Are you a Buffalo State student looking to learn more about the 2020 Census and how you should respond? This webpage is for you!
Meet Desjah, a Pell Grant recipient and first-generation college student, who thinks you should respond to the 2020 Census survey:
The data collected during the 2020 Census survey impacts your life as a college student every single day. Here's how:
Determines how many students receive Pell Grants and other financial aid programs
Provides money to repair roads and bridges, and to increase access to public transportation and bus routes
Dictates the drawing of districts and number of U.S. House of Representatives and state legislatures, as well as lines of their local school district
Informs where hospitals and healthcare programs are located in the community, as well as what services are offered
Influences where jobs, businesses, and factories are located
Yes! Every Buffalo State student should be counted and complete the Census survey this spring. Here's how:
You live in an off-campus apartment/house: Whether you live in Campus Walk, Collegiate Village, Monarch 716, or in an apartment on Grant Street, it's important that you complete the Census. Use the address of your off-campus apartment/house and include any roommates or family members who live with you 51% of the time, or were living with you on March 1, 2020.
You live in the residence halls: If you live on campus in Perry, STAC, the Towers, etc., you'll automatically be counted when the college sends in their count to the Census Bureau. But that doesn't mean you are off the hook! Encourage your family to complete the Census (and leave you out of their response) to ensure representation and funding is accurately directed to the needs of your home community. If you have friends or classmates who live off-campus, encourage them to complete the Census survey by May 1, 2020 so they don't forget about it when finals and graduation fill up their schedule.
You have a child under the age of 5 living with you: Did you know that children under the age of 5 are one of the hardest groups to receive an accurate count of? So much of the information collected in the Census will impact them until their teen years, so it's critical that if you have a child living in your household, you share that information on the Census survey (even if the child is a 2 month old baby).
Beginning March 12, you will be able to complete the Census in three ways:
online on your cell phone or computer at: https://my2020census.gov/
calling a 1-800 number to complete over the phone
by snail mail
Join us live on Wednesdays at NOON from April 1 - May 27 by going to https://bit.ly/censuslive or checking into Instagram LIVE or Facebook LIVE.
