By Ramona Schindelheim for WorkingNation.
Broadcast version by Nadia Ramlagan for Kentucky News Connection reporting for the WorkingNation-Public News Service Collaboration

There are more than 63.7 million Latinos in the United States, making it the nation's largest racial or ethnic minority at 19.1% of the total population.

They also make up about 20% of the nation's workforce.

Latinos are the youngest cohort in the country's population with a median age of around 30, while the U.S. population, as a whole, is around 38.5.

Between now and 2030, 78% of the net new workers in the country - people entering the labor market minus the people retiring from the labor market - will be Latino, according to a forecast from the U.S. Department of Labor.

As our economy continues to shift the way we work, more than nine out of ten job postings (92%) in the country now require some level of digital skills development. However, more than half of Latinos (57%) have low to no digital skills.

"These data points show us the very urgent need to make sure that Latino workers get proper access to digital skills training opportunities. We really need to double down on our efforts to make sure that Latino workers, Latino business owners, and the Latino community as a whole, have the right tools to fully participate in the digital economy," says Diego Deleersnyder, associate director for Policy & Research at the Aspen Institute Latinos and Society program.

He leads the Latino Digital Inclusion Initiative, which aims at identifying, developing, and uplifting promising ecosystem approaches that better prepare Latinos to compete in a 21st century digital economy.

Earlier this summer, Latinos and Society released the Aspen Principles for Latino Digital Success, a series of guidelines to inform the design and implementation of effective digital equity efforts targeting the Latino community.

These principles compile the main takeaways from the January meeting of the Aspen Latino Digital Success Task Force, co-chaired by Hector Mujica, Google.org; Juan Otero, Comcast Corporation; and Amanda Renteria, Code for America.

Expanding access to the the digital economy

Deleersnyder says the group envisions the principles and their accompanying questions as a framework for decision makers in the public, nonprofit, and private sectors on how to better support the Latino community in this journey.

"Basically, it's four principles. The first one of them is digital access, which focuses on the aspects that need to be considered when developing policies or initiatives that aim at improving the access to internet and digital devices in the Latino community," he says.

"The second one is around digital skills - a series of guidelines on how to make sure that the digital skills programming aligns with the needs and expectations of the Latino community, understanding that the Latino community is very heterogeneous, and that there is no one size fits all."

The third principle is digital empowerment.

"This is basically to ensure that the private sector, the companies, the organizations, the employers, provide the tools that employees need in order to successfully growing their careers. This is not just about training the people. If the people that get trained don't have proper access, there is no pipeline into high-quality jobs in the tech sector or good jobs in other industries that increasingly require digital skills, then all that effort is for nothing, right?" Deleersnyder continues.

The fourth principle is around sustainability - making certain there are sufficient investments across the capital continuum to support digital equity efforts in the long run.

He explains, "It's a reflection on how right now there is a unique opportunity with all the public funding becoming available for digital equity efforts. And that's amazing. That's great news for all of us. But we need to make sure that we also start thinking of alternative sources of funding, focusing on the importance of securing funding from philanthropy, but also identifying innovative ways of funding some of these programs. And also the discussion around impact, how we can make sure that the dollars are going to the most impactful initiatives, because at the end of the day, the resources are limited."

Deleersnyder points out that given the size and projected growth of the Latino workforce, it is imperative that the public, nonprofit, and private sectors act now to arm that workforce with the skills it needs to succeed.

"If the Latino workforce doesn't have the tools they need in order to succeed in the digital economy, this is going to impact negatively the competitiveness of the U.S. economy, as a whole. So, definitely, this is something of interest not only to Latinos, but to the whole of the U.S economy and the whole of the U.S. society."


Ramona Schindelheim wrote this article for WorkingNation.


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Educators in Michigan and nationwide are voicing concerns politics are demoralizing teachers and discouraging others from entering the profession at a time when more teachers are needed.

