In County’s ‘Latinization,’ Education Is the Key : Growing college enrollment is part of a multifaceted success story.

Slowly but surely it is becoming apparent to educators, community activists, business owners, and policy analysts that the future of Orange County lies not in erecting more gated communities, initiating segregationist gerrymandering, or assuming that welfare aid is the only type of assistance immigrants want or need.

Rather, to ensure that residents meet the challenges of the next century with the proper socioeconomic tools and wielding an effective battery of attitudes, we all must embrace and then capitalize on the fact that the 786 square miles that span from San Clemente to La Habra is becoming more ethnically dynamic. While the growing Asian American population will significantly affect the future of Orange County, the election of Loretta Sanchez to Congress focuses our attention to the growing “Latinization” of the county.

This Latinization is reflected in the rapid growth in the number of Latinos matriculating at our universities, establishing businesses and winning elective office.

Since the founding of Cal State Fullerton nearly 40 years ago, the number of Latinos attending the university has grown quickly. In 1959, when the university offered its first courses, a mere 1.4% of Orange County residents were persons of color. Fifteen years later, already 6% of the first-time freshman were Latino. By 1985, the number had doubled to 12%. This past fall semester, 29% of the entering first-time freshman identified themselves as Latino.

Historically, many Latinos living and working in Orange County have come from low-income backgrounds where finding and keeping work was the paramount activity. Due to cultural and socioeconomic barriers, aspiring toward a college education has tended not to be a priority among Latino parents or their children. It is not surprising, then, when we find that Latinos have been underrepresented at the undergraduate level for years.

In the 1970s, the first-time freshman class at CSUF was 6% Latino, yet they constituted about 11% of the population. It wasn’t until the middle years of this decade that Latinos finally have approached parity, rising to about a quarter of the county’s population and a quarter of the first-time freshmen. By 2005, the Center for Demographic Research at Cal State Fullerton projects that Latinos will constitute one-third of Orange County’s population. At current rates of growth, that same year Latinos should make up about one-third of the first-time freshman class as well.

These growth trends in education demonstrate that within Orange County’s Latino community, the word has gotten out that completing a high school education and then working toward a bachelor’s degree are prerequisites for achieving success. And maybe just as important, the attitude among educators that led them to shunt Latino high school students toward metal shop or home economics classes rather than calculus classes is quickly disappearing.

Beyond the halls of academia, the county’s business landscape is also being altered by the effects of the growth within the Latino community. The 28 largest Latino-owned businesses in the county generate revenue in excess of half a billion dollars. An additional 20,000 businesses generate another $1.5 billion. The Department of Commerce recently reported that while the county’s overall job growth from 1987 to 1992 was 5%, among Latino-owned businesses job growth tripled. As the driving force propelling the region into the ranks of the economically dominant, the strength of Latino businesses is becoming the barometer that measures the health of the region’s business community.

In government, Latinos are winning more elected offices. Recent winners include: Ted Moreno of the Santa Ana City Council, Maria Moreno of the Placentia City Council and Mayor Miguel Pulido of Santa Ana.

Although progress has been slow, a clarion call was sounded this past election that radiated throughout Orange County, alerting residents to the desires and ambitions of the Latino community. After a lot of hand shaking, organizing disparate groups and persevering against incredible odds, Loretta Sanchez successfully was elected to Congress in the 46th District. Her triumph was as startling as it was joyous, making the front page of newspapers from Mazatlan to Monterey. For Latinos, it long will be remembered in Orange County as the day of recognition.

Orange County is currently at a crossroads in its development of business, governmental and interpersonal relations. Unfortunately, a fear of difference and the geographic and interpersonal isolation that characterize so many of us and our neighborhoods remains an underlying subtext for much of what happens in Orange County on a day-to-day basis. To overcome these barriers, we must encourage each other to continue striving for excellence and expanding educational opportunities for all. Most critical, however, we must continue talking to one another. In the final analysis, it will be the silence between us that will be our downfall.

When one encounters a crossroads, it’s wise to seek advice as to the proper path to follow. Only in the midst of a rich and fertile dialogue will Latinos, Asians, African Americans and whites be able to decide which path to choose and which tools and attitudes will be necessary to successfully negotiate that path.