Children And Education
Education Levels of Adults by Race/Ethnicity

Increasing





Education Levels of Adults, by Race/Ethnicity, 2019-23

What does this measure?

The number of residents with a particular level of education in a region, expressed as a percentage of all residents 25 and older, broken down by race and ethnicity.

Why is this important?

An educated population makes a more attractive workforce and is better prepared to instruct the next generation of residents. High educational attainment represents a region's investment in human capital and preparation for long-term growth. There are persistent gaps in academic achievement among students of different races, ethnicities and incomes, and this is likely reflected in levels of educational attainment.

How does our county compare?

In 2019-23, the share of Lancaster County residents who held a bachelor's degree or higher was highest among Asians (41%), followed by Whites (32%), African Americans (23%), and Hispanics (18%). At the state level, a higher share of Asian (58%), White (36%) and Hispanic (21%) residents had college degrees than in Lancaster, while rates among African American residents (22%), were slightly lower than in Lancaster. The share of people with a Bachelor's degree in the United States was also higher than Lancaster County among all groups.

In the City of Lancaster, a higher share of Whites (39%) had college degrees compared to Lancaster County as a whole, while a smaller share of Asians (30%), African Americans (16%) and Hispanics (11%) in the city had degrees.

Since 2009-13, the share of residents without a high school degree declined among all racial and ethnic groups in Lancaster County, ranging from a 6 percentage-point drop among Hispanics and Asians to a 3-point drop among Whites. All groups stayed the same or had decreases in their share of residents who had attended some college or earned an Associate's degree, except for African Americans, who saw a 3 percentage point increase.

Among neighboring counties in 2019-23, while racial and ethnic disparities persisted, several counties had higher shares of groups with at least a bachelor's degree compared to Lancaster. For example, Chester had a higher percentage of adults with at least a bachelor's degree than Lancaster for all racial and ethnic groups, and Cumberland (34%), Chester (28%) and Dauphin (21%) had higher percentages of Hispanics with at least a bachelor's degree. Conversely, Dauphin (22%), Lebanon and Yorks (both 20%) had a lower rate of African Americans with at least a bachelor's degree, comparted to Lancaster.

Why do these disparities exist?

There are a variety of factors believed to contribute to disparities in educational attainment. School systems in the United States are highly segregated, and students of color disproportionately attend schools with high proportions of low-income students who may not have benefited from early learning opportunities at the same rate as other students. Schools also have different levels of resources ranging from qualified/experienced teachers to advanced courses to facilities and technology, and schools with large Black and Latino populations often have lower levels. In addition, teachers across all school systems tend to be disproportionately white, and teaching practices and curriculum may not be culturally relevant to students of color. Low staff expectations at racially and economically segregated schools also contribute disparities in educational attainment. The accumulation of inequities leads to lower graduation rates and college matriculation, with college affordability acting as another barrier. When Black and Latino students enter higher education institutions, they are less likely to attain a college a degree given weaker academic preparation and financial hardship.

Notes about the data

Adults are people 25 and older. The multi-year figures are from the Census Bureau's American Community Survey. The bureau combined five years of responses to the survey to provide estimates for smaller geographic areas and increase the precision of its estimates. However, because the information came from a survey, the samples responding to the survey were not always large enough to produce reliable results, especially in small geographic areas. CGR has noted on data tables the estimates with relatively large margins of error. Estimates with three asterisks have the largest margins, plus or minus 50% or more of the estimate. Two asterisks mean plus or minus 35%-50%, and one asterisk means plus or minus 20%-35%. For all estimates, the confidence level is 90%, meaning there is 90% probability the true value (if the whole population were surveyed) would be within the margin of error (or confidence interval). The survey provides data on characteristics of the population that used to be collected only during the decennial census. Data for this indicator are released annually in December.


