The grades are in. This time, however, schools are on the receiving end.
Trojan Condoms released its second annual Sexual Health Report Card comparing the sexual health resources and programs of 139 colleges and universities across the country on Sept. 10. The survey, which graded campuses on 11 different aspects of sex awareness, ranked Dartmouth 25th, with a grade point average of 3.18.
This proved to be a vast improvement for the College, which was positioned at 63 out of only 100 schools in 2006, with a GPA of 1.7.
"The sobering reality is that in this country we have the worst sexual health of all Western countries," said Jim Daniels, vice-president of marketing at Trojan. "Three million unintended pregnancies and 19 million sexually transmitted infections per year; these statistics underscore the fact that sexual health in America is really quite unhealthy."
The survey was conducted for Trojan by Bert Sperling of Sperling's Best Places, a Portland-based data analysis firm.
"We looked at the largest colleges in the U.S. and we wanted to cover as many students as possible," Sperling said. "We also looked at the major athletic conferences. We thought it would be interesting to use those as a peer group. Then, we chose iconic schools, schools that are part of the public consciousness."
After schools were chosen, Sperling and his team contacted the student health centers by telephone and e-mail to inquire about the services they provide. The colleges' websites were also examined and evaluated based on specific criteria.
"We also conducted a student survey by running advertisements on Facebook for each of the colleges," Sperling noted. "We didn't want to disturb their privacy so instead we invited them to contact us and participate in our survey. In the end, we contacted over 3,300 students."
This survey was not included in the evaluations of each school but provided information to be considered, such as the fact that 53 percent of the surveyed students feel that their colleges' health centers could be improved.
Condom availability at the College, which garnered an F last year, has now moved up to a B. Free condoms are currently available to students at Health Resources in Dick's House, according to Kari Jo Grant, coordinator of Health Education Programs at Health Services.
"We also have a condom offer," Grant said. "Any group on campus can say they are interested in purchasing a case of condoms and we will pay half of the price and they will pay the other half."
Dartmouth excelled in areas such as HIV and sexually transmitted infection testing, outreach, student peer groups and sexual assault programs.
"This may be because of the Sexperts and Sexual Abuse Awareness Program groups on campus," Grant said. "The Sex Festival is also a great program, sponsored by the Center for Women and Gender."
Areas Trojan identified as needing improvement included a lack of walk-in appointments at Dick's House, as well as a lack of anonymous advice about sex via e-mail or a newspaper column devoted to sexual health.
The study also looked at schools according to the athletic conference to which they belong. The Ivy League earned the highest GPA as a conference, with 3.28, while the Sun Belt conference scored the lowest, with a 2.23 GPA. The University of Minnesota was the highest-ranked school on the list, while Louisiana Tech University ended the register with a meager 0.82 GPA.
"This survey brings to light the fact that no college got a 4.0," said Daniels. "We need to talk more openly and honestly, and with facts, about sexual health."
