REU Project

The project entails researching the different aspects of HIV such as environmental justice, demographics, census data, distribution of AIDS cases, and the stigma and psychological issues that go with it. We are also looking at the effects the disease has on communities, and also the effect incarceration has on communities and the spread of HIV/AIDS. Our focus is the African American community, specifically males, since they have the highest rate of incarceration in the country, and make up a disproportionately high number of inmates. A number of different testing policies and programs exist within every state. The federal prison system tests every prisoner upon entrance into prison. Testing varies at the state, county, and city level from voluntary to random to post assault. Since jails and prisons are considered a breeding ground for the spread of disease due to the high risk activity many of the inmates engage in, we find it especially important to implement testing and education programs into prisons to reduce the spread of disease, especially HIV. Our hypothesis is that states that test all prisoners on a mandatory basis and institute monitoring and prevention education programs have a lower rate of spread compared with states that don't. We are also looking at the economic impacts on communities as well as society in general. It is a lot less expensive to test prisoners for $30, than it is to pay for their medical care within prison or a charity hospital which can cost $80,000-$100,000 per year for full treatment and medication.

Personal Information
I am a 20 year-old resident of Minnetonka, MN. I will be a junior in the fall and plan on studying abroad in Lyon, France in the spring. I hope to go into diplomacy eventually, but plan on doing the Peace Corps or other international aid program after college. I'd also like to be a park ranger in the Western US for a while. My hobbies include hockey, running, camping, waterskiing, music, lawn-mowing, and I am always down for a good party. I am pretty involved in campus organizations, and when I'm not busy with class, homework or meetings, I can usually be found trying to convince people how important environmental stewardship or any kind of civil activism is. Needless to say I am a member of the campus environmental club SEAC, and we have worked on projects like getting renewable energy on campus, natural food in the cafeterias, and campus recycling and conservation programs.