How to Engage Your Community
Be sure to download AAJC's Census 2010 Community Toolkit and Talking Points for Volunteers to help you get started!
A successful Census campaign requires reaching out to your own circle of friends and family in the community. Here are some events and activities that can help you spread the word.
Educate yourself about why the Census is important.
This allows you to tell others about it and answer questions correctly.
Educate others in your community.
Download translated materials, brochures and flyers from this website and hand them out. Recruit others to help you spread the word!
Fill out your Census form in April 2010
Make sure your family, friends, and neighbors fill out their form too. Assist those who are limited in English and may not understand how to fill out the form.
If you belong to an organization or you can organize your friends to help, here are other ways you can help!
Become a Census 2010 Partner
If your organization has not already done so, you should partner with the Census Bureau. To become an official regional/local 2010 Census Partner, call the regional Census Bureau office that serves your area.
Establish or Become Involved with a Complete Count Committee (CCC)
You can work with local elected officials to establish a CCC for your city or county now. Or, if one has already been established, get involved. The CCC, which usually is led by a mayor or other top municipal official, should include representatives from a wide range of local, social and economic sectors, such as churches or other religious groups, civil rights organizations, corporations, unions, the media, sports, entertainment, community-service providers, academia and civic and business groups.
Create and Distribute Outreach Materials
As you begin engaging your community, it is important to create informational materials, such as flyers and brochures, which will resonate with your target audience and encourage people to seek assistance and more information.
Attend Events
An effective outreach campaign should target people at various events and locations throughout the community.
Canvass Neighborhoods
A great way to increase awareness about the upcoming Census is to canvass specific neighborhoods, especially those that are home to people who may be wary of completing their Census forms or may not understand the importance of an accurate count for their family and community. Watch this webinar and learn how canvassing and mapping tools can help ensure an accurate count of your community.
Plan Events
Not all educational events have to be large-scale productions. It can be as simple as inviting a few people to your office for a brown-bag lunch. You can raise awareness and build energy and enthusiasm for a participation campaign by organizing a town meeting. If you want a more festive atmosphere, try a block party.
Help People Complete Their Forms
The Census Bureau estimates that people can complete the questionnaire in 10 minutes. But many people will have questions about the four-page form such as:
• What is the difference between race and ethnicity?
• How do I list the relationships of all the people living in my home?
• My son or daughter lives with me part-time; how do I account for that?
Help Identify Locations to Serve as Designated Questionnaire Assistance Center (QAC)
The Census Bureau will establish QACs to help people fill out their forms and to provide language assistance. You can help the Census Bureau identify appropriate QAC locations. Promote the centers’ use through local social organizations, places of worship, community-based newspapers or newsletters, places of employment, service provider offices and other places where people congregate. If your organization is interested in serving as a QAC, contact your regional Census Bureau office today.
Utilize Communications Opportunities for Census Education
Engage both local mainstream and ethnic media in Census 2010. Also, distribute Census information via your group’s newsletter, email lists, message boards and whatever else you use to communicate with your members. If you have a social networking presence, such as a blog, Facebook page, etc., use it to send the message that the Census is easy, safe and vital to your community. Follow us on Twitter or become a Fan on Facebook.
Share your thoughts about the importance of the census to our community and enter a chance to win a Netbook! Answer this question: "Starting May 1 through early summer, census takers will be going to households that did not mail back a form to complete the census form. What do you plan on doing to help educate the community, your family, and friends that this process is continuing and they need to talk to the census taker so that they can complete their census form?"
The winner is of our drawing of the Wii from last month's entries is Alofa Taliva'a from San Jose, CA. Read what the Census means to Alofa.
Learn how your if your own neighborhood is doing what it can to secure the resources you deserve for your community by being counted. To find your area's 2010 Census participation rate using the map, enter your zip code, or your city and state, in the search field and click the “Find” button. Once you do this, a national view of the map will appear with a data window on the exact location you chose. The mail participation rate for that area will be featured prominently within that window.
The 2010 Census survey forms are coming to your family's mail boxes. Now is your chance to let the government know how you want your taxpayer dollars to be spent. Watch this fun video to find out why filling out the Census survey and returning it by April 1 is so important. TAKE THE PLEDGE! Now available in English, Cantonese, Mandarin, Korean, Tagalog, Vietnamese, Laotian, Hmong, Hindi, Tongan, and Samoan.
This newly developed brochure provides information on the importance of filling out the 2010 Census, answers to some frequently asked questions, and a timeline on Census 2010 activities to promote and encourage census response rates for Asian Americans. It will be provided in over 25 Asian and Pacific Islander languages. Check back here in a week for all other translations.
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