MAKE SURE YOU ARE COUNTED IN THE 2020 CENSUS! College students should be counted at the residence where they usually live during the year.

• Students who normally live at school should be counted at school, even if they are temporarily living somewhere else because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
• If they normally live in a dorm or college-owned Greek housing, the don’t need to worry — the college is already working with the Census Bureau to count them. That means they don’t need to do anything — other than tell their parents not to include them in their response. (Since GHC does not have general student housing or on-campus residence halls, there is little need for being counted on-campus.)
•  If they normally live in an apartment or house, this is where they need to take action. The student or one of their roommates will need to respond for everyone living at their off campus school address.
  • If they are around to get their mail, watch for the invitation the Census Bureau is sending. It will have a unique Census ID that can be entered when responding online. If they not around to get the mail, its okay. They can just go online and provide the address instead.
  • When they respond, they need to include everyone else who normally lives there too. That means they will be asked about their roommates’ birthdays, how they want to identify their race, etc., so they need to communicate about it before they begin to respond.
  • But if they don’t know that information or can’t verify whether their roommate has already responded, they should respond and include everyone who normally lives with them  at school. The Census Bureau has tools to un-duplicate responses and would rather eliminate duplicates than miss students and roommates entirely.
• The reason we want to make sure students are counted where they normally live is because those responses impact how billions of dollars in federal funding will be distributed to the school’s community for services that affect each student — like school safety, mental health services, and Pell Grants.
• If students usually live with their  parents during the school year, the parents should include the student when they respond to the census. Be sure students encourage parents to respond online, by phone or by mail and include everyone who usually lives with them.
• College students are counted where they live and sleep most of the time as of April 1.
  • If college students usually live abroad outside the United States they are not counted in the census.
  • If they live in the U.S. but are traveling abroad on April 1, they are still counted where they usually live.
  • Students who are no longer living abroad are counted where they are living in the U.S. on April 1.
  • Students who usually live abroad but are only in the U.S. temporarily are not included in the census.
  • International students living and attending school in the United States should be counted at the on- or off-campus residence where they live and sleep most of the time.
• In general, students who are away from campus while their school is temporarily closed should not count themselves at a temporary address.

If students live in a private residence (off campus) that is not specifically for college or university students, such as a rental house or apartment that may be shared with roommates, students should respond to the 2020 Census online, by phone, or by mail.

• Most households will receive an invitation in the mail between March 12 to 20 to respond to the census. The Census Bureau will also send multiple reminders in case households miss the first invitation.
• One person from a shared apartment or house should fill out the census on behalf of the entire household and include information on everyone who lives there (including family or roommates). 

2020 Census results will impact funding for critical college student programs and planning

• Statistics from the 2020 Census will impact funding for critical college student programs including school safety, mental health services, student wellness programs, Federal Pell Grant Program, adult education grants, agriculture, science and engineering education and Medicaid.
• College communities can use census statistics to support community initiatives, demonstrate need to help nonprofit organizations and advocacy groups, and decide whether to expand college facilities.

What if a parent already included their college student who usually lives elsewhere in their household’s response?

• If parents have already counted their college student at home, it is ok.  The Census Bureau has processes in place to deal with situations where a student is counted more than once.  As a reminder, if the college student lives in student housing, the college will count the student. If the college student lives off campus, the student should respond for the off-campus address and include any roommates or other people living there. The student can respond online without their Census ID if they do not have it.

 LET’S MAKE SURE EVERY CHARGER IS COUNTED! Go to Census2020 to complete your part!