Mayor Villaraigosa, Asian American and Pacific Islander leaders join in efforts to jolt Census 2010 participation in Los Angeles

Los Angeles – Los Angeles County and Asian American/Pacific Islander (API) communities have both historically been hard to count during the Census – combined, the L.A. API community faces great challenges in ensuring an accurate count during Census 2010. Today, Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and leaders from many API organizations joined together to urge Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders to fully participate in the upcoming Census.

In 2000, L.A. County accounted for approximately 35 percent of the California’s households that were undercounted, hard-to-count, or non-responsive. L.A. County had five times the non-response rate of San Diego County, which was the second-hardest county to collect data from during Census 2000. An undercount of any community will significantly affect distribution of government and other funding for the next decade, because such funds are heavily based on Census numbers.
“Funding for the basic services Angelenos rely on –schools, public safety, health care and transportation—are at stake,” Mayor Villaraigosa said. “We must mobilize our community to ensure a complete count of all residents, and the participation of Asians and Pacific Islanders is a crucial piece of getting our fair share for the city, county, and state.”
APIs are the fastest growing ethnic minority in Los Angeles County and face very different needs across different ethnic groups, making it urgently important to accurately count this specific demographic. Leading the effort locally to ensure an accurate count of APIs in Los Angeles is the Asian Pacific Policy and Planning Council (A3PCON), which is working in collaboration with organizations from 13 different API communities throughout the county (spanning diverse ethnic groups from Chinese and Korean to Thai, South Asian and Pacific Islander) as well as the Asian Pacific American Legal Center (APALC).
APALC is spearheading the California Asian Pacific Islander 2010 Census Network (“API Count”), which is anchoring a network of seven regional organizations around the state, each one coordinating a grassroots network in its own region. Through API Count, APALC and its partners like A3PCON are reaching deep into API community statewide, to help ensure a full count of California’s APIs by conducting direct outreach and education and providing in-language support and materials specifically targeted to increase Census 2010 participation amongst the hardest-to-count API populations.

“The Asian and Pacific Islander community is very rich in its diversity,” said Executive Director Stewart Kwoh. “Each API community has its own unique challenges in the effort to outreach and educate people about the importance of participating in the Census. They may be concerned about how confidential their responses are, or how Census data is used. They may have distrust in the government, or may not understand how filling out their Census questionnaires can benefit them and their community. We believe it is essential to partner with organizations and leaders that have experience with the specific cultures and customs of each ethnicity to make our efforts effective.”
Activities organized by L.A. API Count network will include outreach efforts as well as work with city officials, complete count committees, and Census Bureau staff to ensure that Census efforts are linguistically and culturally accessible and that the API community is fully included.
“The Census Bureau is very fortunate to have community partners that have come together like API Count,” said James Christy, Regional Director of the Los Angeles Census Bureau office. “At the Census Bureau we realize that the API community may be concerned about the confidentiality and security of the information that they provide through the Census questionnaire. The Census is safe, easy, and important. The trusted community leaders in API Count are playing a critical role in helping us get the message out and are doing the outreach so that the hard-to-count population get counted.”
CONNECT WITH US:
Follow the California Asian Pacific Islander 2010 Census Network on Twitter: @apicount
Check out our Youtube page at: www.youtube.com/apicountcali
Or read our blog at: www.apicount.blogspot.com

Daily Bruin Article: Census takes on new measures for accurate counts in group living quarters

From UCLA's Daily Bruin

By Connie Phu

Jan. 21, 2010 at 1:29 a.m.

With the 2010 census date set for April 1, UCLA Housing is coordinating with the West Los Angeles and Culver City regional offices to ensure accurate counts in group living quarters, including on-campus dormitories and Greek housing.

“The generic idea is that we will see what makes sense in terms of what’s best for counting (group housing at UCLA). We are working ... to understand what the dorm structure and population looks like, in addition to other university housing,” West L.A. and Culver City local census office manager Hart Boykin said.

Office of Residential Life assistant director Rob Kadota said they are still in the process of negotiating the census count for the Hill but that resident assistants are likely to be involved in distributing and collecting forms.

Census data plays an imperative role in government planning. Certain groups, however, tend to be undercounted, and among those, there are college students who can easily fall through the cracks, and minorities and immigrants who have little awareness and understanding of the decennial census, said Cynthia Vuong, Asian Pacific American Legal Center project assistant.

College students are undercounted because of confusion on where they will be counted. The idea is for students to be counted where they spend most of their time, Boykin said.

In the 2000 census count that took place on the UC Berkeley campus, only one of the 1,406 students living in a dorm unit was counted.

“If you think about planning of services for students, that’s predicated upon the number of students living on campus. If it’s undercounted, then it fails in terms of feasibility,” Boykin said. “In contrast, off-campus students are considered as living in normal housing units, and those individuals will receive forms specifically to the address.”

