BOISE, Idaho — The Idaho Commission on Hispanic Affairs hosted a luncheon Tuesday to discuss the current state of the Hispanic population in Idaho.
The speakers consisted of J.J. Saldana, who works with the commission, Idaho Governor Brad Little, and Dean Fisher who serves as the President of the College of Southern Idaho.
While the speakers addressed many things, the topic which linked all of the speeches together was education. With the growing Hispanic population in the state, the commission sees education as one of the most important factors, especially because much of the growth is coming from the younger generation.
“The majority of our population is 24 years and younger," Saldana said. "So the people who are seeing the population growth are schools. They are seeing it the most.”
The growth has been statewide. The commission highlights that Eastern Idaho has seen some of the most dramatic increases in the Hispanic population.
Saldana says it's not only important that the population of students has grown, but this generation is more involved in their schools. He also says they are politically active.
“They’re also more Civically engaged," Saldana said. "What does that mean? It means that they’re going to be voting here in the next five years and that’s going to change a lot of our voting block.”
Governor Little echoed the importance of education. He says that keeping teachers in the state is the key to strengthening Idaho education. He also says his administration is working on pay increases for teachers across the state.
“Recruiting and retaining high-quality teachers is probably the most important thing that we do as a state," Little said.
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