GOSHEN — Hispanics have come to north central Indiana for economic reasons. Now they have become a permanent and positive economic force here.

That’s one of many conclusions in a three-volume study by Goshen College and University of Notre Dame researchers that was released Friday.

In "Latinos in North Central Indiana" the demographics of the local Hispanic population are dissected. That dissection of information is then expanded on in interviews of Hispanics and their personal experiences of living in the counties of St. Joseph, Elkhart and Noble.

"The reports outline an important reality in our community and our county — the growing minority population," said Jim Brenneman, Goshen College president.

Hispanics now make up 14 percent of Elkhart County’s population and 28 percent of Goshen’s population, according to the study.

"They are Hoosiers," said Allert Brown-Gort of ND’s Institute for Latino Studies. "This is their home. This is where they are going to be."

And many of the Hispanics are children who will live in Indiana their entire lives.

"We need to work on how do we integrate these young people," Brown-Gort said, "and how do we make them part of Indiana’s future. ... We cannot do well unless they do well."

That permanence of place for the immigrants has implications for the economic future of Indiana, he said.

Home ownership

The Hispanic population in Elkhart County has become an economic force, according to the researchers. While most Hispanics here have low incomes, 60 percent of them have managed to save money to buy a house. That percentage is below the 80 percent home ownership rate for whites in the county, but far outpaces the ownership rate for local African-Americans, who have a home ownership rate of 40 percent.

"Home ownership not only aids in wealth accumulation, but also contributes to family stability," the study states. "Low real estate prices, and with them the real possibility of home ownership, may have been one of the things that made north central Indiana attractive to recent Latino immigrants."

Much of that homeownership in Goshen is concentrated on the north and northwest side of the community. The north side neighborhoods have traditionally been home to low-income populations and the researchers said income, not segregation, is probably the reason for the concentration of Hispanics.

"People are going to live where they can afford it," said Juan Carlos Guzman of Notre Dame and co-editor of the study.

The concentration of Hispanics on Goshen’s north side is nothing new in the United States he said.

Historically, immigrants have been segregated, he said, but the researchers believe that situation occurs most notably in large cities where one immigrant population establishes a community and then is replaced by the next influx of immigrants from other ethnicities.

Brown-Gort said a localized example is how South Bend’s old Polish neighborhoods have evolved and now host other immigrant minorities.

"The Poles have moved up and out," he said, indicating that over time, that same upward mobility will occur to the Hispanic populations in the local counties. "We know this country has a history for integrating immigrants. And this is a process that is well under way (for Hispanics) but it will take a long time until we see it."

Already there are Hispanics living throughout the cities of Elkhart and Goshen and the rural areas of the county, the study found.

"We see Latino representation throughout the city," said Robert Reyes, the study’s co-editor.

But, he said that enclaves of minorities are not unusual.

"The pursuit of what is familiar is part of our humanity," he said.

Future growth

The future in Elkhart, Noble and St. Joseph counties will see a growing Hispanic presence, according to the study, but most of those people will be descendants of the Hispanic children here today.

In Elkhart County, U.S.-born Hispanics under age 18 are a considerable block of the population at almost 12,000. There are about 1,500 Hispanic children in the county who were born outside the U.S., according to the study.

U.S. born Hispanic adults account for a little more than 4,000 people in the county. The foreign-born adult Hispanic population in Elkhart County is about 13,000.

The study found that the draw of jobs and affordable housing drew mostly younger Hispanics to the three counties. That means there are very few Hispanics of retirement age in the local communities.

Family structure

Local Hispanic families have evolved as the initial wave of immigration in the 1990s and early 2000s has passed, the study found.

"Given the recent wave of Latino immigration we might expect the family structure for Latino arrivals is predominantly male, with spouses or children following only after a community has been at least partially established," the report reads. "Because males often live together to save money, non-family households tend to be large, especially as immigration is increasing. Only after a Latino community has reached a certain size do family households develop and gender rations balance out.

"However, the evidence in North Central Indiana does not reflect that is pattern. In St. Joseph County Latino households are about as likely as white households to be headed by a married couple and much more likely than whites or African Americans to be headed by a married couple with children. In Elkhart County Latino households are less likely than white households though more likely than African American households to be headed by a married couple, though again more likely than either whites or African Americans to be headed by a married couple with children," the study states.

Occupations

The study found that just about 12 percent of Latinos work in management or professional jobs in Elkhart County. That compares to almost 30 percent of non-Latinos holding management or professional jobs.

Almost 50 percent of Hispanics work in production, transportation or material moving occupations, none are farmers and just over 10 percent work in service jobs.

Latino workers make the least amount of all hourly workers in Elkhart County, according to the study.

White workers average just under $20 per hour, African American workers average $15 per hour and Latinos average around $14 per hour, according to the study.

Now that the study is completed, Brenneman said, the intent will be to get it into the hands of community leaders, who will benefit from the study.

"It give us a baseline for what we need to do," Brenneman said. "It’s not just a hypothesis anymore."