Education Levels of Adults, by Race/Ethnicity, 2019-23
AsianBlack or African AmericanHispanic or LatinoWhite
Pennsylvania13%30%23%24%
Lancaster County15%*30%21%21%
Lancaster City7%***30%*20%21%
Lancaster County School Districts
School District of Lancaster7%***31%21%22%
Donegal School District6%***18%***12%***27%
Eastern Lancaster County School District25%***46%***10%***20%
Elizabethtown Area School District15%***35%***19%***23%
Ephrata Area School District21%***51%***20%***24%
Hempfield School District12%***21%***36%**22%
Lampeter-Strasburg School District13%***62%***30%***21%
Manheim Central School District18%***54%***33%***23%
Manheim Township School District24%**19%***13%***19%
Penn Manor School District13%***30%***25%**21%
Pequea Valley School District0%***6%***17%***14%
Solanco School District0%***0%***17%***19%
Warwick School District13%***13%***20%***24%
Cocalico School District13%***35%***30%***20%
Columbia Borough School District0%***31%***10%***21%
Conestoga Valley School District21%***29%***26%*21%
Lancaster County Boroughs
Christiana boroughN/A***17%***21%***26%*
Columbia borough0%***31%***10%***21%
Denver township52%***0%***32%***23%*
East Petersburg borough100%***N/A***49%***22%*
Elizabethtown borough16%***26%***24%***25%*
Ephrata borough20%***47%***15%***24%
Lititz borough0%***19%***6%***28%
Manheim borough100%***100%***91%***24%*
Marietta borough20%***28%***20%***26%*
Millersville borough0%***7%***18%***21%*
Mount Joy borough0%***11%***13%***27%
Mountville boroughN/A***0%***25%***19%*
New Holland borough41%***53%***14%***34%*
Quarryville borough0%***0%***0%***24%*
Strasburg boroughN/A***100%***32%***22%*
Terre Hill borough0%***N/A***0%***19%**
Adamstown borough0%***60%***0%***23%*
Akron borough0%***47%***28%***29%
Lancaster County Townships
West Donegal township0%***50%***46%***25%*
West Earl township21%***0%***50%***25%
West Hempfield township4%***20%***27%***22%
West Lampeter township13%***59%***22%***22%
Bart township0%***N/A***N/A***12%**
Brecknock township0%***N/A***0%***19%*
Caernarvon township17%***100%***0%***17%*
Clay townshipN/A***N/A***21%***22%*
Colerain townshipN/A***0%***N/A***22%*
Conestoga township41%***21%***0%***18%*
Conoy townshipN/A***N/A***0%***22%*
Drumore townshipN/A***0%***0%***16%*
Earl township16%***0%***0%***21%*
East Cocalico township0%***43%***33%***18%
East Donegal township0%***25%***10%***26%
East Drumore township0%***0%***69%***28%*
East Earl township54%***54%***0%***15%*
East Hempfield township13%***24%***42%***23%
East Lampeter township0%***24%***28%**22%
Eden township0%***N/A***0%***10%*
Elizabeth township52%***N/A***N/A***18%*
Ephrata township100%***60%***25%***24%*
Fulton townshipN/A***0%***0%***22%*
Lancaster township7%***35%**24%**23%
Leacock townshipN/A***N/A***0%***13%*
Little Britain townshipN/A***N/A***39%***16%*
Manheim township24%**19%***13%***19%
Manor township16%***39%***26%***20%
Martic township0%***0%***N/A***21%*
Mount Joy township18%***34%***9%***23%*
Paradise township0%***15%***14%***15%*
Penn township29%***57%***0%***23%*
Pequea township0%***41%***60%***25%*
Providence townshipN/A***0%***0%***19%*
Rapho township0%***0%***20%***23%
Sadsbury township0%***0%***11%***19%*
Salisbury townshipN/A***0%***26%***13%
Strasburg townshipN/A***N/A***65%***17%**
Upper Leacock township32%***50%***4%***15%*
Warwick township9%***11%***24%***22%
West Cocalico township46%***41%***33%***19%*
Lebanon County20%**36%*25%22%
York County22%*30%22%26%
Berks County17%*31%23%24%
Chester County7%22%21%20%
Cumberland County14%*30%25%23%
Dauphin County18%28%26%25%

Source: U.S. Census Bureau
Notes: Adults are people 25 and older. Multiyear results are from rolling American Community Survey. * Margin of error between 20% & 35% of estimate; ** margin of error between 35% & 50%; *** margin of error greater than 50%. The Census Bureau asks people to identify their race (white, African-American, etc.) separate from their ethnicity (Hispanic or non-Hispanic). So the totals for these categories cannot be added together, as people show up in both a racial and ethnic group.




