Contact: Catherine Easby-Smith
(202) 833-0060
manacatherine@aol.com

Washington, D.C., January 5, 2004 - MANA, A National Latina Organization (MANA) congratulates Ford Motor Company's Board of Directors for the election and appointment of Kimberly Casiano to its Board of Directors. On December 15, 2003, Ford announced the election of Ms. Casiano, President and Chief Operating Officer of Casiano Communications, Inc. to the Board of Directors.

Ms. Casiano is a leader in the field of magazine publishing. Her privately-owned, San Juan-based company includes the publications Caribbean Business, IMAGEN, and Buena Vida magazines. In addition to serving markets in the Caribbean, the company's titles circulate in the U.S. and other international markets.

Casiano and her family have long held leadership roles with U.S. Hispanic organizations. Her father, Manuel A. Casiano, Jr., was a founder and board member of ASPIRA, and Ms. Casiano is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Hispanic College Fund. She also recently concluded an appointment by the U.S. Treasury Secretary to serve on the U.S. Savings Bond National Committee. A magma cum laude graduate of Princeton University and a Harvard University MBA, Casiano is the first Latina to be elected to Ford's Board of Directors.

As one of the nation's oldest and largest grassroots membership organization for Latinas, MANA advocates for Latina representation at all levels in all sectors. As an Executive Board Member of the Hispanic Association on Corporate Responsibility (HACR), Alma Morales Riojas, MANA President and CEO, works in partnership with corporations to ensure Hispanic representation in the corporate world. Ford Motor Company is one of the member organizations of HACR.

"Ford Motor Company has demonstrated tremendous leadership, vision, and foresight in selecting a woman with impeccable credentials who will be able to provide perspectives as a businesswoman and as a Latina," stated Alma Morales Riojas. "Increasingly Hispanic household finances are managed by women. Additionally, Latinas are starting more small businesses than any other group. It is timely and wise that corporations consider Latinas for corporate board positions as well as senior leadership positions for the added value that they can bring to the job."

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MANA, A National Latina Organization, is a nonprofit, advocacy organization headquartered in the nation's capital, Washington, D. C. With chapters across the country, it is the oldest National Latina membership organization in the United States. MANA, whose mission is to empower Latinas through leadership development, community service, and advocacy, envisions a national community of informed Latina activists working to improve the quality of life for all Hispanics.

MANA also has the only national young Latina's mentoring program for girls 11 to 17, "HERMANITAS®" which brings over 200 girls to Washington DC to a summer institute that includes a briefing at the White House and a visit to the girls' Congressional representatives.