This document comprises testimony presented at a hearing on Hispanic children and their families. Nine witnesses included educators, social scientists, community leaders, and elected officials from Hispanic communities. The following testimony was presented: (1) reports citing the growing Hispanic dropout rate and declining economic progress obscure the accomplishments of Hispanic Americans by including the large number of recent immigrants with the Hispanics who have lived in the United States for some time; (2) community-based programs, such as the Academia del Pueblo program (Kansas City, Missouri), represent the most effective means to meet early educational needs; (3) the Bexar County Women's Center (San Antonio, Texas), whose clients are 56 percent Hispanic, offers counseling, employment, and educational programs to help women and their families become economically and emotionally secure; (4) economic policies are needed to counteract the combined influence of the rapid Hispanic growth rate and the precipitous decline in their socioeconomic status; (5) changes in school policies and practices, formulated with the involvement of the Hispanic community, are needed to halt the dropout rate; (6) high priority should be given to policies that preserve and reinforce the strengths of Hispanic families; (7) cities need to develop better employment and training programs to assist low-income Puerto Rican families; (8) Avance Family Support and Education Progams (San Antonio, Texas) provides services to help parents improve their children's lives; and (9) successful Hispanic Americans can inspire and support Hispanic youth to graduate from high school and obtain a college education. A chart illustrating a family intervention model and statistical data on one table and 18 graphs are included. (FMW)