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<br />Proficient -Adequate to interact professionally with and provide services to Spanish <br />speaking clients. <br />Fluent - Completely able to interact professionally with and provide services to Spanish <br />speaking clients. These individuals are most often native speakers. <br />Demographics <br />As the United States becomes more ethnically and racially diverse, local governments face <br />growing challenges in serving LEP communities. Local governments across the country are <br />trying to determine how to effectively ensure access to adequate language assistance <br />services. <br />According to the U.S. Census, North Carolina's population grew 21% from 6.6 million in <br />1990 to more than 8 million in 2000. North Carolina is one of the fastest growing states in <br />terms of immigrant communities; the fastest growing community is the Latino community <br />increasing by 394%, followed by the Asian Pacific Islander communities increasing by 128 <br />from 1990- 2000. In 2004, according to the latest report of the Frank Hawkins Kenan <br />Institute of Private Enterprise, North. Carolina's Hispanic population totaled 600,913, or 7% <br />of North Carolina's total population. <br />United States <br />According to Census 2000, the United States has a population of 281,421,906. Eleven <br />percent (11%) of the total population was foreign-born. Eighty- three percent (83%) of <br />the foreign-born five years old and older spoke a language other than English at home, <br />including 52% who spoke Spanish,,21% who spoke other Indo-European languages, 22% <br />who spoke Asian and Pacific Island languages, and 4% who spoke other languages. <br />Among the foreign-born at fihe national level, 38% reported speaking English "very well", <br />26% "well," 23% "not well," and 12% "not at all. <br />6 <br />