Kate Ruiz and Fellow Promotoras Inform Farm Workers About the Importance of the Census

November 14, 2020 – (Oxnard, California) – Harvest Academy graduates returned to Reiter ranches in Ventura County to promote Census participation amongst the farm worker community, a group known as part of the hard to count population according to the Census Bureau.

The promoters visited more than 60 crews to talk about the importance of the Census, answer questions and offer guidance on how to complete the census; helping make a substantial impact within the farmworker community.

“The results are back, and despite being considered one of the hardest to count populations, Ventura County ranked in the 95th percentile nationwide for Census completion,” said Courtney Catalano, Director of Communications and Community Engagement for RAC. “This wouldn’t have been possible without the hard work of the many community organizers, leaders and volunteers who dedicated their time to ensuring our community participated.”

The Census has the capacity to greatly improve our community, as it determines where communities need new schools, new clinics, new roads, and more services for families, older adults, and children. The results will also inform how hundreds of billions of dollars in federal funding are allocated to more than 100 programs, including Medicaid, Head Start, and SNAP.

This project was made possible by a grant issued by the Ventura County Community Foundation, whose mission is to promote and enable philanthropy to improve our community.

The census outreach team is comprised of students who first worked with Reiter in 2019 when they participated in Harvest Academy, a Reiter program in which students pursue summer harvest employment while at the same time participating in a hands-on educational curriculum that furthers their knowledge and understanding of sustainable farming and the future of agriculture.