Head Start adds Multiracial Classification!
Longtime Project RACE member, Kimberly C. of Michigan has been working hard for many years to get a classification for multiracial children on Head Start forms and she has succeeded! Head Start is a child development program that has served low-income children and their families since 1965. The Head Start program is administered by the Administration for Children and Families, U. S. Department of Health and Human Services. Head Start's new Program Information Report (PIR) software will include an "ethnicity" category of "Biracial/Multiracial." Staff will be instructed to "report the category of ethnicity designated by the family."

Kimberly says, "We now can say that Head Start recognizes the multiracial children it serves. This has been accomplished through the work of many advocates in the multiracial community. I can truly say that after years of feeling like the 'voice in the wilderness,' my words (advocacy for multiracial children and families) have been heard. But I also realize that there is much more work to be done to enhance the lives and experiences of multiracial children and families."

Kimberly was also our lead advocate/lobbyist on the successful 1995 effort to pass legislation in Michigan. She has been very active on our medical committee and attended a meeting at the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) in Atlanta, representing multiracial children.

Kimberly joined Project RACE in 1991 and was one of our first members. She has always taken the lead for multiracial children, and has never wavered in her determination to see them acknowledged. Kimberly is an inspiration to children's advocates, and we thank her for her many, many years of help. Thank you, Kimberly, for all you've accomplished for our children.

Bone Marrow Donation Update
A Project RACE member in Washington, DC, recently attended a meeting at the Department of Health and Human Services about bone marrow donation. Although there was nothing that specifically addressed the multiracial community, all of the packets of specific minority group information were given to everyone, which our member saw as an improvement over past informational meetings. Her report is below:

Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, Tommy Thompson, announced five initiatives to increase organ, tissue, blood and marrow donations. One of these initiatives is the Workplace Partnership for Life, which encourages employer and employees to work together to obtain better donor education and participation. As a result, the HRSA/Division of Transplantation has been trying to increase the awareness within the Department of Health and Human Services. On May 10, there was an educational program in the National Institute of Health's Clinical Center that centered around a "Lunch and Learn" theme.

A variety of individuals representing different donation organizations (blood, organ, tissue, marrow) spoke to those who attended. They answered questions and informed the group about how to go about becoming a tissue donor. There was a broad ethnic diversity among those who spoke, and it strengthened their attempt to encourage donation from those of minority or multiracial backgrounds. In addition, every person who entered the session was given a large group of packets that included everything from FAQs to procedure information. There were also packets that specifically recruited those of minority (Asian, African-American, Hispanic, Native American) descent. This not only helped to make those of a multiracial descent feel included, but it aided everyone's awareness of the problems associated with low donor numbers in minority populations.