Minority Serving Institutions HIV Prevention Sustainability Iniatitive: Bringing HIV prevention programs to college-age minority students

Issue: Young people in the United States are at increased risk for HIV infection. In 2006, an estimated 5,259 young people aged 13-24 were diagnosed with HIV/AIDS, representing almost 14% of the persons diagnosed that year. Description: Seven Minority Serving Institutions (MSI), representing four Historically Black Colleges or Universities HBCU), one Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI), and two Tribal Colleges or Universities (TCU) received funding to conduct comprehensive HIV prevention initiatives on their campuses. Lessions learned: After assessing the need on campus, schools selected interventions that were culturally and programmatically appropriate for their school environment. Interventions included use of peer educators, utilization of DEBIs, social marketing campaigns, and expanded HIV testing programs conducted both on and off campus. Minority serving institutions offer a unique opportunity to reach young college age minority students. These institutions are eager to participate in HIV prevention activities and offer the opportunity to reach a critical group of students with prevention programs Recommendations: HIV prevention initiatives must be culturally appropriate in order to address the complex HIV prevention needs of a highly diverse minority student population. The need to tailor programs to the unique environment of each school poses challenges in creating multicenter evaluations; however this flexibility is critical in ensuring that schools design the most appropriate response to their school environment.