ACCOA's ICAN Survey | Editorial - Alcona Conservatives

After hearing much talk of the lauded University of Michigan ICAN Survey, Jeff and I went poking around to see if we could find anything about this particular and yet, incredibly important survey. Well, wouldn’t you know it? We found it on the ACCOA’s website! (Yes, we feel a little sheepish that it was right there for us to find.)

So, what does this survey entail? What sort of questions did it ask? How useful was this survey in the project, that has quickly become one of Alcona County’s most talked about subject? Well, let’s take a look.

You can find the link to the survey itself on the Alcona County Commission on Aging’s website, via the link to “ICAN Alcona” at the top of the main website. Once on that page, you’ll simply need to scroll down and click the button that says “Take the Survey!”.

Survey Contents

While we cannot know for sure the results of the survey (unless released by ACCOA, or UofM), we can take a look at the substance of the survey that was used to plan the Community Hub project that is currently being undertaken and discussed by the ACCOA. What we have found, may or may not shock you.

Should you wish to watch the survey being taken by my husband, Jeff, you can do so below. One thing to note about this video, is the fact that Jeff is able to take it a second time, without the link to the survey changing at all. This is akin to stuffing ballots into the ballot box, and is a poorly executed survey by someone as big as University of Michigan, in my humble opinion.

Now, let’s look at the questions not being asked here first. Most notably missing from this survey are questions that you would expect an agency, who’s focus should be on the elderly, to ask. Questions that are pertinent to the Elderly.

Also, because one of the main focuses of this Community Hub, is housing, why aren’t there any questions pertaining to that too? While going through this survey, you see nothing that asks the residents of Alcona County, if they want or need housing. Another question, why is this survey so short? You would think a multimillion dollar project, would need in-depth research, and this doesn’t feel too in-depth. Anyhow…

One interesting question that is within this survey, is one that made me truly pause. And that is the question that reads as follows:

What would be the best way for you / your family to join the Community Center so you could access the facilities / activities / programs?

Annual membership

Month-to-month membership

Daily use / walk-in / Per day

This implies that the Community Center of this Community Hub project, will not be free for the community that it is supposed to serve, to use. (Never mind the tax dollars being used to build the said Community Hub or anything either.)

All in all, I would simply love to see the finalized results, especially before going forward with such a project. The more I learn about this Community Hub project, the more I see the seniors, who simply wanted a new Senior center, being left out of the community.

View the Survey for Yourself

Since the link never changes, no matter how often you take the survey, you can see it for yourself at this link: https://umich.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_01bKQHILVTSBMKa

You can also, view the survey in the screenshots I took below.