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High School Hero Cord Program

At Miller-Keystone Blood Center, our objective is to ready young adults into becoming responsible individuals who contribute to our community by ensuring a safe and stable blood supply.

Today’s high school students are tomorrow’s lifesavers, and we need them to become life-long blood donors. Our Red Graduation Cord program is designed to recognize seniors at their graduation ceremony for being a life-saving blood donor, and to honor them for making significant contributions to our community.

Application for the 2025- 26 High School Red Cord Program is now OPEN.

Each student who qualifies and submits their online application will receive a Certificate and red Recognition Cord.
Note: select schools participate in the Certificate Program, but not the CORD program.

Did you Donate 4 Times?
Did you Volunteer 4 Times?
Need Help with One More Donation?

Did You Donate 4 Times?

Did You Volunteer 4 Times?

Need Help with One More Donation?

FOR MORE INFORMATION, 
please email us at RedCord@giveapint.org.

How the CORD Recognition Program works:

There are 2 ways to earn your RED CORD:

  • Donate Blood Four (4) Or More Times During High School Career
    • Students 16 years of age and older must register to donate blood four (4) or more times during their high school career.
      • Donors must be 16 years of age or older. State law requires written consent by a parent or guardian for 16-year-olds to donate blood. Please print both the front and back of the form linked below and present both pages at the time of your donation. 
        16-year-old Consent Form (8/21)
      • Persons 17 years of age or older (or certain emancipated minors) may donate without consent of a parent or guardian (unless required by their high school).
      • Donations can be made at high school blood drives, community blood drives, or at one of Miller-Keystone’s donor centers.
  • Volunteer Four (4) Or More Times for the High School’s Blood Drives During High School Career
    • VOLUNTEERING: Students who are ineligible to give blood may still participate in the Cord Recognition Program by volunteering to assist on a minimum of four (4) blood drives during their high school career.
    • As a volunteer they may recruit donors (documented e-blasts, sign up donors, promote the blood drive by student announcement PSA, put up posters and/or distribute flyers if allowed by the school, etc.), or work in the canteen at their designated school blood drive.
    • Volunteer hours must be approved and verified by a school sponsor.
Eligibility Criteria and Graduation Guidelines

Additional Requirements

  • Blood donations and volunteer hours cannot be combined – qualified cord recipients must have donated blood at least 4 times – OR – volunteered at least 4 times. Unfortunately, we are unable to accept a combination of these two activities.
  • Graduating seniors must fulfill these requirements by April 30 or their high school awards event, whichever comes first.
  • Miller-Keystone Blood Center and the participating high schools will work closely together to identify all graduating students eligible for the Cord and/or Certificate.
  • The student’s high school must participate in the Cord Recognition Program in order to receive the Cord and/or Certificate for graduation.

Participating Schools | High School Cord Program

* asterisk indicates school is certificate-only
  • Antietam High School
  • Bangor High School
  • Belvidere High School
  • Berks Career & Technology Center-East
  • Berks Career & Technology Center-West
  • Berks Catholic High School
  • Bethlehem Catholic High School
  • Bethlehem Vo-Tech
  • Blue Mountain Academy
  • Blue Ridge High School
  • Boyertown Area Senior High School
  • Brandywine Heights High School
  • Building 21
  • Burlington County Institute of Technology
  • Canaan Christian Academy
  • Carbon Career & Technical Institute
  • Career Institute of Technology
  • Central Columbia High School
  • Daniel Boone Area High School
  • Danville Area High School
  • Dieruff High School
  • Dock Mennonite Academy
  • East Stroudsburg South High School
  • Fleetwood Area High School
  • Freedom High School
  • Governor Mifflin Senior High School
  • Greater Nanticoke Area High School
  • Hackettstown High School
  • Hamburg Area High School
  • High Point Baptist Academy
  • Jim Thorpe Area High School
  • Kutztown High School
  • Lehigh Christian Academy High School
  • Lehigh Valley Charter School for the Arts
  • Lehighton Area High School
  • Liberty High School
  • Marian Catholic High School
  • Muhlenberg High School
  • Nazareth High School
  • Northampton Area High School
  • Northern Lehigh High School
  • Northwestern Lehigh High School
  • Notre Dame High School
  • Old Forge High School
  • Oley Valley High School
  • Owen J. Roberts High School
  • Palisades High School *
  • Palmerton High School
  • Pen Argyl High School
  • Pennridge High School
  • Perkiomen Valley High School *
  • Phillipsburg High School
  • Pine Forge Academy
  • Pittston Area High School
  • Pleasant Valley High School *
  • Pocono Mountain East
  • Pocono Mountain West *
  • Pottsgrove High School
  • Pottstown High School
  • Quakertown Christian School
  • Quakertown High School
  • Reading Muhlenberg Career & Technology Center
  • Riverside High School
  • Salem County Career and Technical High School
  • Salisbury High School
  • Saucon Valley High School
  • Schuylkill Valley High School *
  • Spring-Ford High School
  • Tamaqua High School
  • Tulpehocken Senior High School
  • Twin Valley High School
  • Upper Bucks Technical School
  • Warren County Technical School
  • Warren Hills Regional High School
  • Western Montgomery Career & Technical
  • Whitehall High School
  • William Allen High School
  • Wyoming Area Secondary Center
  • Wilson High School (Easton)
  • Wyomissing High School

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