Queensborough Community College and Lehman College Join Forces to Increase Awareness of HIV/AIDS Among College Students and the Surrounding Communities
Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) prevention through peer-led campus intervention was the focus of a partnership between Queensborough and Lehman College aimed at increasing awareness of HIV/AIDS among college students, an at-risk group, and their surrounding communities in Queens and the Bronx, where rates of HIV are disproportionately high. The project highlights the transformative role of student voices in HIV prevention and health promotion.
“As part of this initiative, we trained 20 Queensborough and Lehman students as peer leaders who collected data through surveys sent by email to all students ages 18-29 years-old, to assess student’s knowledge, attitudes, and stigma related to HIV/AIDS,” said Dr. Parisa Assassi, Assistant Professor, Public Health Program, Department of Health, Physical Education, and Dance (HPED) at Queensborough.
“The key findings of the research revealed that approximately 50% of the student populations at Queensborough and Lehman are sexually active however, only a small percentage of that number uses condoms--a red flag for sexually transmitted infections, including AIDS,” said Dr. Assassi. She added that only 15% of these students have taken advantage of free HIV/STI testing on either campus.
Dr. Assassi, Assistant Professor, Public Health Program Director, and Epidemiologist, recently gave a presentation at the annual American Public Health Association (APHA) meeting on Bridging Gaps in HIV Knowledge and Challenging Stigma: Results from a Peer-Led Campus Intervention. She also contributed as a co-author for a poster presentation, Breaking Barriers: Peer-Led Simulation to Enhance HIV Prevention in College Settings with Dr. Nicole Saint-Louis, Undergraduate Program Director, Social Work, and Dr. Amanda Sisselman-Borgia, both Associate Professors in the Department of Social Work at Lehman College.
“The peer educators were brilliant in their approaches, from designing clear and effective campaign materials to their actual interactions and conversations with other students and community members,” said Dr. Sisselman-Borgia.
“They participated in a six-week training program that included HIV/AIDS prevention education and inter-professional simulation activities to practice outreach,” said Dr. Sisselman-Borgia. “They brought a new level of HIV/AIDS awareness to the QCC community and Lehman.”
She continued, “Students often worked outside of their comfort zones and developed public speaking skills as they debunked myths about HIV transmission and PrEP for HIV prevention.”
Dr. Assassi, who has taught at Queensborough since 2016, said she was drawn to the College because of its impressive new program in public health. “I wanted to be in a diverse environment. She explained, “The next generation of public health practitioners should come from a wide range of backgrounds to better serve diverse communities.”
“We continue to share our findings at international and regional conferences and are applying to federal agencies and foundations for a larger pilot,” said Dr. Sisselman-Borgia. “We are grateful to the CUNY Interdisciplinary Research Grant program for this opportunity.”
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