PALCUS Launches National Community Survey, the PALCUS Index

PALCUS is launching a first-of-its-kind national community survey to be known as the PALCUS Index. The PALCUS Index, will be conducted bi-annually and aims to collect data regarding the issues that matter to the Portuguese-American communities across the United States. In addition, the survey seeks to take note of how connected these communities feel to Portugal. The collection of data on a bi-annual basis will allow for the identification of trends in the Portuguese-American community at large over time as well as provide insight into how to maintain and engage within the communities.

Take the survey here: http://bit.ly/PALCUSindex

“A national survey of this nature is critical for us to understand what matters most to our Portuguese-American communities,” said Angela Simoes, PALCUS Chairwoman.  “This survey seeks to answer questions such as why or why not are people involved in the Portuguese community; what kind of events or new activities do they want to see in their community; how often do they travel to Portugal; are they using Portuguese in their jobs?  These are questions that have never really been asked before, and knowing this information will help all of our organizations plan for the future.”

The responses will be collected online via QuestionPro, and then analyzed by PALCUS Research Fellow Dr. Dulce Maria Scott (Anderson University). Dr. Scott specializes in conducting survey-based research and has assisted us in the past with the national survey about how Portuguese should be classified for the US Census. Along with her team, Scott will establish a database of the data collected and a formal report will then be published to the public. In addition, a Webinar will be conducted to share the results with the community and an infographic will be created to share the findings in an easy-to-read format.

Aside from data collected by the U.S. Census Bureau, the PALCUS Index will serve as the primary source of information regarding the Portuguese-American community.

“We encourage all Portuguese and Portuguese-Americans living in the US to complete the PALCUS Index national community survey – it takes 10 minutes to complete, but will yield valuable information to help our community grow and thrive for generations to come,” added Simoes.

Take the survey here: http://bit.ly/PALCUSindex