The census helps delegate how $400 billion of federal funding is spent each year and the number of seats each state has in the House of Representatives.

In addition, researchers and social scientists also draw from census data for their studies.

“It’s a very significant source of data,” UCLA professor of communication studies Michael Suman said, “No matter what it is that you’re interested in the social sciences forum ... there are so many questions of interest.”

With so much difficulty in taking an accurate count, there have been efforts to improve methods by which the census is taken.

“A certain sampling design would be better representative than getting an actual count, which is near impossible,” said Gretchen Davis, UCLA statistics professor.

“I understand that data is a form of social advocacy,” Vuong said. “I can see how that transitions into the census and its importance in communities getting a fair share of what they need in terms of hospitals, schools, roads. ... It’s all affected by the census.”

The Census Bureau also identified Southeast Asians and Pacific Islanders as highly undercounted in the 2000 census. While the instructions for filling out a census questionnaire are available in over 50 languages, the questionnaire itself is only available in six languages – neglecting many of the Southeast Asian languages.

In an effort to minimize this underrepresented group, the Asian Pacific American Legal Center anchors the Asian Pacific Islander Statewide Effort to get the correct count for Asian Pacific Islanders.

The center is providing question and answer locations throughout each region they are serving for language assistance.

“Additionally, we are trying to produce materials and use social media as a form of getting the word out, especially to students with visual communication and a PSA contest,” said Vuong.

The Census Bureau is currently hiring temporary positions. Interested students can contact

2010.census.gov/2010censusjobs/

Distrust Could Dampen Census Count

We found this story off the Washington Times

By Hope Yen ASSOCIATED PRESS

With the start of the nation's decennial census just weeks away, nearly one in five persons might decline to participate in the high-stakes head count, citing mostly a lack of interest but also a broader distrust of the federal government.

A poll released Wednesday by the Pew Research Center highlighted the challenges as the U.S. Census Bureau prepares to begin its tally in March. The findings come as some groups question whether the agency's $300 million outreach effort is doing enough to reach hard-to-count communities.

"The big picture message is they've got a lot of work to do in terms of informing people," said Andrew Kohut, president of the Pew Research Center. He cited young people in particular, as well as those with less education and Hispanics who have had less exposure to the census or government.

Overall, 90 percent of those surveyed called the population count "very important" or "somewhat important" for the country. Many were also familiar with the value of the census in redistributing U.S. House seats every 10 years and distributing billions of dollars in federal aid.

Still, 12 percent of U.S. residents said they had not decided whether they would fill out the government form, and another 6 percent said they were unlikely to or definitely would not do so. These people were more likely to be young adults ages 18 to 29 and lower-income people.

Asked why they were unlikely to participate, more than half said it was because they were too busy, not interested or weren't familiar with the census. One quarter cited distrust of government or concerns about privacy.

Nearly one-third said they think the data could be used to locate illegal immigrants or that they weren't certain whether it could. Census Director Robert Groves has repeatedly said the information would be kept confidential.

"In today's America, you can't reach everybody with one or two ads on two or three television networks," said Marc Morial, president of the National Urban League and chairman of the 2010 Census Advisory Committee. "It is the depth and breadth, who delivers the message, where it's placed and the frequency."

Last month, his group, along with the NAACP and the Revs. Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson, called for more paid advertising in black community newspapers, because blacks historically have been undercounted.

They are not alone. The National Coalition of Latino Clergy and Christian Leaders is urging millions of illegal immigrants to boycott the census to protest inaction on immigration reform.

The Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund said it has yet to receive government assurances that census data would be kept confidential. It plans to release a report later this month on notable gaps in outreach in communities with sizable Asian populations, such as Chicago, Northern Virginia, and San Jose, Calif.

In response, the Census Bureau has been touting its $133 million advertising campaign, which includes television spots in 28 different languages. As the nation's top advertiser in the coming weeks, the agency estimates it will reach the average American 42 times with slogans such as: "The 2010 census - it's in our hands."

In 2000, about 67 percent of U.S. residents mailed back their forms, with the remainder counted by door-to-door canvassing. This year, the Census Bureau is bracing for a mail-return rate that is roughly the same, if not lower, and is hiring nearly 1 million temporary employees to locate hard-to-find residents.

Seeking 18 Ethnographers for

Short-Term Research on Census 2010

Comparative Ethnographic Studies of Census Enumeration Methods and Coverage in Race/Ethnic Groups

The U.S. Census Bureau is seeking up to 18 ethnographers to do short-term research in nine race/ethnic research sites during Census 2010 field data collection operations as contractors for 4-6 months. Past research has shown that race/ethnic minority subpopulations are differentially miscounted, with implications for possible imbalances in congressional representation and allocation of federal funds. Examples of miscounts include persons not included on the census form who should be counted in the household, persons counted in more than one place or in the wrong place, and missed housing units. The study aims to document how and why miscounts happen, who is affected, and what can be improved to reduce miscounting in future censuses.



