Moms key in Hispanic women going to college

The timing of the program is also noteworthy. The younger a student is when they start thinking about higher education, the more likely they are to enroll in college. Many Latino kids don't start thinking about college until high school, but participants of the Mother-Daughter Program start early. This is important because it gives families time to prepare and plan.

Salinas sees another benefit of working with that age group. "We take them before they think their parents aren't cool," she said. "The kids are still at an age where they like their parents, value them and want to spend time with them."

Tinajero and Salinas both think that community dedication to the goal of helping Latino women obtain higher education has sustained the Mother-Daughter Program through its 25-plus years of operation.

"The program is a success because we are addressing this problem as a community," Tinajero said.

Most of the people who work for the program do so on a voluntary basis. Neither Tinajero or Salinas have ever received financial compensation for their work related to the Mother-Daughter Program.

"I'm compensated as a dean," Tinajero said. "I consider this my community service. I need to give back to my community."

email: mwhite@desnews.com