He tries to keep my head up there, not let things get me down. The Hispanic Dropout Project research team was dismayed to find low expectations and negative stereotypes about Hispanic students emanating from teachers and administrators in some schools. In New York City, a kid walked into a class, and the classroom had fewer chairs than kids registered for the class. Secada said, making reference to a predominantly Hispanic classroom. Boy, that sends a very clear message.
Many researchers believe the problem is entrenched in the schools themselves.
Role of the schools Russell Rumberger, a professor of education at the University of California at Santa Barbara, said research shows a high concentration of Hispanic students in poorer schools, which tend to be overcrowded, in disrepair and are often more likely to employ under-qualified teachers. The school experience in the kind of school a lot of Latinos go to is not conducive to staying in school, for school-related reasons. Lack of teachers with Spanish-language skills further adds to a laundry list of problems Hispanic kids face in public school, researchers say. The economic status of the family is clearly a factor in this complex problem. They want to make more' Roel Lara, principal at Robstown High School, a school with a 14 percent dropout rate for the Class of 1999, said the economic status of the family plays a central role in the success of Hispanic students at his school.