This comparative qualitative study of enumeration methods and coverage in nine race/ethnic sites will be conducted in 2010 in three census operations. The objectives are to identify 1) types of coverage error; 2) sources of coverage error (e.g., questionnaire issues, interviewer error, residence rules, socio-cultural and/or language factors, complex households, etc.); and 3) characteristics of households and persons with coverage error; and to 4) assess the extent to which these are similar or different across the race/ethnic groups, and to 5) recommend how to improve coverage of race/ethnic groups.



Current Summary of Scope of Work: Each researcher will receive training at Census Bureau headquarters in Suitland, Maryland. Each researcher will go to his/her designated race/ethnic site for 7-9 continuous days during one of three specific census data collection time periods to accompany census interviewers as they conduct 35 interviews. The researcher will tape and unobtrusively observe and listen to the census interview for cues of possible coverage errors and/or household relationships not identified with the census relationship question. If there is such a cue, the researcher will conduct an immediate targeted semi-structured debriefing with the respondent to resolve questions as to where each person should be counted, according to the census residence rules, and to clearly delineate household composition. The researcher will transcribe interviews (perhaps at a Census secure location), analyze data, write case studies, write a site report addressing the objectives and other factors identified in the research, and give a Census Bureau talk. The methodology may change somewhat before it is finalized.



Race/ethnic subpopulations: We seek 2 ethnographers to do studies in each group:

Alaska Native
American Indian (reservation)
Asian
African American
Middle Eastern
Hispanic/Latino
Native Hawaiian/ Other Pacific Islander
White (non-Hispanic)



Generalized site



Research Sites: Will be designated by the Census Bureau



Specific Time Periods for Field Research: Census operations are on a strict timetable and just one researcher will be in each site in each operation. To ensure each site and operation is covered, all selected researchers must commit in writing to full-time work for 7-9 continuous days in their designated sites during one of the following time periods.



March 29 - April 9: American Indian reservation

May 5 - May 22: Sites other than the Indian reservation

August 30 - Sept. 30: All sites



Compensation: To be determined soon.



If You are Interested and Would Like to Learn More: Compile the following:

Cover letter, including information directly relevant to this study and its methodology:

· Any experience with past censuses and/or surveys

· Experience with unobtrusive observation and debriefings

· Identification of the race/ethnic subpopulation with which you have done past research, and the specific US research locations (preference will be given to those with past or present race/ethnic research sites in the US)

· Any foreign language fluency, with level of fluency in conversation

· State your US citizenship status (you must be a US citizen)

Attachments:

· Current resume or CV

· Brief summary of your past research with the race/ethnic group you have chosen, including research design and methods employed. Identify the specific US location(s) where you conducted your past research

· Please specify if you are/are not of the same race/ethnicity as the group you wish to study

· Representative paper or report showing methodology and/or results relevant to this proposed study (less than 25 pages)

· Dates of observation in this study: State which of the three observation time period(s) listed above when you will be available to spend 7-9 continuous days of observation at the site (you will need to commit to one of these time periods in writing in order to be selected for this study).



Send these materials: 1) if by e-mail, send to all contact people below, OR 2) if by regular mail, send to just one: Laurel Schwede, Matt Clifton, or Rodney Terry.



By regular mail: By FEDEX or UPS:

U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau

Statistical Research Division, Statistical Research Division

4600 Silver Hill Road 4600 Silver Hill Road

Washington, D.C. 20233 Suitland, MD 20746



Deadlines: American Indian site: February 1, 2010. Other sites: February 10, 2010.



Contact: Laurel.K.Schwede@census.gov 301-763-2611

Rodney.Terry@census.gov 301-763-5475

Matthew.Clifton@census.gov 301-763-3086

Cenus Open Houses

As the Census countdown begins, the U.S. Census Bureau is celebrating a month of Local Census Office Grand Openings with open houses. Today's Open House, complete with a ribbon cutting ceremony, was held at 701 E. Third Street in Los Angeles. This local office serve as the hub of census activities in: Bunker Hill, Chinatown, Little Tokyo, south Park, Koreatown, Olvera Street, Figueroa Corridor, Arts District, Elysian Park, Gallery Row, civic Center, Fashion district, Historic Philipinotown, Flower District, Historical Downtown, MacArthur Park, Toy District, Jewelry District, Wholesale District, Chavez Ravine and Lincoln Heights.

