United for Libraries invites Trustees to become Library Census Champions

Sign up by Oct. 1 to join launch webinar

Today United for Libraries, the American Library Association (ALA) Public Policy and Advocacy office and the Census Counts campaign launched Library Census Champions, a new network of state, local and tribal library Trustees helping their libraries and communities prepare for the 2020 Census.

“As elected and appointed leaders, library Trustees are uniquely positioned to ensure a fair and accurate count of their communities in the 2020 Census,” said Beth Nawalinski, executive director of United for Libraries

Census data are used to make decisions about how and where to spend more than $800 billion each year for services and programs communities rely on, including federal funding for libraries. The Census is also the basis for drawing districts for federal, state, and local offices.

“With so much at stake for everyone,” said Nawalinski, “United for Libraries is equipping Trustees for this once-in-a-decade chance to show that everyone in their communities can count on libraries – particularly those most in danger of underrepresentation and underfunding.”

Elected and appointed library Trustees can sign up to become a Library Census Champion at Library Census Champions will receive free information, resources, and actions to take to ensure a fair and accurate census.

United for Libraries will host a live webinar to introduce the Library Census Champions initiative on Tuesday, Oct. 1, at 2:00 p.m. (EDT). The webinar is free for library Trustees who would like to learn more about the project. To register for the webinar, visit www.ala.org/united/censuswebinar.

For more information on ALA efforts to support a fair, inclusive and complete count in the 2020 Census, visit www.ala.org/census.

To connect on social media, follow @ala_united, @ALALibrary, #CountOnLibraries, #2020Census.

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United for Libraries: The Association of Library Trustees, Advocates, Friends and Foundations, is a division of the American Library Association with approximately 4,000 personal and group members representing hundreds of thousands of library supporters. United for Libraries supports those who govern, promote, advocate, and fundraise for libraries, and brings together library trustees, advocates, friends, and foundations into a partnership that creates a powerful force for libraries in the 21st century. To join, please visit www.ala.org/united or call (800) 545-2433, ext. 2161.