The Facts:
The 2010 Census will be distributed in the next month. In the past, including 2000, the response rate from students has been very low.
Our Opinion:
The Census is a critical part of making sure students’ voices count. Filling out a Census isn’t just a civic obligation; it’s common sense.
Students will receive one of the most important documents in their college careers during the next month.
Not the failing results of mid-term exams or rejection letters from graduate schools, but the 2010 Census.
Ironically enough, the little document, which takes just a few minutes to complete and has profound effects on Congressional representation and federal funding, has had extremely poor response rates from students in the past.
During the last Census, in 2000, four of the five Wake County tracts — a population measurement tool — with the worst response rates were in the University vicinity.
Many students seem to view the Census as unimportant, or are under the impression that it won’t affect them. Truth be told, the Census has incredibly profound effects on students.
It can help bring additional funding into the state and local governments and can even allocate new Congressional districts to the state.
It’s more than a civic duty to complete the Census; it’s common sense and students must realize its importance for — without getting corny — being counted.
More so than voting, even, it is one of the most effective ways to participate in representative democracy and have a real influence on the future of the country.
If you frequently complain about potholes in the road, wait times at the hospital and — even more importantly — funding to state universities, fill out your Census.
The short self-assessment is a very powerful tool and can be a catalyst for change in the community; it does the entire area — University or otherwise — a disservice to not account for the growing campus population during the last 10 years and deny the next decade’s worth of students the resources the government should afford.
Take the time to fill out the Census before mid-April and encourage your friends to follow suit — you won’t get another chance until 2020 and the funding and representation has never been so important.