If you are interested in joining an Open House to find out more about the Census or any employment opportunities, check out an upcoming open house in your area:

January 5, 2010, 2 pm
14500 Roscoe Blvd, STE 207, Panorama City, Ca 91402

January 6, 2010, 1:30 pm
11 Golden Shore, STE 200, Long Beach, CA 90802

January 6, 2010, 2 pm
27201 Tourney Road, STE 115, Santa Clarita, CA 91355

January 7, 2010 10 am
12501 E. Imperial Hwy, Norwalk, CA 90650

January 8, 2010, 2pm
279 E. Arrow Hwy, Suite 103, San Dimas, CA 91773

January 11, 2010 12 pm
12150 S. Alameda Street, Lynwood, CA 90262

January 12, 2010 1 pm
9800 S. La Cienega Blvd, STE 415, Inglewood, CA 90301

January 12, 2010 2pm
841 Apollo St., STE 150, El Segundo, CA 90245

January 13, 2010 2 pm
8407 Fallbrook Ave., STE 270, West Hills, CA 91304

January 14, 2010 10 am
701 E. 3rd St. STE 100, Los Angeles, CA 90013

January 20, 2010, 2 pm
8407 W. Alameda Ave., STE 300, Burbank, CA 91505

January 21, 2010, 1pm
5500 Hollywood Blvd, 3rd floor, Los Angeles, CA 90028

January 25,2010 1pm
299 N Altadena Dr. Pasadena, CA 91107

January 26, 2010 1pm
3743 South La Brea Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90016

2010 Census Road Tour

The 2010 Census Portrait of America Road Tour set out on Monday January 4, 2010 from New York City's Times Square, launching a cross-country interactive experience designed to increase awareness and encourage participation in the nation's once-a-decade population count.

During the next four months, the tour will be part of the largest civic outreach and awareness campaign in U.S. history -- stopping and exhibiting at more than 800 events nationwide. From local parades and festivals to major sporting events like the Super Bowl and NCAA Final Four, the Census Bureau will attempt to motivate America's growing and increasingly diverse population to complete and mail back 10-question census forms when they arrive in mailboxes March 15-17.

http://2010.census.gov/2010census/involved/what-is-the-road-tour.php

If your community group is interested in having the Census road trip visit your event contact your local Census Office Immediately.

SOUTHEAST ASIANS UNITED FOR A COMPLETE COUNT!

SOUTHEAST ASIANS UNITED
FOR A
COMPLETE COUNT!

Date: Thursday, January 14, 2010
Time: 11:00A.M. To 2:00P.M.

Location: Wat Dhammaram
Cambodian Buddhist Temple
3732 E. Carpenter Road
Stockton, CA 95215

You are cordially invited to join us for a day of celebrating
Diversity & Community!
Dress in your ethnic costume to the event!

"Southeast Asians All Unite; Just Like Sweet Sticky Rice!"

“Many Cultures, One Community!”




“There will be Census staff to provide language supports for the following:
Burmese, Cambodian, Hmong, Lao, Mien, Thai, Filipino, and Spanish”

Community Agencies include: Asian Pacific Self-development And Residential Association (APSARA), Laotian American National Alliance (LANA), Lao Family of Stockton, United Cambodian Families, Lao Khmu Association, and Vietnamese Voluntary Foundation.


For more information about the 2010 Census, visit www.2010census.gov.

Burmese Complete Count Committee

The Burmese Complete Count Committee has established a website where you will find in-language materials and fact sheets as well as links to the Burmese CCC in your region. They were also recently interviewed by Time Magazine about gearing up for the 2010 Census. You can view the original Time Magazine article here.

Census Bureau Jobs

If you're in between jobs or looking for a short-term job with good pay, consider applying for a Census Bureau job. The CB is hiring temporary part time staff with flexible working hours. Check out these exciting opportunities to help your community be counted. Click here for Census Jobs.

An Interactive Census Form

Although your form won't be in your mailbox until mid-March and should be mailed back by Census Day on April 1, 2010, you can preview an interactive English/Spanish form on the Census Bureau site by clicking: Interactive Form.

THE JACL LAUNCHES 2010 CENSUS WEBPAGE

THE JACL LAUNCHES 2010 CENSUS WEBPAGE: HOW CAN YOU TAKE ACTION IN 2010?


The Japanese American Citizens League (JACL) has just released a new 2010 Census page on the JACL website. You can visit the page under the Public Policy section or click: www.jacl.org/public_policy/census2010.

The spiffy page also includes an exciting countdown ticker to keep us counting down the days till Census Day on April 1, 2010. You can also find a 2010 Census YouTube video with Congressman Mike Honda, and links/downloads for more informational kits. JACL is also promoting the Census by featuring a weekly column in the JACL DC Digest that shares a story about the Census each week until Census Day. This month's stories will feature events from the past decade that affect the Census.