Published on October 21st, 2009

Census takers wanted in villages

By ALEX DEMARBAN

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The U.S. Census Bureau wants to hire villagers to do the counting in Alaska Native communities.

"Who knows their community better than the folks who live there?" said Barbara Fleek, a partnership specialist with the U.S. Census Bureau in Alaska.

That effort will be discussed on Wed., Oct. 21, at the Hilton Hotel in Anchorage at a conference titled "Alaska Native Village Conference for the 2010 Census."

The meeting will bring together tribal liaisons from around the state who are working with the bureau to make sure Alaska Native villages are properly counted. The tribal liaisons will help spread the word that village workers are needed.

The Census helps determine how more than $430 billion in federal funds are distributed each year, Fleek said. Each person in Alaska who is not counted can mean $2,700 less per year in federal funds, money that could be used to help improve local roads, schools or clinics.

The conference begins at 7 a.m. with registration and lasts until 5 p.m. Presentations follow the opening prayer at 8:30 a.m.

"We're looking to hire four or five census takers in each community," Fleek said.

The job pays $25 an hour and lasts about a month. The bureau will also hire crew leaders who make $26.50 an hour for work that will last two to three months.

To learn more and receive applications, call 1-866-861-2010.

If you're interested in applying, you might try taking a practice test to prepare for a required eligibility test. It's at http://2010.census.gov/2010censusjobs/documents/Practice_Test.pdf.

Alex DeMarban can be reached at alex@alaskanewspapers.com, or by phone at (907) 348-2444 or (800) 770-9830, ext. 444

 

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