Syracuse University is the 19th most sexually healthy college in the United States, according to a recent national health survey.

The third Trojan Sexual Health Report Card is a three-month-long survey about the accessibility of information for safe sex practices. The survey, conducted by the independent research firm Sterling BestPlaces, evaluated 139 colleges across the country.

‘We looked at the availability of student resources and information,’ said Bert Sterling, president of Sterling BestPlaces. ‘The schools that scored the best were the schools that were providing the best information and resources for students to make the best sexual decisions on their own.’

While the survey was meant to be public, many SU students were unaware of it.

‘I assume we deserve our ranking, but it could have been advertised and spread throughout campus more,’ said Bettie Kruger, a freshman undecided major in the College of Arts and Sciences. ‘I don’t know how they ranked us, but they know what they’re looking for so I trust them.’

The survey was separated into three sections. The first part of the survey was an evaluation completed by the schools’ health centers on the sexual health services they offer. The second part looked at the schools’ Web sites and the location of the health center in relation to the rest of the campus. The third part was completed using the 9,000 electronic student polls nationwide from the participating schools.

Each part of the survey looked at 13 categories ranging from student opinions of their respective health centers to the cost and availability of condoms, contraceptives and STD testing.

A team of three professionals working with Sterling BestPlaces awarded scores between one and 10 for each category. They then used the points to place each university on a grade scale of A-F to determine the report card rankings.

The schools for the survey were chosen based on the athletic conferences. They represented more than three million students and 30 percent of the student population attending four-year colleges.

‘Because of the level of information, we couldn’t look at a lot of schools, so we picked schools that we felt were the most important and largest,’ Sterling said. ‘Rather than leave some schools out, we decided to use conferences.’

Sterling has not heard the feedback from the most recent survey yet, but said he expects to receive the information within several months, when he will then look to see if changes need to be made to the survey.

‘I haven’t heard of any schools that weren’t covered that should have been,’ he said. ‘It’s a pretty good representation.’

Trojan approached Sterling BestPlaces to conduct the survey as part of the Trojan Evolve Campaign. According to Trojan’s Web site, the purpose of the Trojan Evolve Campaign is to create awareness and discussion about the state of sexual health in the United States. One of the campaign’s goals is to give young people information and resources needed to allow them to make responsible decisions about their sexual health.

Sterling said he hopes to be a resource to the health centers and give back to the students.

Hayley Schreppler, a freshman biology major, said that while she is pleased with the 19th spot, SU could have reached out to students more if it wanted to be ranked higher than 19.

Other students are unsure if SU deserves its 19th place spot.

Michaela Boykin, a junior psychology major, said, ‘I had a friend last year attempt to get the morning-after pill and they (SU Health Services) wouldn’t let her. I know they give out condoms, so they make resources available. I don’t know too many people that use the resources though.’

Even though Boykin is unsure if the ranking is justified, she said she appreciates it.

‘Now that our sports teams suck, it’s nice that someone’s doing well.’

krkoerti@syr.edu

Published on November 3, 2008 at 12:00 pm