Providence, RI –Secretary of State Nellie M. Gorbea hosted a free training session for more than 60 census organizers from across New England today at the Rhode Island State House. The event featured several workshops for groups and individuals planning census outreach and education efforts in communities across Rhode Island, Massachusetts and Connecticut.
The free training offered an overview of the importance of participating in the census and how the process works, along with a comprehensive outline of Census Bureau operations and in-depth guidance on conducting field activities like canvassing and SMS texting campaigns.
The event was a collaborative effort involving the following organizations: o The Rhode Island Department of State o National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO) Educational Fund o The Rhode Island Complete Count Committee o The Massachusetts Statewide Complete Count Committee o The Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition o Connecticut Counts 2020
"The 2020 Census will shape the future of our community and define our voice in Congress," said Secretary Gorbea. "Even a 1% undercount here in Rhode Island could cost the state millions in federal funding for things like schools, roads and public safety. Simply put, we all depend on a complete and accurate census count."
"In recent months, we have been hard at work providing census technical assistance training to hundreds of local organizations and advocates throughout the northeast and across the nation," stated Juan Rosa, NALEO Educational Fund Northeast Director. "The stakes are too high for our community to fail, which is why we are doing our part to ensure we can all work together so that millions of Latinos are not left uncounted in Census 2020."
Next week, homes across the country will begin receiving invitations to complete the 2020 Census. Census results help determine how billions of dollars in federal funding is distributed to states and communities each year, and determine how many seats each state gets in Congress.
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