Add Demographics Data to a Program Activity

Learn how to enter participant demographic data for a program activity in PEARS.

The Demographics section records the demographic makeup of the participants in your program activity. The fields available depend on your reporting period and program areas.

TIP: The red asterisk * next to the heading of a field indicates that the field is required.

Navigate to Demographics

After completing any required custom data sections, PEARS directs you to the Demographics page. You can also access this section from the program activity detail page by clicking Demographics in the progress panel.

1

Enter Total Participants

In the Total Participants field, enter the total number of participants in the program activity.

2

Select Reach Method

In the Method used to determine demographic makeup of participants field, select the option that best describes how the demographic data was collected:

• Actual Count — Demographics were collected through sign-in sheets, surveys, or other direct methods.

• Estimated Count — Demographics were estimated based on observation or other indirect methods.

• Unknown — The method used to collect demographics is not known.

NOTE: For SNAP-Ed program activities, the Unknown option is not available. You must select either Actual Count or Estimated Count.

3

Select a Data Source

In the Source of Data field, select the source used to determine the demographic makeup of participants from the dropdown.

If the appropriate source is not listed, select Other and enter the source in the text field that appears.

NOTE: This field is required for SNAP-Ed program activities.

4

Enter Gender Data

Enter the number of participants for each gender category:

• Male

• Female

• Non-binary

• Prefer Not to Respond

• Unknown

5

Enter Age Data

Enter the number of participants for each age range. The age categories available depend on your program type:

For SNAP-Ed programs:

• 5 - 7 years

• 8 - 10 years

• 11 - 13 years

• 14 - 17 years

• 18 - 59 years

• 60+ years

For Extension programs:

• 5 - 17 years (Total Youth)

• 18 - 29 years

• 30 - 59 years (Total Adults)

• 60+ years

TIP: Only the age categories relevant to your program areas will be enabled. Categories that do not apply will be grayed out.

6

Enter Ethnicity Data

Enter the number of participants for each ethnicity category:

• Hispanic / Latino

• Non-Hispanic / Latino

• Prefer Not to Respond

• Unknown

7

Enter Race Data

Enter the number of participants for each race category:

• American Indian or Alaska Native

• Asian

• Black or African American

• Hawaiian/Pacific Islander

• White

• Prefer Not to Respond

• Unknown

• Two or More Races

The One Race Only field is automatically calculated and displays the count of participants who identified with a single race.

NOTE: Only the race categories relevant to your program areas will be enabled. Some categories may be grayed out depending on whether your organization is SNAP-Ed, Extension, or both.

8

Save and Continue

Click the Save and Continue button to save the demographic data and proceed to the next step in the workflow.

To save without continuing, click the Save button instead.

TIP: The demographic form layout changes based on the reporting period of the program activity. Program activities with reporting periods before 2023 will see a different set of age categories and demographic fields than those with 2023+ reporting periods.