March Proclaimed Census Awareness Month

At last night’s State College Council meeting, members of Count Centre County were presented with a formal proclamation from State College Mayor Elizabeth Goreham naming March 2010 as “Census Awareness Month” in the borough. This is a huge step in spreading the word about the importance of the 2010 Census to the residents of Centre County!

A public relations campaign for the National Bateman Case Study Competition, Count Centre County can only be run during the month of February, but the group thought it was more ideal to drafted the proclamation for the month of March. This is because forms will arrive to homes in mid-March and need to be returned by Census Day, April 1st. Because local school districts and Penn State will hold Spring Break during the month of March, “Census Awareness Month” is a great way to remind residents about the census when they return from vacation.

Emily Franklin, Director of Community Outreach, spoke in response to the mayor’s proclamation. Franklin described that as college students ourselves, we can act as liaison to Penn State students to get out the message. Franklin was quoted in an article in The Daily Collegian.

During the 2000 Census, the State College borough had only a 64 percent return rate – lower than the national, state and county level. It is up to students to fix this problem. Even if you are a college student who only lives in State College for a portion of the year, it is your responsibility to fill out the Census form in Centre County and not at your parent’s house.

We are so excited to be working with the State College borough and cannot wait to see the results of the 2010 Census. Census Awareness Day will consist of several events throughout March, so be sure to keep checking www.statecollegepa.us for more details. Don’t forget, help put Centre County on the Map!

Count Centre County