New Hampshire is becoming a more diverse state, with children at the forefront of the demographic changes in the past decade, according to a recent analysis from the New Hampshire Agricultural Experiment Station and the UNH Carsey School of Public Policy.
Hispanics are the largest minority population in New Hampshire. Children are at the leading edge of the state’s growing diversity. The most diverse populations in New Hampshire are concentrated in the Manchester–Nashua urban corridor and this pattern is especially evident among children. Manchester and Nashua are among the most diverse places in the state.
Nashua High School North and Nashua High School South represent the two largest Hispanic student populations in New Hampshire. Two-thirds of the minority students at Nashua High School North are Hispanics, representing by far the largest minority population. Likewise, 56% of minority students at Nashua High School South are Hispanics, also the largest minority population.
According to the National Center for Education Statistics study from 2024, the average cost of college tuition & fees at public 4-year institutions has risen 141.0% over the last 20 years and private institutions have risen 181.3% over that same time period. Similarly, the cost of room and board has increased dramatically. Between 1999-2000 and 2022-23, the annual cost of the average dorm room has increased 174.6%. In the 21st Century, the rising costs of college have outpaced the rate of inflation by an average of 104.3% and by as much as 2,217% (2015).
The National Student Clearinghouse Research Center recent data collected demonstrates that Hispanic students represent the highest increase of all demographic groups in college attendance from 2019-2024. This increase of Hispanic students is nearly double than any other demographic. Hispanic and Latino/a students are also the largest minority demographic, making up 19% of undergrads as of 2024. Another study by the Education Data Institute in 2022 showed attendance among this Hispanic demographic has increased by 884% relative to 1976 (through 2022). This is by far the largest enrollment growth.
About 70% of Latino undergraduates in higher education come from families in the bottom half of earners, according to federal data analyzed by the college lobbying group the American Council on Education. Nearly half of Latino students are the first in their family to go to college, according to data analyzed by Excelencia. As first generation students, Hispanic and Latino families often struggle to realize the many challenges in navigating the college process from tuition, room and board costs and other expenses to the dizzying array and complex nature of scholarships, grants and loans offered.
New Hampshire Hispanic Scholarship Fund was founded to address some of these most challenging issues Hispanic students and their families face in navigating scholarships while providing an impactful scholarship of its own. As a 501 c3 charitable organization we seek to work with high schools in New Hampshire that have the largest Hispanic communities with the greatest need.
We are a sister organization to the Massachusetts Hispanic Scholarship Fund.
As part of the above scholarships, we focus on providing an outreach and education program to address the high cost of colleges for New Hampshire Hispanic students and families to help confront the challenges of navigating the complex scholarship process. We do this through introducing students and families to key scholarships targeted to this user base and education and assistance in applying. The program includes working with seniors, juniors as well as sophomores and their families at various times of the school year to address the cadence of the scholarship schedule through multiple events, direct sessions with the students and in collaboration with the guidance teams.