Many immigrant Hispanics speak only limited English when they arrive in the U.S. Their ability to function in the labor market depends on learning English as quickly as possible – and there is plenty of evidence that they are doing so.

The Indiana Business Research Center’s monthly publication, InContext, reported in July 2007 that 79.1 percent of Indiana’s Hispanic population, age 5 and older, speak English well or very well.⁸ That number increases to 96.7 percent of Hispanics who were born in the U.S. Even foreign-born Hispanics are likely to speak English if they have been in the country since at least 2000. The share of Hispanics speaking English “not well” falls from 57 percent among recent arrivals to 28 percent among those who have been here at least since 2000. In other words, the language barrier almost disappears with the second generation, and even among the first generation progress toward English proficiency is rapid. Forty-one percent of Indiana’s Hispanics have arrived since 2000, so many don’t speak English well yet. But evidence suggests they will.

Another issue relating to Hispanics is education level. Hispanics are only about 6 percent of the population, but 22.2 percent of those in the Indianapolis workforce who lack a high school diploma. Hispanics make up only 3.3 percent of the college-educated workforce.⁹ Asians coming to America tend to be overrepresented in the higher-educated cohorts because many of them come here to study. But many Hispanics, who come here to work, may lack education.

According to the Indiana Department of Education, Hispanics’ graduation rate in the Indianapolis Public Schools in 2006 was higher than that of white or black students. This suggests that Hispanics are making the best of their opportunities in education, as well as work.

8 The data source for these findings does not provide figures for Indianapolis. We assume the IBRC’s findings for the state are pertinent for Indianapolis as well.

9 American Community Survey, 2005 Table C16010.