Census 2010 - Count Me In!

Complete Count Committee of Allegheny County and the City of Pittsburgh

The overarching objectives of the Complete Count Committee are:

To increase the level of participation by creating awareness for the importance to the community of having a complete count

To increase the mail back response rate.

The Honorable Cynthia Baldwin, former Pennsylvania Supreme Court Justice and current partner of Duane Morris LLP, and Reverend Dr. J. Van Alfred Winsett, Senior Pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church in the Hill District. have been named co-chairs of the joint Allegheny County /City of Pittsburgh Complete Count Committee by Allegheny County Executive Dan Onorato and Mayor Luke Ravenstahl. In addition, they have named Pittsburgh Steelers' quarterback Charlie Batch as the Honorary Chair of this effort. Together with community volunteers serving on seven sub-committees, they will develop and implement strategies that increase the return rate of surveys and reduce the undercount of residents who have historically been undercounted.

The following seven subcommittees have been appointed to ensure that the City of Pittsburgh and Allegheny County achieve a complete count of every resident.

Business and Labor

Committee is comprised of representatives from: Businesses of all sizes, employees, labor representatives, Chambers of Commerce.

Members
Victor Diaz, CEO, Pittsburgh Metropolitan Area Hispanic Chamber of Commerce
Barbara McNees, President, Great Pittsburgh Chamber of Commerce
Frederic B. Sargent, President, SGT LLC
Jack Shea, President, Allegheny County Labor Council

Creates and coordinates activities that heighten awareness for census. Incorporate Census information and messages in internal publications; leverage business connections to distribute information and census messages on packaging.
Provides or facilitates securing the following:

Testing sites for hiring Census workers
"Be Counted" sites that are safe, secure locations where people may pick up census questionnaires
Questionnaire Assistance Centers that are publicly accessible areas where people may obtain assistance in completing census questionnaires.

Disseminates information about job openings for the 2010 Census.
Encourages their employees and customers to complete and return their questionnaires.

Community Based Human Services Organizations

Committee is comprised of representatives from: Non-profit organizations, city and county human service agencies, private foundations.

Members
Richard C. Frech, Director, Mercy Mental Retardation Services
Virginia Jurofcik, Executive Director, LifeSpan
Dick Skrinjar, Assistant Director, Department of Parks & Recreation SeniorInterests, City of Pittsburgh
Adrienne Walnoha, Executive Director, Community Human Services

Collaborates with community organizations to communicate the importance of the Census to populations that might otherwise be missed.
Provides or facilitates securing the following:

Testing sites for hiring Census workers
“Be Counted” sites that are safe, secure locations where people may pick up Census questionnaires
Questionnaire Assistance Centers that are publicly accessible areas where people may obtain assistance in completing Census questionnaires.

Disseminates information about job openings for the 2010 Census.
Help to identify hard to count communities and barriers to enumeration.

Diversity

Committee is comprised of representatives from: Human service and medical providers, support, cultural and ethnic organizations, educators, religious readers with relationships in these communities and groups.

Members
Pedro Bretz, International community member
Esther Bush, President & CEO, Urban League of Greater Pittsburgh
Andrew Pugh, Executive Director, Welcome Center
Lucy Spruill, Director of Public Policy & Community Relations, UCP/CLASS

Helps to identify immigrant and emerging populations in Allegheny County, develops and implements outreach strategy and promotional materials that reach these constituents: African-American, Asian, Hispanic, Native American, older adults, gay, lesbian, bi-sexual, and transgender communities and residents with disabilities.
Provides or facilitates securing the following:

Testing sites for hiring Census workers
“Be Counted” sites that are safe, secure locations where people may pick up Census questionnaires
Questionnaire Assistance Centers that are publicly accessible areas where people may obtain assistance in completing Census questionnaires.

Promote Language Assistance Program.
Helps to identify language and cultural barriers that will hinder enumeration.
Disseminates information about job openings for the 2010 Census. Helps to identify bilingual applicants.

Education

Committee is comprised of representatives from: School superintendents and school boards, libraries, intermediate units, and institutions of higher learning, representatives from public, private and the home school communities.

Members
Dr. JoAnne Burley, Executive Director, Pittsburgh Council on Higher Education
Dr. Linda Hippert, Executive Director, Allegheny Intermediate Unit 3
Dr. Alex Johnson, President, Community College of Allegheny County
Craig Kwiecinski, Director of Marketing & Communications, Pittsburgh Public Schools

Encourages education institutions to incorporate the Census in school curriculum in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade, as well as post-secondary education institutions in Allegheny County.
Encourages nontraditional institutions (ESL, etc) to use the Census in schools materials that are available on the web site.
Encourages children and teens to learn about the Census early in life to create the habit of participating in the Census.
Encourages students to take the message home to their parents.

Faith Based

Committee is comprised of representatives from: Clergy, Imams, Rabbis, religious leaders and inter-faith networks members.

Members
Bishop Otis Carswell, Potter’s House Ministries
Reverend Dr. James Earl Garmon Sr., Trinity Baptist Church
Rabbi James A. Gibson, Temple Sinai

Produces and coordinates activities, events and materials that can be used by any local faith-based institutions to promote awareness of and participation in the 2010 Census.
Provides or facilitates securing the following:

Testing sites for hiring Census workers.
“Be Counted” sites that are safe, secure locations where people may pick up census questionnaires.
Questionnaire Assistance Centers, that are publicly accessible areas where people may obtain assistance in completing Census questionnaires.

Disseminate information about job openings for the 2010 Census.

Governance and Community Leadership

Committee is comprised of elected officials, government employees and leadership development organizations.

Members
Aggie Brose, Deputy Director, Bloomfield-Garfield Corporation
Susan Hockenberry, Executive Director, Local Government Academy
The Honorable Phillip Krivacek, Mayor, City of Duquesne
John M. Wallace Jr., Ph.D., Associate Professor of Social Work, University of Pittsburgh, and Senior Pastor, Bible Center Church

Encourage participation in 2010 Census by the municipalities and other levels of government.
Elected officials encourage their staffs to support the 2010 Census initiatives.
Provides or facilitates securing the following:

Testing sites for hiring Census workers
“Be Counted” sites that are safe, secure locations where people may pick up Census questionnaires
Questionnaire Assistance Centers that are publicly accessible areas where people may obtain assistance in completing Census questionnaires.

Disseminates information about job openings for the 2010 Census.
Hosts town meetings to raise public awareness about the 2010 Census.

Media

Committee is comprised of co-chairs of the six other subcommittees and representatives of media outlets.

Leverages resources to help spread the word about the 2010 Census and to support the work being doing by the other Complete the Count sub-committees.
Creates awareness for the key messages about why the 2010 Census is easy, safe and important.
Facilitates incorporation of these key messages in communication materials that are produced by these various sub-committees. Communications outlets could include local newspapers, newsletters, flyers, local festivals, billboards, radio, and television.
Serves as a community spokesperson for the Census representing why a complete count is important to that individual’s organization and/or to the community.
Enlists personalities/celebrities to assist in the promotion of 2010 Census.
Disseminates information about job openings for the 2010 Census.