A U .S. Census Bureau tour bus will visit the West Virginia University campus from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Friday, Feb. 25, to let students know they countand in a big wayespecially when it comes to the 2000 census.

The whistle stop in front of WVUs Mountainlair is all part of a promotional tour conducted by the Census Bureau to kick off a University campaign to educate students that they should register in the county they spend the most time in, said Andrew Gross, a local census bureau official.

Often, students dont think they need to register here because they only live and attend school in Morgantown part of the year, or because they are registered to vote elsewhere, Gross said.

But students and other WVU faculty and staff including out-of-state residents and international ones should register and be counted as Morgantown residents because they reside here the majority of the time, Gross said.

Students and others who stop by the bus on Friday will receive informational brochures alerting them that census forms are in the mail or that a census taker may be stopping by their residences. The forms will be mailed beginning March 6, and students can expect to receive them no later than March 15, Gross added.

A money incentive also is planned for WVU students who file, said Andy Cogar, of the presidents office staff who serves on a subcommittee of Morgantowns Complete Count Committee.

Every student who fills out a census form will be automatically entered into a drawing for a $500 cash prize at WVU ’s All Night activities March 17-18, he said.

“We also are hoping that local businesses will contribute other prizes for additional drawings,”Cogar added.

Volunteers will be placed at various drop-off points across campus to collect the forms during the week of March 13, Cogar added. State law requires that census forms be mailed to residences, so none will be available during the Friday bus stop.

However, there will be forms available for students interested in becoming census workers at $9.50 an hour. Applicants must pass a 30-minute basic skills test that includes questions on mapping and reading comprehension and be able to drive throughout the area to drop off census forms.

If Morgantown hits 50,000 a total they missed by only about 500 during the last census the area could automatically receive $1 million in federal grants, organizers say.

In addition to attracting more federal dollars, the census helps determine U.S. government representation, increases economic development and helps to determine the level of assistance given an area in the event of a natural disaster.

For more information, call the bureaus Westover office at 1-888-325-7733.