Noxubee County High School hosts Census 2020 rally

NOXUBEE COUNTY, Miss. (WCBI) – In a pep rally to end all pep rallies, Noxubee County High School students along with the B. F. Liddell middle school choir brought the house down– all to raise awareness for the upcoming 2020 census.

The Federal Government allocates over $600 billion across the country.

The Mississippi census numbers will determine how much of that money the state will receive.

Reports show children are among the most under-represented in the census.

With a recent state takeover in the Noxubee County School District, educators there say a more accurate census reading could increase opportunities for students.

“We want more technology, we want more support for our teachers as well as our students, and we definitely want more people to come in and see how awesome we are beginning to be. We’re great, but we are definitely headed in the right direction to be awesome,” said Noxubee High School Principal Iaesha Brooks.

Brooks said the county is pushing for change.

“Historically Noxubee County has not been represented, so we want to make sure that we get the message to students so they can take it to the household,” said Brooks.

Under-representation is a state-wide trend.

The State Superintendent said Mississippi is still seeing the effects of the last census– ten years ago.

“You’re seeing fewer federal dollars, I mean, and that goes for infrastructure like transportation, housing, roads, public safety, hospitals, besides education which deals with Head Start and after school programs,” said Wright.

Wright said the state loses about $3,000 for every child not counted– making their rally at the high school a strategic move.

“The census bureau has put together a lot of resources for teachers and a lot of lesson plans and materials that they can use in classes in Kindergarten through 12th grade. It’s a good way for them to start raising the awareness in the classroom around exactly what is the census,” said Wright.

Noxubee County Superintendent Dr. Rodriguez Broadnax is hoping the big push will have a direct impact on his district specifically.

“We’re working on the financial situation of our district and it’s a lot better, but we want to do greater things for our students and with our students, so the more accurate the count is, the more money we get, which allows us to enhance student achievement,” said Broadnax.

Census 2020 will mail out letters to various households on March 12th.

They are asking for a response by the third week of April.