This study is part of the 2010 Census Ethnographic Study of Group Quarters (GQ) populations. In this report, we present ethnographic research findings on homeless populations. We sought to discover what types of census enumeration would lead to the most complete and accurate count of homeless populations. We also explored whether a Census Coverage Measurement (CCM) study would be feasible for homeless populations.

Our findings are based upon ethnographic data collected in 11 sites that serve the homeless populations in three cities in a Northeastern U.S. state. These sites included single and family shelters, soup kitchens, day centers, and a group home for the mentally ill. We gathered data from January 2010 through May 2010. Data collected were comprised of: (1) field notes based upon observation, participant observation, and semi-structured interviews with homeless individuals and homeless serving professionals, decennial enumeration observations at two soup kitchens, and two post-enumeration focus groups with homeless individuals; (2) demographic information collected from 50 homeless individuals and families; (3) information from homeless-serving staff about the actual census enumeration at their agency. We spent a total of 50 days for data collection.