University Letter

UND's faculty and staff newsletter

Stand up and be counted!

All members of the UND community should make sure they respond to the U.S. 2020 Census, as soon as possible. Sept. 30 is the deadline to complete the 2020 Census.

And even if a person is in student housing or living off campus, he or she counts as a Grand Forks resident. What matters is where a person lives most of the year, not the location of that person’s hometown.

So, if a person’s hometown is elsewhere, but that person was a UND student in Grand Forks earlier this year, then the Census Bureau says that person should be counted where he or she would have been on April 1 – meaning at UND and in Grand Forks – if not for the outbreak.

Here’s how the Census Bureau’s website puts it:

“Students who are living at home should be counted at their home address.

“College students who live away from home should be counted at the on- or off- campus residence where they live and sleep most of the time, even if they are at home on April 1, 2020. This includes students who are home early because of the COVID-19 situation.

“If someone such as a college student is just living with you temporarily due to the COVID-19 situation, they should be counted where they ordinarily would be living on April 1, 2020.

“Foreign 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.”

The Census is important. In the last Census, the City of Grand Forks received $1,910 in federal funds for every resident. That money is used to fix roads, aid schools, hospitals, and other programs that benefit UND and the Greater Grand Forks community.

The Census has been conducted since 1790, and is conducted every 10 years. The results are used to determine distribution of federal funds, grants, and distribution of seats in the Congressional House of Representatives. This year, for the first time, you can respond online as well as by phone or mail.

Who gains from participating in the Census? Everyone! If you drive on public roads, have children attending school, or use public services or infrastructure, you have a stake in the outcome of this census.

Stand up and be counted!