University of California Regent Ward Connerly would like UC to consider adding a "multi-racial" box to the list of racial categories students can check on their admission applications.

At the same time, Connerly would like the university to appeal federal reporting requirements so that the new category would be recognized by the U.S. Department of Education when students indicate they come from more than one ethnic background.

Connerly was unavailable this week to discuss the reasons behind his proposal. He is a vocal foe of racial preferences and, more recently, attempts to categorize people by race. Connerly chaired the campaign for Proposition 209, a 1996 voter initiative that ended affirmative action programs in the state.

In October, Connerly endorsed Proposition 54, which would have banned the state from collecting racial statistics, essentially eliminating the race boxes from all government forms. The initiative ultimately failed, with 64 percent of the voters opposed, but Connerly has said he will refine the initiative and present a similar measure before voters again.

A UC spokeswoman said Connerly's suggestion, which will be discussed Thursday at the regents' regular meeting in San Francisco, hits on a complex issue because the federal government's reporting guidelines are at odds with collection of racial data. Since 1990, UC has allowed students of mixed race to check more than one box when collecting racial statistics on undergraduate applications. Reporting such information is voluntary.

But while federal guidelines allow universities to collect information in this manner, the rules have been vague when it comes time for institutions to report racial data to the U.S. Department of Education. For reporting purposes, UC assigns a single race or ethnic category to applicants who check more than one box.

"Our position isn't all that different from regent Connerly's, in that we agree that data on students of multiple races is not tabulated in a way that gives really good information, especially considering the changing demographic of California," said UC spokeswoman Abby Lunardini. "But the problem here is that distinction between data collection and reporting."

In the next few months, however, the education department will roll out a new policy that will allow institutions to report more than one race, although the categories would be more specific than the multi-racial box Connerly suggests, a U.S. Department of Education staff person said.

Lunardini said regents aren't expected to take any action on Connerly's suggestion, which is listed only as an item for discussion.

She said UC officials are researching the feasibility of adding the multi-racial category to applications.

"If regents decide they would like to see racial and ethnic data reported differently, they could do that, but it would be for non-federal purposes," she said.