The Lumina Foundation projects that by 2025 nearly half of the US workforce will be people of Latino descent. With a population of 50 million already living in the US, Latinos are the fastest-growing minority group. In his speech to a joint session of Congress President Obama put the issue of talent squarely on the federal agenda when he said, "The… challenge we must address is the urgent need to expand the promise of education in America. In a global economy where the most valuable skill you can sell is your knowledge, a good education is no longer just a pathway to opportunity – it is a pre-requisite.” The Lumina Foundation recently committed $7.2 million over the next four years in ten states with significant Latino populations. This is one "...part of Lumina's Goal 2025 effort, which aims to increase the proportion of Americans with high-quality degrees and credentials to 60 percent by the year 2025." The Lumina Foundation is also a sponsor of CEOs for Cities’ Talent Dividend Prize, a $1 million prize to be awarded to the city that exhibits the greatest increase in the number of post-secondary degrees granted per one thousand population over a three-year period.
