FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE     
MARCH 28, 2011          

                                                                                   CONTACT: ADAM SHAPIRO
202-427-3603/ashapiro@lipmanhearne.com

 

Hispanic Scholarship Fund Responds to President Obama’s Call for More Hispanics to Attend and Graduate from College

 ‘Generation 1st Degree’ is a Way to Create a College-Bound Culture
 Within the Hispanic Community

 

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Frank Alvarez, the President and CEO of the Hispanic Scholarship Fund (www.hsf.net), pledged his non-profit’s full support to the message President Obama delivered Monday morning at the Hispanic Education Town Hall in Washington D.C.

“Mr. President, we whole heartedly endorse your important call to action for the Hispanic community. We agree Hispanic higher educational attainment is an American priority and increasingly essential to the future economic strength of our country,” says Alvarez, who will be attending the Town Hall. “We’ve launched Generation 1st Degree, a campaign aimed at encouraging and inspiring at least one person in every Latino family to graduate from college.  These first-in-family graduates spark a college-bound culture shift within their families today and with increased numbers of graduates, all Americans will benefit.”

Generation 1st Degree builds on sense of responsibility to the family that rests at the center of Hispanic American life.  HSF’s vision is for the U.S. Latino degree attainment rate to increase from 19 percent to 60 percent by 2025.

HSF estimates that percentage change will result in a significant increase in Latino lifetime earnings—from the current $24 trillion to $47 trillion (in current dollars) if the 2025 goal is met.

Alvarez says Latinos face a host of obstacles on their way to a college degree including trouble accessing information about the college admissions process and limited financial resources. He also urges the country’s leaders, corporations, communities and parents to also play renewed roles in this effort.

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Editor’s Note: Alvarez has been invited to the President’s Town Hall and will be attending as leader of the nation’s largest scholarship fund for Hispanics. He is available before and after the event to provide his thoughts.

About the Hispanic Scholarship Fund
Founded in 1975, the Hispanic Scholarship Fund believes that the country prospers when all Americans have access to the opportunities a college education can afford.  As the nation’s leading Hispanic higher education fund, HSF works to address the financial and cultural barriers that keep many Latinos from earning a college degree. HSF has awarded over $300 million in scholarships over the past 35 years and has supported a broad range of outreach and education programs to help students and their families navigate collegiate life, from gaining admission and securing financial aid to finding employment after graduation.  HSF envisions a future where every Latino household will have at least one college graduate, creating an enduring impact on the college outlook of Latino families nationwide, and strengthening the American economy for generations to come. For more information about the Hispanic Scholarship Fund please visit: www.HSF.net.