They cited comments from GOP vice-presidential nominee, Sen. J.D. Vance, R-Ohio, about childless women as teachers, including American Federation of Teachers' President Randi Weingarten. The rhetoric, along with the Georgia school shooting, are raising fears the country's teacher shortage will only worsen.

Toni Coral, president of the Hamtramck Federation of Teachers, has been teaching for nearly 30 years. She said morale is low and, since the pandemic, many have experienced poor work-life balance.

"A lot of people just decided, 'No, I'm OK. I'm done,'" Coral observed. "Because we don't get the support we need and there's this continual expectation that we will work at home and lose family time, lose private times."

After the pandemic began, at the end of the 2019-2020 school year, Michigan had 700 fewer teachers by the fall of 2020, the third-largest decrease in the past decade.

Coral highlighted the educational priorities she hopes the incoming administration will address, no matter who takes office. She urged increased funding to modernize school buildings and calls for smaller class sizes and less standardized testing to enhance the quality of education. She would also like to see all students gain better access to books, to enhance reading skills.

"Send parents home from the hospital with a box full of books," Coral suggested. "Maybe make sure there are mobile libraries, that can go around to communities like where I teach, or out to rural communities, so people can have easy access to free books."

Coral emphasized her primary wish is for the next President of the United States to demonstrate and model compassion and intelligence.

Teachers nationwide say safety issues and politics can sometimes make it harder for them to do their jobs.

A safe and secure workplace is one of 10 issues included in an Education Bill of Rights recently put together by the teachers' union in Texas.

Adam Lamont is a middle-school teacher and coach in the Dallas School District, and said making a difference in a child's life is rewarding.

"Day to day, joy that you get from interacting with kids, seeing them learn," said Lamont. "There are those days that are long, but there are those days that are really rewarding, too, and you always look back and try to remember those days and moments when you felt like you were able to break through with a kid."

Lamont has been a teacher for six years.

Most schools across Texas have been in session for only a few weeks, and Lamont said morale is still high among educators, despite challenges such as ongoing teacher shortages and pay concerns.

He said watching students succeed is fulfilling.

"I had one student who came back because they just graduated from high school," said Lamont. "Definitely those moments are special, so any time when you get to see old students is really, really, fun."

For anyone thinking about going into teaching, Lamont said he feels it's one of the most challenging jobs out there, but the good days make it worth it.





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Chronic absenteeism rates in Michigan schools have significantly declined, yet researchers warn the state's rate overall remains alarmingly high.

"Chronic absenteeism" is when a student misses at least 10% of the school year.

Michigan's rate dropped from nearly 39% to slightly more than 30% in the 2022-23 school year, but it's still higher than the 20% recorded in 2018. Climate change and extreme weather are now seen as factors that fuel absenteeism.

Veteran first-grade teacher Janice Rackozy from Hamtramck shares how her students face challenges during bad weather.

"Lot of the kids, if it's too cold, they won't come to school. If it's too hot, they call weather days. So, it interrupts the learning," she said. "One good thing out of it, we began to go online and the kids got used to going online because of COVID."

However, learning gaps because of the pandemic haven't closed.

Rackozy said her district has been proactive in making sure school buildings are updated and well insulated so students feel comfortable and safe when at school.

Many educators credit Michigan's Top 10 Strategic Education Plan, at least in part, for the decline in school absenteeism. The plan details key goals and strategies for better educational outcomes throughout the state, including support for struggling schools and promoting safe and healthy school environments.

Frank Donner, an elementary teacher in Detroit, said he tells parents at the beginning of the school year that if they do nothing else, just make sure their child comes to class.

"If they're here, we're going to work with them, and we can do a lot, and they will do a lot," he said. "But for every day that the student's missing, they're missing instruction, and it's not just that individual student that's missing out. It's also disrupting then the learning and routines and procedures for the rest of the class."

Donner said chronic school absenteeism affects students and staff equally, and that it's as big an issue in rural communities as it is in big cities or suburbs.


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