Census 2010 updates: America's Pacific Islander community grew over 3-times-faster than nation

Much of the data from the 2010 Census is still be analyzed, packaged, and prepared for publication, but we're already seeing some interesting trends for America's Pacific Islander community. Here are a few:

Breaking the One-Million-Mark

America's Pacific Islander population in now in the seven-figures. In 2000, approximately 870,000 Pacific Islanders lived in the 50 states. In the 2010 Census, those numbers grew to over 1,200,000.

Significant Growth

From 2000 to 2010, the Pacific Islander population in the 50 States grew by more than 35 percent -- over three-and-a-half-times faster than the national growth rate of 9.7 percent. Of the Census's five minimum racial groups (White, African American, American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian, Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander), only one race grew at a faster rate (Asians).

Still the Most Likely to be Multiracial

As was the case in the 2000 Census, Pacific Islanders were more likely than any of the basic racial groups to report belonging to more than one race. In fact, Pacific Islanders are the only one of the five groups whose multiracial population is larger than their single-race population.

By the numbers: 56 percent of Pacific Islanders reported being more than one race. This is slightly higher than it was in 2ooo, when about 54 percent of Pacific Islanders reported belonging to more than one race. Nationally, men and women belonging to more than one race comprise 2.9 percent of the population. (This is an increase from 2.4 percent in 2000.)

Rising Entrepreneurship

Along with a rising population, Pacific Islanders are becoming a larger part of the American business community. The most recently released U.S. Census Survey of Business Owners reports that between 2002 and 2007 (the most recent period studied), the number and revenue of Pacific Islander American businesses grew faster than the national average.

By the Numbers: Over five years, the number of Pacific Islander American businesses grew 31 percent (compared to the national rate of 18 percent). The increase in revenue for Pacific Islander businesses was even greater, rising over 51 percent in five years, compared to the national rate of 33 percent.

Further Reading:

• 2010 Census Overview of Race and Hispanic Origin: http://www.census.gov/prod/cen2010/briefs/c2010br-02.pdf
• Census Survey of Business Owners: http://www.census.gov/econ/sbo/

Pacific Islander American News - Summer Catch Up

Over the summer, our posts were written specifically for underrepresented minority academic programs, to give them easy access to the reasons why they should choose to include (rather than exclude) Pacific Islanders from their scholarships, fellowships, and other opportunities. Those posts are now archived, and can be accessed in a reader-friendly Question-and-Answer-format by following the link on the top right-hand side of our homepage, or by clicking here.

We dedicated so much time to write posts specifically for underrepresented minority academic programs because they are so important to our mission: increasing higher educational opportunities for Pacific Islander Americans, by increasing the number of underrepresented minority programs that recognize them as underrepresented.

Ultimately, the choice (include or exclude Pacific Islanders) is theirs, and we want to make it easier for them to see why Pacific Islanders deserve to be included in their definition of "underrepresented minority."

At the same time, there are been a lot of news that we've wanted to cover.

Now we can catch up!

First on the List: some of the new data on America's growing Pacific Islander community. Stay tuned...

The Choice: Special Section for underrepresented minority academic programs

Dear Scholarships, Fellowships, and other Academic Programs for Underrepresented Minorities --

Thank you for visiting our site!

We developed a series of posts on this website to speak directly to academic programs for underrepresented minorities because we know that you have the power to choose whether your program will include or exclude Pacific Islanders.

If you're one of the growing number of academic programs that already recognizes that Pacific Islanders are underrepresented -- thank you! Please don't hesitate to contact us with questions, or let us know if there's something we can do to help you. And if you're one of the academic programs that includes some Pacific Islanders groups (but not others), we're giving you access to information about how the entire Pacific Islander American community is underrepresented.

If your program does not include Pacific Islanders, we want to help you make an informed, educated decision about whether you should choose to continue to exclude them. We've set up this site, and a series of posts written for you, so you have easy access to the facts.

Below are links to the Question-and-Answer-style posts we wrote to help you come to an informed decision. If you have a question we haven't addressed, please let us know by following the "more questions" link at the bottom.

We hope that this information helps you make an informed choice, and we hope that you choose to include Pacific Islanders along with their fellow underrepresented minorities.

Aloha!

-----

Terms

• What do we mean by underrepresented minority?
• What is a Pacific Islander?
• What do we mean by underrepresented minority (URM) academic program?

Facts on Pacific Islander underrepresentation

• Are Pacific Islanders underrepresented in higher education?
• Are Pacific Islanders historically underrepresented in higher education?
• Can you show me Census data on Pacific Islander underrepresentation?

Knowing the difference: Pacific Islander vs. Asian/Asian Pacific Islander

• Are Pacific Islanders Asian?
• Does "Asian Pacific Islander" data accurately represent Pacific Islanders?

Your Choice: Including or Excluding Pacific Islanders from your Underrepresented Minority program

• Why should academic programs for underrepresented minorities include Pacific Islanders?
• What are some examples of academic programs for underrepresented minorities that already recognize Pacific Islanders?
• Who else has taken a stand for Pacific Islander inclusion?
• Can you direct me to other sources regarding Pacific Islander underrepresentation?

For More Information

• I have more questions... can you answer them?
• What if my program already includes Pacific Islanders?
• What if my program already includes some Pacific Islander groups, but not others?
• What is the Pacific Islander Access project?

What if my academic programs includes some Pacific Islander groups, but not others?

Q. Our academic program already includes one specific Pacific Islander group, but not all. Why should we include Pacific Islanders as a group?

A. When you're only including part of the Pacific Islander community, you're leaving out others.

And the data is clear: as a whole, Pacific Islanders are significantly underrepresented in higher education. You've already taken an important step by including at least one part of the Pacific Islander American community -- Why not go all the way?

-------------

Have you already taken the step of including one or more segments of America's Pacific Islander community, such as Native Hawaiians or Polynesians? Bravo! You are ahead of the curve, and we applaud you for taking an interest in including part of America's Pacific Islander community.

Now that you've already made the decision to include some Pacific Islanders, why not take the next step by including the rest of the them? Over 20 years of U.S. Census data shows that as a group, Pacific Islanders have been -- and continue to be -- underrepresented among college graduates. By allowing all otherwise qualified Pacific Islanders to apply, you can reach more underrepresented minorities. Who knows what difference you could make in their lives.