A group (n = 170) of inner-city, predominantly African American, health clinic patients were asked to identify the characteristics they desired in a new clinic health educator. A plurality (44%) of the patients perceived a bachelor's degree would be a sufficient level of education. The vast majority of patients claimed the sex of the health educator (84%) and the race of the educator (82%) did not matter. Additionally, a majority of patients perceived that the age of the educator (53%) and whether the educator was a parent (62%) did not matter. However, the majority of patients (52%) did believe that a new health educator should be a role model for healthful living. Such findings stand in stark contrast to similar studies on patient preference for health care provider congruence for selected demographic characteristics. (Contains 2 tables.)