Opening a Census Assistance Center

If your organization has a small space that you can set aside for several weeks or a couple of months in early 2010, consider becoming a Census Assistance Center – a place where people can drop in to get information, ask questions, and get help understanding and completing a form.

To become an official Census Bureau Assistance Center, you must first sign up as a Census partner, which you can do online or by getting in touch with the Census Bureau regional office in your area; you can find contact information for the regional offices in the resources section of this toolkit.

Things to consider about setting up an assistance center.

Make sure you have a staff member there who is trained to answer census questions or access to a census partnership specialist. You can work with your local census office or partnership specialist to arrange "office hours" for the Census Bureau to answer any questions community members or clients might have.
Make sure your staff knows when they can refer clients or community members to meet with someone knowledgeable about the census. It's a good idea to have a schedule posted near the receptionist or outside the office when the census staff or your staff will be available to meet and answer questions.
Publicize your assistance center in your newsletter, on your website, in community calendars and in public areas like libraries. Ask local business owners, like grocery stores or beauty salons, to post a flyer or poster. See if a local radio station will run a public service announcement.