ATLANTA -- Georgia's university system will make new efforts to reach the state's growing Hispanic population under a plan approved by the Board of Regents.

Steps approved last month call for more scholarships and financial aid and an aggressive recruitment policy to hire more Hispanic faculty and staff members. The plan also encourages colleges to add advanced language studies for those majoring in teacher education and social work programs.

Georgia has about 475,000 Hispanics, and the number is expected to increase to about 1 million by 2010.

Potentially the most controversial section of the policy is a provision calling on the board to work with the attorney general to explore admitting the children of documented workers to Georgia colleges. Students would have to reside in the state, be graduates of a Georgia high school, and meet the requirements for college admission.

Under current federal law, children of undocumented workers have a right to a public high school education, but states can set their own policies for admitting them to public colleges. Some states allow them to enroll. Georgia does not. …