'Digging Deeper' returns Sept. 29 as President Barron discusses the U.S. census

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Penn State President Eric Barron will talk about the upcoming U.S. census and the importance of the information collected during the season premiere of his monthly show, “Digging Deeper,” on Sept. 29 on WPSU-TV.

A pair of experts — Josue Figueroa, partnership coordinator at the Philadelphia Regional Census Center, and Jennifer Van Hook, the Roy C. Buck Professor of Sociology and Demography at Penn State — will join Barron to discuss the census’ far-reaching impact. The census was first conducted in 1790 and, in 2020, will need to count approximately 330 million people who reside in the United States.

“Digging Deeper” will air at 10:30 a.m. and 6 p.m. on WPSU-TV.

Figueroa says information from the 2020 census will help determine financial allocations, emergency preparedness levels and local planning efforts, including schools.  

“Folks don’t realize how they can have a direct impact on how the data is used that would be an impact to them locally as well as across the commonwealth of Pennsylvania,” he said. “In terms of how many folks might need to be evacuated, in terms of hospitals preparing for how many folks might need to be brought in to the hospital. Funding for those different services is based on population numbers.”

The census will ask individuals where they live on April 1, 2020 and determines the representation in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Figueroa says his organization works with local groups providing outreach and letting communities know of the census’ importance.

“We need to engage the community in order to provide that education about why it's important for them to be counted, for the community to be counted,” he said. “The census is coming, and it’s important and safe to participate.”

Visit the WPSU website for more information on central Pennsylvania’s public media station.