Two presentations about the increasing national Hispanic population took up most of the three-hour Illinois Board of Higher Education meeting at the College of Lake County in Grayslake last Tuesday, said Eastern President Lou Hencken.

The presentations included information about the growing number of college-age Latinos/Latinas and how universities can work to enroll them as students and ensure they graduate.

“There are statistics that you have to look at if you’re planning for the future of higher education,” Hencken said. “I think you would be foolish if you would ignore the largest growing population in America.”

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 17.5 percent of the Latino/Latina population was between the ages of 18 and 24 in 2000. In 2002, the number of Hispanic children outpaced the number of non-Hispanic white children.

Hencken said Eastern is already taking steps to recruit Hispanic students by visiting predominately Hispanic high schools. Eastern has also hired an adviser with a focus on recruiting Hispanic students.

“We believe Eastern Illinois University needs to serve all the population in Illinois,” Hencken said. “We just want to make a conscious effort to recruit.”

The meeting also included information about enrolling and graduating students with disabilities from the disability advisory committee constructed from representatives of both community colleges and universities.

“I was pleased to see that we are addressing that issue,” Hencken said. “We need to make students feel welcome and help ensure they graduate.”

Another item that got attention during Tuesday’s meeting was the topic of differing standards that private and public institutions have to follow.

Lincolnwood University, a private institution in St. Charles, Mo., has proposed offering bachelor’s and master’s degrees of sciences and healthcare management in southwestern Illinois.

Southern Illinois University President Glen Poshard said the programs could take students away from SIU, adding that competition isn’t necessarily the problem but that public universities have a lot more regulations to follow than private universities that can make it difficult to compete.

“Public universities have to follow a different set of regulations than private,” said Jill Nilsen, vice president for external relations. “And that can put us at a disadvantage.”

Hencken said: “We have to follow standards that are more stringent. I’m not opposed to competition, but unnecessary competition is a drain on taxpayers’ dollars.”

Also at the meeting, tuition reciprocity and the Midwest Student Exchange Program were discussed. The ideas could allow for Illinois students to attend out-of-state universities while paying in-state tuition and allow out-of-state students to attend Illinois universities while paying their in-state tuition.

“Conceivably, this would allow us to go to Indiana,” Hencken said. Eastern could offer independent programs in areas near the Indiana border, like Marshall, where students from Indiana could enroll while paying tuition equal to Indiana in-state tuition.

Hencken said Eastern is not looking to increase student enrollment right now, but that the program might be used to offer courses for non-traditional students in the area.