Library Receives National Grant to Support 2020 Census Work
Buffalo State's E. H. Butler Library was named one of 59 libraries nationwide to receive a $2,000 Library Census Equity Fund grant from the American Library Association (ALA), which awarded the grants to bolster library services for hard-to-count communities and help achieve a complete count in the 2020 census.
This minigrant will allow for the expanded capacity to increase self-response from community members and students living in census tracts 55, 62.01, 63.01, and 171 (PDF, 965 KB).
“We are grateful for this grant because it will help enable us, the Buffalo State College community, both on and off campus, to engage in a more meaningful conversation about why the census is so important,” said Charles F. Lyons, director of Butler Library. “This grant will help support our goals of raising awareness of the census itself, answering questions people may have about how the census works, and striving to get as complete a count as possible for Buffalo State College and the surrounding community.”
“The efforts of Butler Library will shine a light on all the library workers across the country who are shouldering efforts to reach and inform their communities, especially vulnerable and hard-to-count populations, about the importance of a full and inclusive count,” said ALA president Wanda Brown.
The results of the 2020 census will affect communities across the country. More than $1.5 trillion in federal funds is allocated each year to state and local governments based on census data. When residents are missed in the census, their communities miss out on needed funding for services such as libraries, schools, health care, and transportation.
The U.S. Constitution requires a census of all residents every 10 years. For the 2020 census, residents can respond online, by phone, or by mail. The U.S. Census Bureau will send mailings to households before National Census Day, which is April 1, 2020.
To help achieve a complete count in the 2020 census, America’s libraries are informing their communities and providing access for the online response option. To learn more, visit the ALA website or follow the conversation on social media with #CountOnLibraries.
