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Growing up in a suburban area of Kansas City, Andrea Catalano received
little sexual education. The elementary school nurse had blushed
bright red when one of the girls asked her about masturbation, and
her high school health course practically omitted it. Andrea came
to college at UCSC having little knowledge about safer sex practices
or STIs/HIV, yet she believed they were important topics that should
be discussed, especially among young people.
While waiting for the bus one day, Andrea saw a flyer for something
called "The Condom Co-op," a mobile student run organization
that sells safer sex products such as condoms and dental dams at
an affordable cost. The flyer mentioned that the Co-op needed volunteers.
Curious, Andrea got in touch with the Coordinator at the time, and
a few weeks later, she was a bonafide volunteer for the Condom Co-op.
"I made new friends, got to interact with my peers and learn
something myself," Andrea states about her time spent volunteering.
When it came time for her senior year, she decided to apply to the
CUIP to be the Coordinator of the Condom Co-op. She was elated when
she was informed she had been selected for the position.
The CUIP year proved to be an exciting and interesting one for Andrea.
When the school year began in September, she found herself overwhelmed
by her position. She had only spent fifteen minutes with her predecessor
prior to taking on the position. There was a binder, which was specially
designed for the Coordinator, yet Andrea found it to be outdated.
Another problem arose when her mentor informed her that they would
need to begin planning training for the new set of volunteers.
"I had never been to training myself, and now I was supposed
to co-facilitate it? I panicked," she said. With the help of
her mentor, Jane Bogart, she was able to hold a successful and informative
training, something she would do with more confidence and knowledge
in the following quarters.
Andrea has learned a great deal about herself and the role of a
leader. At any one time, she has approximately 30 volunteers to
schedule and coordinate. The Co-op needs constant maintenance, from
doing inventory, to stocking, to purchasing and marketing. While
continuing with her daily tasks, Andrea took on several projects
during the academic year. Her overall goal of increasing the visibility
and accessibility of the Condom Co-op was successfully met. One
clear indication was that the sales for the Co-op were up every
quarter that year, including being up by almost $1,000 in the Fall.
Her other activities included an increase in the production of flyers
and general outreach to the student population. She also took part
in organizing and participating in various campus events, including
Condom Casino Night, the Wellness Fair and the Vagina Monologues.
Andrea learned that one of the best ways to reach students is by
collaborating with other student groups and organizations. The CUIP
class helped her realize the importance of other programs, and what
she could do to get involved and spread the word about the Co-op.
She also learned the art of mass communication as well as time management
and organization. Overall, it was a wonderful year; and, Andrea
was sad to part with her program. However, she was confident that
the intern for next year would do a wonderful job.
Andrea’s future plans include doing Health Extension work
with the Peace Corps in Central and South America. She would also
like to attend graduate school at some point.
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