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June
2 , 2005
Today
we visited the University of Cape Town's Student HIV/AIDS
Program (SHARP) and met with director Puleng Phooko.
I think this was one of our best program visits.
This program was interesting to me because it is taught
to freshmen during a period that is equivalent to
Morehouse College 's New Student Orientation session.
The program is a requirement integrated into the university's
curriculum. An important part of the program's purpose
is to address the stigma of students living with HIV.
The
University of Cape Town students who volunteer with
the program discussed how the SHARP program was implemented
to bring awareness for all student groups—no
matter their color or sexual orientation. The program
uses innovative program methods to make freshmen aware
of sexually transmitted diseases and prevention of
STDs. They demonstrate how to put on and use a condom.
The wonderful thing about this program is that it
is pro choice. It doesn't promote abstinence and it
doesn't promote sex. It just promotes having the ability
to make educated, responsible choices.
In order to do my part in preventing HIV and AIDS,
I'd like to bring this idea back to Morehouse. This
program should be a requirement for all incoming freshmen
so that they understand that everyone has choices,
and we must live with the consequences of those choices.
With the help of some of my peers, we will stress
to the Morehouse administration that a program like
this is needed in order to promote necessary awareness
to our generation—specifically black men.
William
A. Moore ’06 is a psychology major from Oak
Cliff, Texas.
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