Census 2020 is around the corner…. and we’re getting ready!

First 5 Orange County is supporting a community-wide outreach effort to families with young children to share how important it is to respond to the 2020 Census. In 2010, it is estimated that more than 18,000 children in Orange County were undercounted and as a result, $36 million in federal funding went elsewhere. It is further estimated that about 6.5 percent of young Latino and African-American children were overlooked by the 2010 Census, which is roughly twice the rate of young non-Latino white children.

Our goal is to ensure every child, ages 0-5, in Orange County is counted in Census 2020 and we invite our partners to get involved.

Here are some ideas how:

Planning Opportunities:
Join the Special 0-5 Census Expo, scheduled for November 5th from 9 AM – 11:30 AM at the Delhi Center in Santa Ana. This Expo will be designed specifically to support outreach and education efforts of stakeholders who can reach families with children ages 0 to 5. The 0-5 population is one of our hardest to count and crosses all other Hard to Count populations. You can register here for this planning event.

Funding Opportunities:
There are several funding opportunities available in Q3 and Q4 2019, for school districts, cities and community-based organizations to support this effort.

• County of Orange RFP – OPEN, due October 2. You can find the RFP posting on BidSync here: https://www.bidsync.com/bidsync-app-web/vendor/links/BidDetail.xhtml?bidid=2047224&roundId=null.
• Charitable Ventures ACBO RFP – OPEN, due October 4. This funding opportunity deploys available public dollars from the State Census contract to CBOs. Applications will be due Friday, October 4 at 5 PM. Eligible organizations will work within State-approved targeted areas and with a focus on State-approved Hard-to-Count Populations. Find the full RFP posting here: https://occensus.org/funding/.
• Census Fund RFP – On November 1, via email to the OC Census Table and posting to www.occensus.org, Charitable Ventures will release an RFP to deploy dollars from the OC Census Fund, a private pooled fund. Applications will be due December 2.

Training Opportunities:
Outreach training will begin in October and continue into the 1^st quarter of 2020.  Trainings will include messaging, communications and outreach strategies as well as focused sessions on setup and use of a Question Assistance Center (QAC).

For those who want to get a head start on training, please look at the recently published NALEO Back to School Toolkit for Families here: https://mailchi.mp/naleo/back-to-school-help-us-spread-the-word-about-counting-children-in-census-2020?e=3847af663b.

Registration is now open for the 2019 Learners Today, Leaders Tomorrow Summit!

On September 18, join community leaders and special guest speakers for a summit about how ready our youngest learners are to start school, become successful students, and ultimately, engaged workers in Los Angeles and Orange counties.

Learn about the Early Development Index (EDI) which measures student readiness, and participate in breakout sessions about how cities and school districts can use this groundbreaking data for strategic interventions.

Get your tickets now here.

First 5 Orange County has released a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) for Consultant Services. The date to submit applications has been extended to Friday, April 26 at 3:00pm.

Please see the official RFQ for all important dates and details here.

The Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) regarding First 5 Orange County’s Request for Qualifications (RFQ) for Consultant Services are now available here.