Number of Adults, by Education Level and Race/Ethnicity, 2019-23
AsianBlack or African AmericanHispanic or LatinoWhite
Pennsylvania41,570274,502136,2961,737,617
Lancaster County1,281*4,0047,27169,541
Lancaster City59***1,541*2,7924,041
Lancaster County School Districts
School District of Lancaster112***1,9263,3286,265
Donegal School District6***95***108***3,890
Eastern Lancaster County School District58***151***39***4,039
Elizabethtown Area School District31***102***180***5,046
Ephrata Area School District27***206***312***5,496
Hempfield School District195***161***830**7,373
Lampeter-Strasburg School District28***311***209***3,456
Manheim Central School District41***70***82***4,364
Manheim Township School District409**153***312***5,158
Penn Manor School District164***191***473**5,247
Pequea Valley School District0***9***54***1,668
Solanco School District0***0***102***3,778
Warwick School District57***48***168***5,009
Cocalico School District18***69***182***2,988
Columbia Borough School District0***166***142***1,366
Conestoga Valley School District135***344***725*3,915
Lancaster County Boroughs
Christiana borough0***2***8***157*
Columbia borough0***166***142***1,366
Denver township12***0***101***543*
East Petersburg borough30***0***131***696*
Elizabethtown borough12***57***56***1,748*
Ephrata borough10***113***122***2,061
Lititz borough0***15***13***1,829
Manheim borough25***49***50***751*
Marietta borough6***30***22***443*
Millersville borough0***10***79***612*
Mount Joy borough0***20***65***1,420
Mountville borough0***0***27***420*
New Holland borough26***68***39***1,043*
Quarryville borough0***0***0***406*
Strasburg borough0***28***17***512*
Terre Hill borough0***0***0***115**
Adamstown borough0***24***0***315*
Akron borough0***27***73***743
Lancaster County Townships
West Donegal township0***2***88***1,683*
West Earl township50***0***110***1,191
West Hempfield township20***51***232***2,299
West Lampeter township28***283***111***2,461
Bart township0***0***0***200**
Brecknock township0***0***0***894*
Caernarvon township5***5***0***486*
Clay township0***0***20***991*
Colerain township0***0***0***495*
Conestoga township30***12***0***485*
Conoy township0***0***0***538*
Drumore township0***0***0***243*
Earl township14***0***0***842*
East Cocalico township0***19***43***1,277
East Donegal township0***45***21***1,427
East Drumore township0***0***35***723*
East Earl township13***78***0***659*
East Hempfield township145***110***440***3,958
East Lampeter township0***220***598**2,002
Eden township0***0***0***122*
Elizabeth township33***0***0***473*
Ephrata township17***66***97***1,701*
Fulton township0***0***0***355*
Lancaster township53***385**536**2,289
Leacock township0***0***0***385*
Little Britain township0***0***67***413*
Manheim township409**153***312***5,158
Manor township134***143***326***2,487
Martic township0***0***0***675*
Mount Joy township19***43***36***1,677*
Paradise township0***9***29***444*
Penn township16***21***0***1,629*
Pequea township0***26***68***982*
Providence township0***0***0***821*
Rapho township0***0***32***1,984
Sadsbury township0***0***17***326*
Salisbury township0***0***25***839
Strasburg township0***0***81***424**
Upper Leacock township85***124***17***722*
Warwick township24***33***155***2,707
West Cocalico township6***26***38***866*
Lebanon County306**704*2,77818,512
York County984*5,1204,83572,813
Berks County692*3,91412,43755,644
Chester County1,5534,0755,03659,333
Cumberland County1,301*2,0781,75237,055
Dauphin County2,0018,6404,33735,320

