By Richelle Noroyan, Government and Community Relations at UCSC

Filling out the Census is important. For UCSC, responses help determine federal funding including access to Pell Grants, health services and sciences. For the community, Census results guide funds for annual spending on hospitals, schools, emergency services, roads, wildlife protection, the arts and much more. Taking the Census not only makes a difference for future Banana Slugs, but for local Santa Cruz County communities.

To generate more awareness on the importance of completing the Census, the first-ever Slugs for Census Selfie Contest has been launched! That’s right, Banana Slugs can show their support for the 2020 Census selfie-style and enter for a chance to win one of five $50 Bookshop Santa Cruz Gift Cards. Participating is easy, just snap a selfie showing support for the 2020 Census and share it on Instagram, Facebook or Twitter using #SlugsForCensus. Selfie entries will be accepted through August 24. Five winners will be randomly selected. Contest rules and details can be found online at https://bit.ly/3fNhDhx. 

The deadline for filling out the Census is September 30. Get started by visiting www.my2020census.gov. At only nine questions, it takes less than 10 minutes to complete. Remember, when it asks for your location, to use the address you were residing at in Santa Cruz before you left due to COVID-19. It is where you reside a majority of the year (even if you aren’t living here right now due to the pandemic). Even if you have been counted at home by your parents, you need to still need to fill out the Census on your own behalf if you lived in Santa Cruz before changes occurred due to COVID-19. Your response will help support UCSC and the Santa Cruz County community for the next 10 years.

Learn more about the Census: https://2020census.gov/en.html.