Although Arizona officials have passed some of the most repressive laws targeting Hispanics in recent years, that has not stopped the growth of the Latino community in the state.

In fact, the annual DATOS report issued by the Arizona Hispanic Chamber of Commerce (AHCC) projects Latinos will make up the majority of the state by 2030, reports Cronkite News. As a result, advocates for the Hispanic community are preparing for a demographic shift in Arizona by taking steps to educate young Latinos, which they say will help ensure a successful economic future for the state.

Hispanic students currently make up over 50 percent of all public school children in grades K-8. Statistics also show that many Latino students enroll in community colleges. As a result, leaders at an education conference held in Phoenix on Thursday stressed that Latinos attending community college will have a direct affect on the state economy, and that therefore the community college system must be efficient in educating Latino students and addressing their needs.

"Today's conference is of significance because we need to increase the awareness that the state of Arizona is moving to be majority minority, and majority minority being Latinos," said Rufus Glasper, chancellor of Maricopa County Community College District and keynote speaker, to the Phoenix Business Journal.

Glasper went on to emphasize that more resources need to be allocated in advanced education for Latino students through community colleges. "We need to provide the attention to those who will be the majority minority in the coming years."

Today, two out of three Hispanic residents do not have a college degree. However, education and Hispanic leaders at the conference in Arizona talked about an educational movement rooted in the Maricopa Community College system.

According to Edmundo Hidalgo, president and CEO of Chicanos Por La Causa, the Latino population at the Maricopa Community Colleges has increased steadily from 16 percent in 2002 to 24 percent in 2014.

However, Glasper noted many Latinos attending the 10-college system in the state are not proficient in English or reading to succeed at the community college level.

Paul Luna, president and CEO of Helios Education Foundation, also stressed the need to invest in education for Latino residents in Arizona.

"[When] we look at the demographics of the state and the changing demographics, what becomes very clear," he said, "[is that] the future of Arizona will be defined by our ability as a state to educate our students [and] to create a dynamic educated workforce to drive the economy forward. But when you look at the demographics, it becomes clear that Latino students make up such a large percentage of that student pipeline, so we have to have a very specific and committed focus to recognize that Latino students are an important part of that pipeline."

Because the future of Arizona is contingent on Latinos, Luna added that it's important that all students be educated, but "especially Latino students."