The minority population in Oakland County has grown to 20.7 percent, according to data released by the U.S. Census Bureau. "The country, as a whole, is 33 percent minority," said Kurt Metzger, researcher for Wayne State University 's Center for Urban Studies. "We may be a little late to the game, but we're starting to pick up the pace and starting to look like the country as a whole." He pointed out that diversity has economic benefits because of the number of foreign companies that do business in the area. He also noted that immigrants to Oakland County are "a generally higher income, higher educated population."