Two Latinos were among the 24 MacArthur 'genius grant' fellows for 2015. One is Lin-Manuel Miranda, the composer and star of the Broadway hit "Hamilton," and the other is Juan Salgado, a community leader who works with immigrants.

Each of the MacArthur fellows will receive a stipend of $625,000 over the next five years. That money comes without expectations. Fellows are not expected to report back to the foundation, a key feature of MacArthur's philosophy.

Miranda, 35, is the son of Puerto Rican parents. His most recent work explores American history through a fusion of hip-hop and showtunes. "Hamilton" received rave reviews on Broadway and secured his place as a cutting-edge performance artist.

Selgado has been leading Instituto del Progreso Latino on Chicago's southwest since 2001.

"Salgado has pioneered an education program that adapts the principles of contextualized learning to equip these workers with the skills that lead to higher-paying employment in manufacturing and health care, sectors with a growing demand for a diverse, multilingual workforce," the MacArthur Foundation wrote.

Among the other notable figures awarded the prestigious grant this year was Ta-Nehisi Coates, the Atlantic journalist and author of the bestselling book "Between the World and Me."