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BY DANTE FUOCO

In print | Published September 24, 2009 — Updated October 07, 2009 15:39

Aiming to make sex safer on campus, the Sexual Health Counselors are beginning to work with RAs to stock recently-funded condoms in every dorm.

This year the SHCs have received $400 of SBC funding for roughly 8,000 condoms and $50 for “condom pockets” — the places where some of the condoms will be provided in dorms. This is the first year that the SHCs have asked SBC to fund male condoms. These condoms arrived on Tuesday and SHC Eric Glickman ’10 said that students should start expecting to see them in the dorms’ medicine cabinets and condom pockets within the next week or so, especially after the SHCs’ meeting on Sunday.

“What we’re trying to do is make sure everyone on the campus gets condoms,” Glickman said. “We thought the best way to do that would be to go to SBC.”

SHC Alyssa Fatal ’12 said that availability of condoms is important in the college environment.
“A lot of students, especially in college, are having sex,” she said. “And if it’s easy for them to access condoms, then it’ll be easier for them to practice safer sex.”

When asked if this influx in condoms was precipitated from any kind of campus feedback last year, Glickman said that he thought it was “more of an effort … coming from within the group.”

“SHCs really want to help streamline access” to condoms, he said. This includes a more direct communication between RAs and SHCs than in the past. While before RAs and SHCs would often go to Worth separately to get condoms for their halls or dorms, an SHC will now be responsible for directly providing condoms to RAs in each campus dorm.

Amelia Kidd ’11, an RA and an SHC, said in an e-mail that she is glad that this initiative will foster more communication between the two groups.

“Not only will it increase the dialogue between the two groups, but it will ensure that each hall on campus consistently has readily accessible condoms,” she said.

There are still condoms available at Worth Health Center, Director of Student Health Services Beth Kotarski said. Despite budget cuts, Worth’s current yearly budget still includes money for about 4,000 condoms, as much as in years past, she said. SHCs and RAs have free access to condoms from Worth, and students have the option of buying condoms for 50 cents a piece from Worth or for higher prices at the CVS close to the college.

“[Condom availability] is a relatively inexpensive way to safeguard the health of those who may not have anticipated the need to have safe sex,” Kotarski said, explaining that condoms are effective and cheap “preventive measures” for dealing with more serious issues like STDs and STIs that could, in turn, require more expensive care.

Glickman said that even with more condoms on campus, Kotarski has been flexible in providing condoms: “Beth has constantly assured us that we’ll have what we need within reason. When we say that we need condoms, they’ll help us get them.”

While stating that “nothing has changed” from Worth’s end, Kotarski stressed that Worth is encouraging students to be “prudent” with their access to condoms.

Glickman and Fatal stressed that condoms should be accessible to people who can’t afford them, especially at a school like Swarthmore.

“At a school that has such a strong focus on wellness and community, this is just an important part of campus life … on principle,” Glickman said.

Fatal added: “It’s so important for the school to supply everything the students need whether or not they can afford it.”

After all, Glickman said, wholesale purchasing of condoms is much cheaper than buying them individually — while the SHCs were able to get roughly 8,000 condoms through $400 of funding, condoms can be as expensive as three for $4 at a convenience store. Having to continually buy condoms individually “does not make frequent sex affordable for students,” Glickman said.

The SHCs ordered three kinds of condoms: a generic brand, Durex and Trust Sex. Glickman said that he and the other SHCs are “hoping to get feedback from the campus community.”

This feedback could focus on the “breakage,” size and fit, and overall quality of the condoms.
While these opinions are “different for every student,” Glickman added that last year students expressed a holistic dissatisfaction with Lifestyle condoms, so Worth stopped purchasing them. Glickman said it’d be helpful money-wise if students are as satisfied with the cheaper generic brand as the more-expensive name brand condoms. Whether or not they are as good as other brands or better, Glickman said the SHCs in the future will stick to purchasing the better-rated kinds of condoms.

Fatal said that the SHCs are on campus to inform the student body about sex as well as provide as much as they can within the group’s limits, such as condoms.

“We’re here to answer any questions the student population has about sex — having it, not having it, and anything in between,” she said.

The 15 SHCs are comprised of sophomores, juniors and seniors.

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