miami beach high school demographic report

School Community Demographic Study Demographic Report Miami Beach Senior High School serves Miami Beach, FL. US Census data informs about the demographics of the Miami Beach community, which stretches along a narrow north-south oriented barrier island. Over the years, the demographics of the area have shifted, so this makes for a good study on aligning demographics with the area with those of the school. The census data shows that the total population for Miami Beach is an estimated 91,917. The area is majority Hispanic, with 53% of the total population.

This is split among a number of different national origins, however. Miami Beach is 20% Cuban, 4.9% Colombian, 4.6% Argentinian, 3.7% Puerto Rican and there are many other Hispanic groups represented as well. Most of the Hispanic population is white. Only 4.4% of Miami Beach is black, being a mix of black Hispanic, Haitian, Afro-Caribbean and African. The non-Hispanic, non-white population of Miami Beach is 40.5%, comprised of 9% Italian background, 6% German, and a number of other European origins listed. Just 1.9% of the population is of Asian ancestry, the largest groups being Indian and Filipino.

1.5% are of Arab ancestry. 54.9% of people speak Spanish at home, 32.76% speak English, 3.38% Portuguese, with notable percentages of people who speak French, German, Italian, Russian, Hebrew and Yiddish. Miami Beach is 51.7% foreign-born, most from Latin America. The area has a median age of 40.3 years and a total of 12.8% of the population is under 18 (approx. 11,765 people). The senior high school has an enrollment of around 2400 students. The median income is $43,538 per household, and 13% of those under the age of 18 are below the poverty line.

Demographic Data Analysis The city of Miami Beach has similar demographics to many other parts of Miami-Dade County in terms of being Hispanic-majority. The city is a strong magnet for immigrants, and there are immigrants from many parts of Latin America that comprise the student body, and they do so in greater numbers than the general population – about 66% Hispanic. Spanish and English are both quite prominent amount native language speakers.

Unlike other areas of Miami-Dade County, there is only a small black population, and few Haitians in particular, in contrast to some other communities. The other thing that strikes one in the analysis of the demographics is that Miami Beach is solidly middle class. Despite being a vacation destination, and known for celebrities and million-dollar homes, the actual residents of Miami Beach tend to be middle-class immigrants. Most live in apartment buildings. Despite the one-time reputation of the city as being for retirees, it is not.

There are other parts of Florida that are now major retirement destinations – the percentage of children might be lower than other areas, but this is more due to high percentages of young singles, and gay couples (the ratio of men to women is unusually high). Implications The key implications of the demographics for Miami Beach Senior High are that both Spanish and English need to be accommodated. English speakers are unlikely to have Spanish fluency.

The high proportion of immigrants means that many Spanish speakers are also monolingual, or have limited English competency. While Haitian Creole is an official language in Miami-Dade County, there is little need for the school to accommodate that language need – there are far more speakers of Brazilian.