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INTRODUCTION - - SETTING THE STAGE <br />Local Structure and Issues <br />Santa Ana's workforce faces unique challenges based on its population base, its industrial <br />growth, and its economic position. These are reflected in its vision, and in the opportunities for <br />improving the institutional and social structure that impacts strategies for developing an <br />optimally effective Work investment Board (WIB) that the City experiences. <br />Santa Ana has been the County Seat of Orange County since its founding, over a quarter <br />century ago. Santa Ana often is compared with Anaheim. Santa Ana is the second oldest and <br />second most populous incorporated city in Orange County compared to Anaheim, and its <br />median household income ranks nearly the same, near the bottom of incorporated Orange <br />County cities. <br />However, fruitful comparison ends here. In racial and ethnic composition, Santa Ana's <br />population is over 100% more Latino, and nearly 50% less Asian American and African <br />American. Far more of Santa Ana's residents speak Spanish at home as their primary or <br />additional language. Santa Ana also is a particularly young population, with almost a quarter <br />more of its population under 18 than the state norm. Add to this an exceptionally high drop -out <br />rate for local schools. These issues create a unique flavor for Santa Ana the city. They impact <br />almost every element of work and work preparedness, including their underlying education, <br />youth culture, industry distribution, and other drivers. <br />Here is how Santa Ana stacks up against a few key California demographic and economic <br />trends, according to the U.S. Bureau of Census (2010 -11); Bureau of Labor Statistics (2012); and <br />for the latest unemployment figures, California Employment Development Department (EDD, <br />2013): <br />ITEM <br />SANTA ANA <br />CALIFORNIA <br />Persons under 18 years old <br />30.7% <br />25.0% <br />Latino population <br />78.2% <br />38.6% <br />Language other than English in home <br />82.9% <br />42.2% <br />High school or higher education graduate <br />51.9% <br />80.8% <br />Bachelor's Degree <br />11.7% <br />30.2% <br />Per capita income <br />$16,562 <br />$29,634 <br />Median Household income <br />$54,399 <br />$61,632 <br />Hispanic owned firms <br />31.8% <br />16.5% <br />Poverty rate <br />19.8% <br />13.5% <br />Unemployment as of April, 2013 <br />9.1% <br />7.5% <br />Of particular note is Santa Ana's markedly lower per capita income but less dramatically <br />unequal household income. This discrepancy becomes the more striking when measured <br />against housing costs for Orange County as a whole, whose the mean wage is more than double <br />that of Santa Ana and whose mean cost for housing is $938 /month for one bedroom. The <br />average worker at the Orange County rate must work 59 hours /week to afford his /her housing. <br />19F -9 <br />