There are more ways than ever to complete the Census! Let’s explore the options that will become available in mid-March:

Online – New this year, is the option for all households to fill out the Census online, the website will even be mobile friendly!

Phone – Also new this year, the US Census Bureau will release several 1-800 numbers to respond via telephone.

Mail – The option you may be most familiar with, with a paper form and free return envelope.

In Person – In most areas of the country, Census Workers only come to a residence if there has not been a response by late April. Exceptions are made for extremely rural areas like the Alaskan wilderness, which will have Census Takers as soon as January 21st!

Minnesota may lose a congressional seat despite a conservatively estimated population growth of 216,000 people since the last US Census in 2010! Why is this? It’s because that population growth is primarily from births and international migrations, however we have not gained population from other states.

In 1929, the US House of Representatives passed our country’s last Apportionment Act, setting the number of House Reps at 435, and we use census data to portion those Representatives throughout the United States, with a minimum of one per state.

Since we are in competition with other states for representation, we need to make sure we get an accurate count! Remember you do not need to be native born or a naturalized United States citizen to count, the only requirement is you live here!   

With nearly 5.5 million people in Minnesota, lets make sure every single one of us is counted for. If we miss just one count, we are losing thousands of federal help. Not just that, we will have missed opportunities!

Use this map to find out which areas were not reported in the previous census so we can improve the 2020 Census by including them. It is crucial that the words get out to everyone and everywhere in the Land of 10,000 Lakes. The map also reports on which areas will need improvement so people like us can reach out to them by teaching them what the Census is; how it works; and the purpose of it.

Lets work together as Minnesota and make sure everyone is counted for. Remember that you are a part of the community–which makes you a part of Minnesota. We care for our neighbors as much as we care for our family. Their needs may be more than us, and this is to give back to the community by being another number of the statistics to find out who needs what kind of resource.

There are many opportunities to be involved in the 2020 MN Census! You can help by:

• staying in the loop
• spread the word
• organize events and gatherings
• join/form a group
• donate time or money
• work for the census

These great opportunities allows you to be actively involved and do something good for the community and the state. Take part today!

“Once a decade, America comes together to count every resident in the United States, creating national awareness of the importance of the census and its valuable statistics. The decennial census was first taken in 1790, as mandated by the Constitution. It counts our population and households, providing the basis for reapportioning congressional seats, redistricting, and distributing more than $675 billion in federal funds annually to support states, counties and communities’ vital programs — impacting housing, education, transportation, employment, health care and public policy.”

census.gov

The success of the census depends on everyone’s participation and fair representation is important. This includes you as a Metropolitan State student.

Increasingly diverse population

The demographic and cultural make-up of the United States continues to increase in complexity, resulting in a growing number of households and individuals who do not speak English as their native language, who have a wide variety of cultural traditions and mores, and who may have varying levels of comfort with government involvement.

Over the past few years, there has been a lot of news coverage in the media regarding the 2020 census. A majority of the concern revolves around the purpose of census, how the data that is collected will be used, and how it will affect immigrant communities around the country.

Some estimates put the number of undocumented individuals living in the United States in the range of 10.5 to 12 million people. This includes DREAMERS, family members of those who crossed the U.S./Mexico border to seek asylum, and individuals who traveled hundreds of miles to seek a better life for themselves and their families.

Earlier in the presidency of Donald Trump, the idea of adding a citizenship question to the 2020 census was floated among his administration. The concern of many was that the answer given to this question was going to be used to target and subsequently deport individuals who were living the United States illegally.

It is important to be aware of the history of a citizenship question and how it relates to the U.S. Census. A similar question inquiring about a person’s citizenship status appeared on the census questionnaire from 1820-1950. However, the difference between this question and what was proposed is that the questions were limited in scope. So to that point, the Trump administration could claim precedent when considering adding this type of question to the census.

After a long battle, the question of what could be added to the census made its way to the Supreme Court of the United States. The Justices on the Court ruled in favor of the plaintiffs in the case. They cited that while there was precedent in having a citizenship question, because of statements made by Donald Trump throughout his campaign, there was concern that the information could be used for a political purpose. In other words, their reasoning for the additional question was not justified and genuine.

The arguments made in the 5-4 ruling in the Supreme Court took into consideration prior statements made by then-candidate Trump. The ruling also supported what is written into laws governing the census. It is explicitly written into law that the release of personal identifiable information to law enforcement is prohibited.

You have nothing to worry about. It is important to participate in the 2020 census and get yourself counted.

This is an example post, originally published as part of Blogging University. Enroll in one of our ten programs, and start your blog right.

You’re going to publish a post today. Don’t worry about how your blog looks. Don’t worry if you haven’t given it a name yet, or you’re feeling overwhelmed. Just click the “New Post” button, and tell us why you’re here.

Why do this?

• Because it gives new readers context. What are you about? Why should they read your blog?
• Because it will help you focus you own ideas about your blog and what you’d like to do with it.

The post can be short or long, a personal intro to your life or a bloggy mission statement, a manifesto for the future or a simple outline of your the types of things you hope to publish.

To help you get started, here are a few questions:

• Why are you blogging publicly, rather than keeping a personal journal?
• What topics do you think you’ll write about?
• Who would you love to connect with via your blog?
• If you blog successfully throughout the next year, what would you hope to have accomplished?

You’re not locked into any of this; one of the wonderful things about blogs is how they constantly evolve as we learn, grow, and interact with one another — but it’s good to know where and why you started, and articulating your goals may just give you a few other post ideas.

Can’t think how to get started? Just write the first thing that pops into your head. Anne Lamott, author of a book on writing we love, says that you need to give yourself permission to write a “crappy first draft”. Anne makes a great point — just start writing, and worry about editing it later.

When you’re ready to publish, give your post three to five tags that describe your blog’s focus — writing, photography, fiction, parenting, food, cars, movies, sports, whatever. These tags will help others who care about your topics find you in the Reader. Make sure one of the tags is “zerotohero,” so other new bloggers can find you, too.