CROWN Grant Will Help Educate Students on Barriers Mont Alto, Pa. Women is Principal Investigator on Grant

MILLERSVILLE, PA (03/07/2013)(readMedia)-- Millersville University of Pennsylvania recently received a $20,453 grant from the Center for Research on Women and Newborn Health (CROWN), a foundation based in Lancaster, Pa. The grant will be used to conduct a survey of students' attitudes towards using protective barriers during sexual activity. The results will be compiled and curriculum, based on the results, will be developed for the classroom. In addition, an interactive website will be created.

"We did an initial survey of students and found that the majority don't use barriers during sexual activity," said Jenny Monn, Millersville University Health Services nurse and the principal investigator on the grant. Monn is from Mont Alto, Pa. "We need to educate our students of the many health risks they face if they don't use a male condom, a female condom or a dental dam every time they are sexually active."

The grant is a multi-disciplinary, collaborative effort. In addition to Monn, Anne Pryzbylkowski, health services at Millersville University; Drs. Kim Mahaffy, sociology department at Millersville University; Becky Mowrey and Julie Lombardi, wellness and sport sciences at Millersville University; assisted with the initial survey, applying for the grant and they will also be involved in the ongoing project.

"We were actually dumbfounded from the results at the lack of knowledge of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) among our students," said Monn.

Reasons listed by students for not using male condoms ranged from "My partner and I are only having sex with each other (25%), to "My partner and I have both been tested and we're "clean" (12%); and "I don't like the way they feel (11%).

Monn says they plan to use information from the American Sexual Health Association's website and reinforce that condoms are the only contraceptive option that can prevent both unintended pregnancies and STIs.

The association discusses "con-dom-ol'-o-gy," the study of condoms; a collection of fact-based resources in simple, easy-to-understand language. Some facts from their website - there are 65 million people in the U.S. who are living with an incurable STI. There are 3.2 million unintended pregnancies each year in the U.S. Two in three sex acts among single adults don't involve a condom.

Monn said the initial grant, "Factors Influencing Barrier Protection Use Among College Students: Implementation of an Education Campaign," is for 18 months and it is renewable. This is the first time since 1999 that Millersville University received a CROWN grant. The last one was for a project proposed by Dr. Carol Phillips, professor emeritus.

Millersville University of Pennsylvania is a top-ranked, public university located in the northeast region of the United States. It is committed to offering students a high quality, comprehensive university experience of exceptional value. Dedicated to providing nationally recognized programs that embrace the liberal arts, Millersville offers academic opportunities that are supported by outstanding faculty who are accomplished scholars and practitioners. Founded in 1855 as the first Normal School in Pennsylvania, Millersville University is one of 14 universities within the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education.