Community

Marin Focusing on Outreach for 2020 Census

Published

7 years ago

July 14, 2019

Participation will determine federal funding and representation for local residents

The Marin County Board of Supervisors on July 9 considered authorization of a public outreach contract to increase awareness and maximize local participation in the 2020 U.S. Census.

On June 27, the U.S. Supreme Court blocked the addition of a citizenship question on the census sought by the Trump Administration. On July 2, the White House said it would print the census forms without a citizenship question. Local plans for administering the census on April 1, 2020, are moving forward.

“An accurate census count is critical not only on a national scale but here in Marin County,” said Board President Kate Sears, Co-Chair of Marin’s Complete Count Committee. “With an accurate count, we learn more about who we are, how we’re growing, and what our needs are now and in the future.”

Supervisor Dennis Rodoni, the Complete Count Committee Co-Chair, said census participation secures federal funding for many programs and services. “People living here depend on those programs to live safe, secure, healthy lives,” he said. “Undercounting would limit that funding and skew numbers that help assure accurate voter representation.”

On February 5, 2019, the Board approved an $100,000 opt-in outreach agreement from the California Complete Count Census 2020 office to fund outreach and assistance activities to ensure a complete and accurate count for the 2020 census. The County and the Marin Community Foundation have contributed an additional $50,000 each toward the effort. On July 9, the Board plans to consider an agreement with Canal Alliance, in the not-to-exceed amount of $120,000, to conduct countywide outreach for all hard-to-count local populations.

According to preliminary data, the Marin residents least likely to fill out a census form or considered “hard to count” by census workers are those living in West Marin, Marin City, San Rafael’s Canal neighborhood and Lincoln Avenue, and pockets of downtown Novato. “Hard-to-count” populations include racial and ethnic minorities, people who speak languages other than English, those with low internet proficiency, young people who move frequently or have plans to move soon, and rural residents, all people at risk of low response. Others might be willing but have limited access to technology and, as a result, are considered difficult to reach by an online survey.

This census is being labeled as the “first digital census” whereby households will have the option of responding online, by mail, or by phone. Nearly every household will receive an invitation to participate in the census from either a postal worker or a census worker, but it’s expected that 95 percent of residents will receive an invitation by mail. To spread out the number of users responding online, the U.S. Postal Service will stagger the delivery of the invitations over several days. By its own estimates, the federal government expects less than 1 percent of households will be counted in person by a census official, most of those being residents living in remote areas.

Earlier this year, the County’s Community Development Agency (CDA) – in partnership with the City of San Rafael, City of Novato and Canal Alliance – created MarinCensus2020.org and established a Complete Count Committee comprised of a wide variety of residents. The committee’s goal is to help create encouraging messages that explain the importance of the census and assure confidentiality. About 50 committee members met in March. They are working with state, regional, and local community organizations to coordinate census promotions in different languages.

“One vital way to increase participation is by reaching people in the languages they are most comfortable speaking,” Rodoni said. “People who live here are part of the Marin community, and the more we know the better we can serve them in culturally sensitive and authentic ways.”

In 1990, an estimated 4 million Californians were not counted, leading to the loss of a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives and a shortfall of about $2 billion in federal funding. The state received an estimated $115 billion in federal funding in 2016-17 tied to the state’s population count.

Five barriers have been identified that might prevent people from participating:

concerns about data privacy and confidentiality;
the fear of repercussions;
distrust in all levels of government;
the feeling that it doesn’t matter to be counted; and
the belief that filling out the census form might not benefit the participant.

Questions about the census? Most are answered on MarinCensus2020.org and www.census.gov.

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Oakland Post: Week of September 2 – 8, 2026

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of September 2 – 8, 2026

Published

2 days ago

September 7, 2026

Oakland Post

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Business

Longtime BWOPA Member Brendalyn Goodall Appointed to California Workforce Development Board

Gov. Gavin Newsom has appointed longtime Black Women Organized for Political Action (BWOPA) member Brendalynn Goodall to the California Workforce Development Board. Goodall, an Oakland resident with decades of experience in public service, has held leadership positions focused on

Published

1 week ago

August 30, 2026

Post News Group

Post Co-Publisher Gay Plair Cobb with Brendalynn Goodall. Courtesy photo.

