Latinos outpace whites in graduation rates at Western Oregon University

Cristal Sandoval says she's on course to become the first person in her family to earn a college degree, in part because of the financial support, tutoring and guidance she's received during her years at Western Oregon University. "They taught me how to prepare with study skills and how to organize my time," said the 21-year-old senior. Western's support programs for Latino students, she said, "are definitely key to my success."

They also help explain why the college completion rate at Western, unlike at most colleges and universities in Oregon and the nation, is higher for Latino students than for their white peers. Nearly 49 percent of the Latino students at Western graduate within six years, compared with 45 percent of white classmates, according to a study last month by the American Enterprise Institute.

The study, which averaged graduation rates from 2005, 2006 and 2007, found that at most colleges and universities, nomatter how selective, Latino completion rates lagged those of their non-Latino white peers. The lag in Oregon ranges from 4 percentage points at the University of Oregon to 15 points at Willamette University, the report found.

Those percentages, however, do not account for students who graduate after transferring from one Institution within the Oregon University System to another, officials
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Latinos outpace whites in graduation rates at Western Oregon University

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