I tend to be an empath. I can very much sense people’s joy, their sadness, their pain. But I can’t read minds. And that is why it’s critical that I – and more importantly, we, at the U.S. Census Bureau – reach out to you in your roles as partners, stakeholders, data users, policymakers and the public. We need to understand your needs, your concerns and more generally your perspectives on matters related to Census Bureau statistical data products. And occasionally we need to talk through misperceptions that can occur on both our parts.

That is why a principal priority as your director of the Census Bureau is to seek out, listen to and converse with the multitude of diverse voices across our nation. As I told you at the end of last year, we are actively engaging the public. We recognize the value and importance of different perspectives. They help us to be innovative and creative, and ultimately produce accurate, relevant and useful data on our nation’s people, places and economy.

As an agency, we’re implementing a community-of-the-whole effort to accomplish our mission. We realized from our 2020 Census experience that we cannot achieve our mission without external input and collaboration from you – our stakeholders, partners and the public. Toward that end, I continue to make a concerted effort to engage stakeholders, partners and local communities across America. That was the case for 2022, and that certainly has remained true thus far for 2023.

In the first quarter of 2023, I continued my outreach to our stakeholders in five states (Illinois, Massachusetts, New York, Tennessee and Texas) and the District of Columbia, meeting with advocacy and community-based organizations, chambers of commerce, government officials, tribal leaders, businesses, academics and more along the way. Our conversations with these groups were wide-ranging and very fruitful, and I look forward to engaging with other stakeholders in more states soon.

Here are some of the things I’ve been up to in the first few months of this year:

• On behalf of the Census Bureau, I signed a memorandum of agreement (MOA) with the University of Texas at San Antonio, a Hispanic-Serving Institution. Through this MOA and others like it, the Census Bureau will support opportunities for collaboration and expanded opportunities for students to pursue careers in data science for the growth and support of our richly diverse communities.

Photo: At the grand opening of the University of Texas at Austin’s School of Data Science building.

• But that wasn’t the only educational institution I visited! This quarter, I also met with students, faculty and administrators at Vanderbilt University, the University of Illinois at Chicago, New York Law School, Chicago State University, Medgar Evers College (City University of New York) and New York University. We discussed topics such as redistricting, data equity, careers at the Census Bureau and the value of bringing students’ own diverse perspectives to advance scientific excellence.

Photo: Meeting with students at the New York Law School Census & Redistricting Institute

• In Chicago, it was a privilege to speak to the U.S. Hispanic Leadership Institute’s members and elected officials about the 2020 Census and what its data tells us about our nation’s changing and growing Hispanic population.

Photo: Speaking at the U.S. Hispanic Leadership Institute Conference in Chicago

• The United South and Eastern Tribes, Inc., a nonprofit organization that serves 33 federally recognized tribal nations, hosted several of us from the Census Bureau at its headquarters in Tennessee. We discussed the upcoming releases of 2020 Census data products and how we can work together to make sure those products meet tribes’ data needs.

Photo: Meeting with the United South and Eastern Tribes, Inc. in Tennessee

• At the Joint Mathematics Meeting in Boston and the Applied Demography Conference in Annapolis, I spoke to scientists and experts who use Census Bureau data. It was a pleasure to update these stakeholders on matters including data protection and privacy, race and ethnicity statistics and planning for the 2030 Census – and to learn how they use our data.

Photo: Speaking at the 2023 Applied Demography Conference

• I met with chambers of commerce from the Chicagoland area about the Census Bureau’s datasets and tools that can help businesses. I also talked to them about the importance of participating in the 2022 Economic Census and I appreciate their help in encouraging their members to respond.

• In Nashville, I talked to investigative reporters from outlets across America about how the media can use our data to accurately report on our nation’s people, places and economy.

• Finally, I had a little fun talking about how good statistics need to be at the South by Southwest Conference in Austin.

Two-way conversations with stakeholders and the public are critical to understanding the needs of our data users and to our decision making. I appreciate these groups inviting me and offering their time and feedback. I hope that my meetings with them demonstrated the Census Bureau’s commitment to transparency, data utility and scientific integrity.

Things have been busy back at headquarters, too. We are in the midst of collecting data for the 2022 Economic Census. If your business received a mailing in January, it’s not too late to respond! Your response is important to understanding our nation’s economy – as well as your local community and your business and industry.

We also released your feedback on how to improve the 2030 Census. Last fall, we asked for your ideas through a Federal Register notice – and the response was tremendous. People from all over the country submitted more than 8,000 comments. I invite you to read those comments yourself, and learn more about what’s next in our planning process for the next decennial census. We have already shared this feedback with our Census Scientific Advisory Committee, one of the advisory bodies helping us prioritize your suggestions.

If you’d like to learn more about what we’re up to at the Census Bureau, I encourage you to visit our newly revamped Executive Leadership page on census.gov for ongoing updates for all Census Bureau leadership, including remarks, blog posts and videos.

I look forward to connecting with and hearing from even more communities across the country in 2023! Together, we can generate the statistical data our nation needs to govern and advance our society and our economy.