By California Black Media

Gov. Gavin Newsom has appointed longtime Black Women Organized for Political Action (BWOPA) member Brendalynn Goodall to the California Workforce Development Board.

Goodall, an Oakland resident with decades of experience in public service, has held leadership positions focused on employment, aging services and assistance for underserved communities.

“Brendalynn will be a great addition to this Board,” said Gay Plair Cobb, who served as former state Assemblyman Sandre Swanson’s alternate to the California Workforce Development Board (CWDB).

“She understands that California’s non-profit organizations serve persons who have the most significant barriers to their labor market success and that the Board should help these groups navigate the complicated requirements of state funding.

“In other words, she will be a strong advocate for our most marginalized populations. Her voice is needed now, more than ever.”

CWDB works with the governor to shape workforce policies, programs and investments designed to strengthen the state’s economy. It collaborates with employers, workers, labor organizations, educational institutions, community groups and California’s 45 local workforce development boards to expand access to quality jobs and respond to regional employment needs.

According to the board, its work includes coordinating state programs and guiding investments in workforce training and development.

BWOPA California celebrated the appointment, describing Goodall as a dedicated advocate for workers, families and older adults.

“Her appointment reflects a lifetime of leadership, service, and unwavering commitment to strengthening California’s workforce and expanding opportunity for all,” the organization stated in a press release.

Goodall served as summer jobs program coordinator in the Oakland Mayor’s Office from 2012 to 2014. In that position, she helped connect young people with employment opportunities and job experience.

Before joining the Mayor’s Office, Goodall was division manager for Aging and Adult Services in the City of Oakland Human Services Department from 2002 to 2011. She previously served as senior services supervisor and program director for the city’s Department of Aging, Health and Human Services from 1990 to 2002.

Goodall is also a member of the California Commission on Aging, which advises the governor and state officials on policies and programs affecting older Californians.

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Black History

Jackie Wright Champions Bay Area Stories, Filmmakers and Cultural Institutions

As an award-winning communications professional, Wright has worked with corporations, nonprofits, government agencies, educational institutions, artists, and community organizations. In 2026, she expanded that work by launching an introductory public relations class for small businesses and nonprofits, offering practical tools for gaining visibility, shaping messages and building productive relationships with the media.

Published

1 week ago

August 30, 2026

Post News Group

Jackie Wright of Wright Enterprises. Photo courtesy of Wright Enterprises.

By Carla Thomas

Jackie Wright has spent more than two decades helping people, organizations and communities understand the power of a well-told story.

As founder and president of Wright Enterprises, a San Francisco-based strategic communications and public affairs firm, Wright has built a career spanning journalism, public relations, media relations, crisis communications, community engagement and multimedia storytelling.

Wright’s commitment to storytelling is also deeply personal. She wrote and co-directed the 15-minute documentary, “Love Separated in Life…Love Reunited in Honor,” which chronicles the story of her parents, Specialist Five (S5 Wyley Wright Jr. and Ouida Fay McClendon Wright. Her father, a U.S. Army helicopter crew chief, died in Vietnam in 1964 while serving as an honor guard during a visit by then-Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara. Decades later, Wright and her siblings had their father exhumed from a segregated cemetery in Jacksonville, Florida, and their mother moved from her burial place in Georgia so the couple could be reunited at Arlington National Cemetery in 2014.

The family journey later took Wright and her sister to Vietnam, where they discovered the former military compound that had been named in honor of their father and another fallen soldier. The documentary, centered on love, war, family, racial understanding, and remembrance, earned festival recognition at screenings.

“It was quite an honor to learn about my family’s history and share it on film,” said Wright.

That filmmaking experience complements Wright’s longstanding advocacy for independent cinema. She has served as a media partner and brand ambassador for Bay Area film festivals, including the San Francisco Black Film Festival, Oakland International Film Festival, and the Durban International Film Festival in South Africa.

“It’s important to help filmmakers and underrepresented stories reach broader audiences,” said Wright.

Whether promoting a neighborhood organization, championing an independent filmmaker or preserving her own family history, Wright has remained consistent. Through Wright Enterprises, she has turned communications into both a profession and a form of community service, telling stories that might otherwise go unheard.

“Our stories are an integral part of our history, and our history is not only American history, but worldwide,” she said.