Census 2020 is now just a year away and we’re getting a closer look at how philanthropy across the country is supporting efforts for a complete, accurate and equitable census count.

Grassroots Solutions and the Bauman Foundation have released the Census 2020 State Landscape Scan which features the work underway in Michigan being led by the Michigan Nonprofit Association (MNA) in partnership with CMF.

The scan outlines the unique systems put in place to support census efforts across the country, showcasing the work of philanthropy in six states and detailing their varied implementation efforts for those who may want to model such work in their own communities.

CMF worked with MNA and funders to help create the Michigan Nonprofits Count Campaign that launched in 2017 with support of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. The campaign assets have grown to $5.4 million and is supported by more than 40 CMF members.

The scan details the infrastructure of the campaign. CMF worked with MNA to create the framework that leverages the community leadership and grantmaking expertise of community foundations, United Ways and other community-based organizations as regional hubs connecting the state level activities with the grassroots organizations that are closest to the people that are hardest to count.   

“This framework has matured into the basis of the campaign infrastructure and has the promise of becoming a sustainable resource to support future civic engagement and democracy-related work,” Debbie McKeon, executive vice president and COO at CMF said. “What began as a framework to allow place-based funders to grant into a statewide pooled fund quickly transitioned to a core campaign component once we began deep conversations with community foundation leadership and realized the potential.”

As it has now emerged as a national model, McKeon is sharing CMF’s learnings in meetings and webinars nationally to be a resource to the work of others.

"It’s an honor to have our campaign recognized as a national model,” Joan Gustafson, external affairs officer at MNA said. “It is truly a testament to our strong partnership with CMF and our commitment to ensuring a fair and accurate count in Michigan."

MNA leads the statewide infrastructure and regional hubs, which in turn are led by local community foundations or another local entity. With the addition of a 13th census hub last week, the campaign now covers every region of our state. The regional hubs will receive mini-grants to grant to grassroots organizations doing on-the-ground outreach efforts. Seven CMF member community foundations are serving as regional hubs in their area.

The scan also details the challenges facing each of the six states highlighted in the brief.

Michigan snapshot:

• Our state relies more on federal funding than any other state in the country except Mississippi, as 40 percent of our state funding comes from the federal funding derived from census data.

• Michigan stands to lose an estimated $1,800 per person, per year, for 10 years for every person who isn’t counted.

• Michigan is home to a number of residents who are part of historically undercounted populations. Detroit had some of the highest undercount numbers in the last census.

• Communities most at-risk for being undercounted are Arab Americans, immigrants, Latinx, children under the age of 5, rural residents and African-Americans in urban areas.

The scan shares that the use of regional hubs in Michigan will help to leverage the work of local governments in alignment with the nonprofit campaign. MNA and CMF have held education briefings and meetings with mayors in urban and rural areas across the state.

Gustafson shares that the campaign is working closely with the 13 regional hubs to develop local get-out-the-count initiatives and administer mini-grants to community-based nonprofit organizations in their respective regions.

Want more?

Check out the scan.

Connect with the Michigan Nonprofits Count Campaign.