Problem: A lack of comprehensive educational materials and a designated educator at most prenatal facilities in communities of color stands in the way of increasing umbilical cord blood donations by pregnant Hispanic and non-Hispanic black women. Birthing families have the power to save lives by donating umbilical cord blood to a public bank – but only if they are fully informed of their donation options and understand the need for their donation. Background: Umbilical cord blood stem cells provide an alternative to adult stem cells found in bone marrow for patients who require a stem cell transplant, and are more easily matched to patients than stem cells from an unrelated adult donor (1). An umbilical stem cell tissue match is more likely if the donor and recipient have similar tissue types, which are inherited and influenced by racial and ethnic background (2). In order to ensure that patients from all racial and ethnic backgrounds can find a match, donation by racial and ethnic minorities must be increased from current donation levels: in 2008 only 7% of umbilical cord blood donors were non-Hispanic blacks and only 17% were Hispanics, as compared to non-Hispanic whites (62%) (3). Hypothesis: When pregnant women are given comprehensive education on the need for and process of umbilical cord blood donation, they are more likely to see donation as appropriate for their families and to request a donation kit. Research: A pilot study was conducted with 307 pregnant women over a three-month period. This group of predominantly Hispanic and non-Hispanic black women was educated by HealthConnect One-trained community health workers, case managers, prenatal educators, and breastfeeding peer counselors at four (health-center based) sites in the city of Chicago. These educators were chosen because HealthConnect One focus groups identified them as trusted sources for health information. Observations: 70% (215/307) of pilot study participants requested an umbilical cord blood donation kit after their education sessions. Conclusions and Implications for Future Research: The observations suggest that when pregnant Hispanic and non-Hispanic black women are well-educated about the option to donate umbilical cord blood, the majority of women will request an umbilical cord blood donation kit. These results necessitate additional, replicated studies in other cities and with rural populations of varying socio-economic statuses in order to confirm the results of this study with a wider population of pregnant women. Follow-up research from this study has the potential to reveal how effective particular methods of education are on actual donation rates of umbilical cord blood in this population. (1)National Marrow Donor Program, “Cord Blood Transplants.” Accessed 7/29/2010. www.marrow.org (2)National Marrow Donor Program, “Cord Blood Donation: Frequently Asked Questions.” Accessed 7/29/2010. www.marrow.org (3)National Marrow Donor Program. Facts and Figures. 2009. Accessed 7/29/2010. http://www.marrow.org/NEWS/MEDIA/Facts_and_Figures/FactFigures2009.pdf