College Students Need to Stand and Be Counted in 2020 Census
January 21, 2020

​The 2020 Census today is launching its campaign to count everyone living in the country, and an accurate tally of college students nationwide is vitally important to this effort.

As we all know, the decennial census is both a constitutional requirement and a count that impacts the distribution of more than $675 billion in federal funds for states and communities annually. That includes money for agriculture and nutrition assistance programs, science and engineering education, special education grants to states, Title I elementary and secondary education grants to school districts, student wellness, and community mental health services. The results of the census also determine the number of seats each state will have in the U.S. House of Representatives, and they are used to draw congressional and state legislative districts.

For students living on campus or in off campus housing owned or managed by their institution, U.S. Census Bureau employees will work with campus building representatives to ensure students understand how to complete the individual census form. But it’s also easy for students living off-campus in buildings not affiliated with their school to participate: they now can respond online, by phone, or by mail beginning in mid-March.

ACE and other higher education associations are helping communicate to campuses across the country about how college students can stand up and be counted. Click here for more information about how your students can respond to the 2020 Census, and here for a Census Bureau flyer that contains additional information that can be shared with your students.​