Ventura County 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 to hard-to-count communities and help achieve a complete count in the 2020 Census.
“We are thrilled to be selected to receive these ALA grant funds in support of the Census 2020 effort,” said Ventura County Library Director Nancy Schram. “Our county libraries will play a key role in the census, and this grant will help us reach more community members with the equipment and information they need to be better informed about Census 2020 and to complete the census survey. Librarians across the county have been working with the Ventura County Complete Count Committee and representatives from the U.S. Census Bureau to plan for Census 2020; and, this grant project will help us to leverage and build upon those partnerships to have even more impact.”
Ventura County Library is dedicating grant funds toward computer equipment for the Mobile Library to facilitate participation by people in underserved areas of Ventura County in special Census 2020 Mobile Library events.
“The efforts of Ventura County Library,” said ALA President Wanda Brown, “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.”
The results of the 2020 Census will affect communities across the country. More than $1.5 trillion in federal funds are 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, healthcare, and transportation.
The U.S. Constitution requires a census of all residents every ten years. In the 2020 Census, residents will have the choice to respond online, by phone, or by mail. The U.S. Census Bureau will send mailings to households prior to Census Day, which is April 1, 2020.
For additional information on Ventura County Library and the 2020 Census, contact Nancy Schram, Ventura County Library Director at (805) 256-8535
To help achieve a complete count in the 2020 Census, America’s libraries are informing their communities and providing access to the online response option. To learn more, visit ala.org/census and follow the conversation on social media with #CountOnLibraries.
