UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Responding To The Growth Of The Hispanic Population In The United States And Its Growing Involvement In Agriculture, Penn State's College Of Agricultural Sciences Has Established A Latino Agricultural Resource Center.

The center will be a focal point for existing initiatives that serve Latino audiences, as well as for planned new programs.

"There are few focused efforts like this in the United States," says Deanna Behring, the college's director of international programs. "Hispanics are the largest and fastest growing minority group in the country, and that creates a need for more coordinated and comprehensive educational programming."

To illustrate the need, Behring cites federal census statistics:

--Over the past 10 years, the Hispanic population in Pennsylvania has grown by 70 percent.

--Between 1997 and 2002, the number of Hispanic-run farming operations in the United States rose by 51 percent, to a total of more than 50,000.

--During the same time frame, the number of Pennsylvania farms owned and operated by Hispanics grew by 27 percent, to 350.

--Mexico now is the third largest market (behind only Canada and Japan) for U.S. agricultural exports, accounting for $8.6 billion in sales.

--Forty-three percent of U.S. horticultural imports come from Mexico and Latin America.

The Latino Agricultural Resource Center will coordinate several key activities:

--Development of Spanish language instruction and materials. The College of Agricultural Sciences already partners with Penn State's College of Liberal Arts to offer "Spanish for Students in Agricultural Sciences." Plans call for other specialized Spanish courses covering specific segments of agriculture, as well as courses to be offered through distance education and other nontraditional methods. "These courses can give our students a competitive edge when seeking jobs in agricultural industries," says Behring.

In addition, educational programs will be designed for Penn State Cooperative Extension county-based educators and their clientele. "The Hispanic workforce has become vital for the survival of some agricultural sectors, and managers need to be able to bridge language and cultural barriers to maintain employee morale and productivity," explains Daney Jackson, director of Penn State Cooperative Extension.

--Translation of educational materials. The center will be a clearinghouse for fee-based translation of publications and other materials for Hispanic audiences. The goal is to provide faculty and staff with consistency in quality, cost and distribution of Spanish-language materials and to avoid duplication of effort.

--Data collection and analysis. The center will collect, analyze and maintain data on domestic and international issues related to the growth of Latinos in agriculture. This information will be useful to Penn State faculty and extension educators in seeking grants and planning programs.

The Latino Agricultural Resource Center will be administered by the College of Agricultural Sciences' Office of International Programs, 240 Ag Administration Building, University Park, PA 16802. To learn more, call 814-863-0249, e-mail aginternational@psu.edu or visit the Web at http://www.cas.psu.edu/docs/international.

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EDITORS: Deanna Behring can be reached by phone at 814-863-0249 or by e-mail at dmb37@psu.edu.

Chuck Gill Office 814-863-2713 FAX 814-863-9877