The Hispanic population is increasing throughout the nation, and the changing face of the United States affects Oklahoma, Norman and OU.

This growing population will affect the nation's economy, education and cultural diversity.

"The influence of the Spanish-speaking population is going to increase throughout the United States," said Mel Messer, volunteer Spanish teacher at the Norman Public Library.

The population of Hispanics in the United States is increasing at a much faster rate than the population as a whole, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

In the past few years, the Hispanic population has begun increasing at a much faster rate. In the 1990s, Hispanics accounted for 40 percent of the country's population increase, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. From 2000 to 2004, that figure grew to 49 percent.

Hispanics are also a significant segment of the population in Oklahoma. People of Hispanic or Latino heritage account for 5.2 percent of the population of Oklahoma, according to 2000 Census figures.

The 2000 Census shows that Hispanics accounted for only 5.5 percent of the nation's metro population, but 25 percent of non-metro population during the 1990s. Oklahoma has many rural areas that have drawn Hispanics.

In Norman

Norman's Hispanic population is 3.9 percent, making the group the third largest minority behind Native Americans and African-Americans.

In contrast to the 1990s, births have overtaken immigration this decade as the largest source of Hispanic growth throughout the country and in Norman.

Messer has taught Spanish for 40 years. This will be his ninth year teaching Spanish at the library.

"I teach the language because I think there's a great need," he said. There are so many Spanish speakers in Oklahoma that it's becoming necessary to learn the language, he said.

The interest in learning Spanish has grown over the years, Messer said. His class at the library has been growing steadily. This year, Messer said he expects about 100 people the first night.

The Pioneer Library System recently launched a Spanish-language Web site. Gary Kramier, the library's public information officer, said they chose to translate the Web site because customer records for library cards showed that more Hispanics are using the library.

"We tailor our delivery systems to our customers," Kramier said.

Hispanics compose about one percent of library card-holders in Norman, or 967 people, he said.

"Even though those percentages seem small, that's a big chunk of people," Kramier said.

At OU

The number of Hispanic students at the Norman campus has either remained the same or increased every year for the past 20 years, according to the OU Factbook.

Many non-Hispanic students express an interest in Hispanic cultures, said Leonardo Habun, civil engineering junior.

Habun, an international student from Honduras, said he sees a lot of interchange between cultures at OU. When he and his other Hispanic friends play guitar on campus, American students often join in with their guitars.

"We start jamming together, and it's great," Habun said.

Meghan McRuiz, Spanish senior, said Hispanics are very welcome in the OU community. She said it seems like there is a large Hispanic community here.

Education

The increasing Hispanic population has a big impact on the nation's education system, Messer said.

Last year, 310 students enrolled in Norman public schools who spoke Spanish and limited English, said Carol Cawyer, director of federal programs at Norman Independent School District. That's up from 194 students in 2002.

With the increasing number of Hispanic students entering the education system, officials must learn how to adapt to Spanish-speaking students.

Many Hispanics are hindered from upward mobility because of their low education level, said Pat Fennell, executive director of the Latino Community Development Agency in Oklahoma City.

"One of the challenges of the [Latino] community is we need to raise the education level of the community," she said.

Many recent immigrants to Oklahoma are professionals from Central and South America, Fennell said. This will raise the expectations for Hispanics.

Economy

Hispanics play an important role in the U.S. economy. Hispanic workers often take jobs that others are not interested in, Fennell said.

Many Hispanics migrated to Oklahoma for agricultural jobs, and others work in labor-intensive jobs such as brick-laying, Messer said.

Hispanics are also important small business owners, Fennell said. In Oklahoma City, there are over 2,000 small businesses owned by Hispanics.

"I think Latinos are going to make a significant contribution to the economy," she said.

One such business, Mexico City Imports, at 301 W. Main St., serves mainly Spanish-speaking customers, owner Hilda Camargo said. Some Hispanics who are new to Norman only speak Spanish, so Spanish speakers are invaluable to the store, Camargo said.

"Once they're here, they ask us questions in Spanish," she said.
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