UHPP High School Peer Educators Participate in World AIDS Day Events

• by Upper Hudson Planned Parenthood

ALBANY, NY (11/26/2008)(readMedia)-- High school students from Albany, Hudson, Chatham and Taconic Hills high schools, who are all participants in Upper Hudson Planned Parenthood's S.T.A.R.S. (Seriously Talking About Responsible Sex) peer education program, are gearing up to commemorate World AIDS Day, on December 1^st Once again, UHPP peer educators have been invited to provide tours and lead workshops at the Empire State Plaza Convention Center during Albany's weeklong commemoration of World AIDS Day.

Events will take place from December 1^st through December 3 will revolve around the exhibit of the AIDS Memorial Quilt Display.

Specifically, UHPP peer educators will work in pairs to guide groups of students through the AIDS Memorial Quilt Display at the Empire State Plaza Convention Center. The display features over 2,000 panels made in memory of those lost to HIV/AIDS. This year's theme is accountability, exemplified in the slogan "Stop AIDS. Keep the Promise." The peer teams welcome each school group, facilitate a pre-and-post test knowledge survey, lead a tour of the exhibit and then help them process the experience with an emphasis on prevention education.

In preparation for this event, the S.T.A.R.S. members attended a conference at Sliver Bay YMCA of the Adirondacks. S.T.A.R.S. members networked with other peer educators from the Capital Region, met with HIV positive presenters, and practiced their presentation skills. The conference helped them learn more about HIV/AIDS, debunked myths surrounding HIV positive people, and prepared them to teach other young people about HIV/AIDS.

S.T.A.R.S. stands for Seriously Talking About Responsible Sex. Thanks to a grant from the NYS Department of Health, UHPP Education staff are able to recruit and train high school students each year to act as S.T.A.R.S. peer educators. Hundreds of teens in Albany and Columbia Counties have been involved in the S.T.A.R.S. program since its creation. These students learn to provide information about pregnancy prevention, healthy relationships, HIV/AIDS, and other critical healthcare issues to other youth. S.T.A.R.S. members are available to provide workshops to school and community groups. For information, please call Blue Carreker at (518) 466-8500.