Source: U.S. Census Bureau
Notes: Adults are people 25 and older. Multiyear results are from rolling American Community Survey. * Margin of error between 20% & 35% of estimate; ** margin of error between 35% & 50%; *** margin of error greater than 50%. The Census Bureau asks people to identify their race (white, African-American, etc.) separate from their ethnicity (Hispanic or non-Hispanic). So the totals for these categories cannot be added together, as people show up in both a racial and ethnic group.




INDICATORS TREND
Prekindergarten Participation Increasing
Student Performance on Grade 3 English Not Applicable
Student Performance on Grade 8 Math Not Applicable
High School Cohort Graduation Rate Increasing
Per-Student Spending Maintaining
Students Receiving Special Education Services Increasing
Rate of Foster Care Admissions Maintaining
Disengaged Youth Decreasing
Single-Parent Families by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Plans of High School Graduates Not Applicable
Enrollment in Local Colleges Decreasing
College Graduation Rates Decreasing
Brain Drain/Gain Increasing
Education Levels of Adults by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Average Charitable Giving Maintaining
Voter Registration Rate Not Applicable
Voter Participation Rate Increasing
Age of Housing Stock Not Applicable
Violent Crime Rate Maintaining
Incarceration Rate Decreasing
Incarceration Rate by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Population Density Increasing
Air Quality Decreasing
Water Use Decreasing
Waterways Impaired by Pollution Not Applicable
Change in Population Increasing
Change in Population by Age and Gender Not Applicable
Population by Age Not Applicable
Population by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
People with Disabilities Increasing
Foreign-Born Population Increasing
Language Diversity Maintaining
Change in Total Jobs Increasing
Change in Employment by Sector Not Applicable
Sector Share of Total Jobs Not Applicable
Workers by Occupation Not Applicable
Change in Labor Force Maintaining
People Entering/Leaving County/Region for Work Not Applicable
Average Salary by Sector Not Applicable
Change in Average Salary Since 2000 Increasing
Female to Male Earnings Ratio Maintaining
Employer Size Not Applicable
Change in Number of Businesses by Sector Increasing
Change in Total Agricultural Sales Increasing
Spending for Local Government Maintaining
Spending for School Districts Maintaining
Children Living in Poverty Decreasing
Children in Poverty by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
People Living in Poverty Decreasing
People Living in Poverty, by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Veterans Living in Poverty Increasing
Working Poor Maintaining
Median Household Income by Household Type Not Applicable
Median Household Income Maintaining
Median Household Income, by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Living Wage Not Applicable
Unemployment Rate by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Households Receiving SNAP by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Household Receiving Temporary Assistance Maintaining
Students Eligible for Free/Reduced Price Lunch Increasing
Median Home Value Maintaining
Occupied Housing Units Increasing
Homeownership Rate, by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Cost of Homeownership by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Median Rent Maintaining
Cost of Renting Decreasing
Households Without Vehicles Maintaining
Means of Transportation to Work, by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
People Without Health Insurance Decreasing
Early Prenatal Care by Mother's Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Health Status Decreasing
Prevalence of Mental Illness Maintaining
Adults Who are Overweight or Obese Not Applicable
Mortality Rates Decreasing
Mortality Rate, by Race/Ethnicity Increasing
Fatal Drug Overdoses Increasing
Cancer Incidence Decreasing
Households With Internet Access Increasing
High-Tech Jobs Increasing
STEM Graduates Increasing
Science and Engineering Research and Development Maintaining
Single-Parent Families by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Education Levels of Adults by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Incarceration Rate by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Population by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Children in Poverty by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
People Living in Poverty, by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Median Household Income, by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Unemployment Rate by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Households Receiving SNAP by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Homeownership Rate, by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Cost of Homeownership by Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable
Early Prenatal Care by Mother's Race/Ethnicity Not Applicable


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