cty	3632	178	4.9%
Sedalia S.D., Pettis Cty	4260	143	3.4%
Neosho RV, Newton Cty	4086	112	2.7%

q Lack of resources for funding English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) and bilingual programs has been chronic. As reported by the state of Missouri, funding in 2000–2001 for ESOL and bilingual programs (not including migrant education) was only $200,000. This is an allocation of less than $20 per LEP student for the entire school year. On the positive side, the state reports that it will receive $1,650,000 in funds for ESOL and bilingual programs for 2002–2003 under the “No Child Left Behind” Act, providing opportunities to bridge the gap for this student population.

q The increases in LEP student populations also demands that lead state agencies and school districts rethink how they are providing education to LEP children. Since LEP enrollments are now significant in urban school districts as well as rural areas, the time has now come for the state to undertake a more integrated and systemic approach to educating non-English speakers.

SOURCE: Sylvia R. Lazos Vargas, Legal and Policy Challenges as Latinas/ois Make Their Homes in Missouri (MU Extension, University of Missouri-Columbia 2002).