FINAL+PROPOSAL+PAGE

Post your final copies of the proposal in this order: __Introduction__ In Nancy Cantor's Vision Statement on scholarship in action, she was quoted as saying: "We will now take our traditions even further, aggressively connecting to the world through active engagement with community, industry, practitioners, governments, and the professions, at home and abroad." By proposing this partnership, we are attempting to fulfill Nancy Cantor's words and strengthen the University's connection with the community. This proposal is meant to present the benefits of building a partnership between Syracuse University and the AIDS Community Resource Center in Syracuse. The goal is to create a university course that would allow students to collaborate with the community resouce center on an interactive level. In order do this, they together will invent a play that communicates the dangers of AIDS as well as addresses the issue of discrimination. The students will then perform the play to local high schools and college level students. Their efforts will be directed at the young adult demographic because young adults participate in high risk behavior that they may not be aware of. Ultimately the partnership will increase awareness and give students the tools necessary to prevent themselves from contracting AIDS. Without this partnership, AIDS Community Resouces would be limited in the scope of the audience they would reach. The students of the University will be motivated and well-equipt to educate those who attend the play. After the play, there will be a discussion between members of the cast/crew/AIDS Community resources and the students attending the play. The goal of this discussion is to generate deeper thinking about AIDS discrimination, provide preventative tactics, and bridge gaps between groups. With the help of the University, AIDS Community resources can fulfill their mission statement to raise awareness and end discrimination.

__The Issue:__ The Aids Community Resource Center is a Multicultural AIDS Service Agency. Young people in the United States need to be educated about HIV/ AIDS because U.S. youth are at constant risk of getting the HIV infection. The risk is particularly prominent for youth of minority races and ethnicities. Therefore, it is important that having such a diverse and multicultural community particularly of youth/ students, Syracuse University provide education and awareness for HIV/AIDS. “The US Department of Health and Human Services estimates 250,000 people in the United States are HIV positive and don’t know it” (ACR). Education and awareness will work to limit new cases of HIV/AIDS as well as provide resources and help for those already infected and affected by HIV and AIDS. Education and awareness will also work to end discrimination towards individuals/ groups with HIV/AIDS and bring groups of insiders and outsiders together. Working collaboratively in a partnership between The Aids Community Resource Center and Syracuse University will break down boundaries between the campus and community, fulfilling the mission of both the University and the ACR.

__Background:__ The Aids Community Resource Center was created in 1983. It is a not-for- profit, community-based organization that provides help and education through prevention and support services to people infected with and affected by HIV and AIDS. HIV (the human immunodeficiency virus) was discovered in 1985. HIV is a virus that is transmitted from person to person through the exchange of bodily fluids such as blood, semen, breast milk and vaginal secretions. The most common way to spread HIV is through sexual contact but it can also be transmitted by sharing needles, during childbirth and breastfeeding. HIV damages the body's immune system causing the body to become more susceptible to illness and infection. There is no known cure for the HIV infection. AIDS- Acquired immune deficiency syndrome is a condition that describes an advanced state of the HIV infection. With AIDS, the virus has progressed, causing significant loss of white blood cells or any of the cancers or infections that result from immune system damage. Those illnesses and infections are considered "AIDS-defining" because they mark the onset of AIDS. Like HIV, there is no known cure for AIDS. The Aids Community Resource Centers are located in Central, Northern, and Mohawk Valley regions in New York State. This includes six offices that provide services in nine counties: Cayuga, Herkimer, Jefferson, Lewis, Madison, Oneida, Onondaga, Oswego, and St. Lawrence counties. It is Important to have a Community Resource Center in Central New York because HIV continues to thrive in the center of New York State and it is particularly challenging for rural communities to obtain resources. ACR provides many opportunities for individuals to seek out and receive help/ recourses because they are committed to connecting with those in need. “From June 2006- June 2007, the ACR provided support services to a combination of 1040 HIV positive clients and their families. 13,613 individuals were reached though prevention and education services” (ACR). ACR works to prevent HIV infections by educating the community as well as to enhance the quality of life for those people already infected/ affected by HIV and AIDS. They work with the community to promote education and awareness, addressing AIDS and HIV related needs, and providing information and assistance to obtain resources that will work to meet these needs. These resources include facilities to get tested, prevention programs, a variety of support groups, outreach events, social activities, ect. The ACR also works towards ending discrimination, an ongoing problem that people may be faced with being associated with HIV/ AIDS. Issues of racial background, gender identification, and sexual orientation are generally targets for discrimination and harassment associated with HIV/ AIDS. These kinds of behavior (discrimination and harassment) take place particularly in social environments such as schools. The ACR works toward creating communities that are inclusive and supportive, regardless of racial gender and sexual identities. There should be no groups of insiders and outsiders, and no one should have to face discrimination or harassment. School should not be a dangerous place for anyone, but rather a safe, healthy, supportive, and empowering environment. __ Program goals __ This partnership is going to expand on the mission statement of the AIDS Community Resources, which states: AIDS Community Resources, through its staff and volunteers, responds to the AIDS epidemic by working to: Our goal is to reach out to the community to educate them about AIDS and also end discrimination through education about false conceptions of AIDS. We would like to accomplish this goal throughout the course of a semester, and if the course is successful, continue the program throughout the year. This partnership is more than ‘just volunteering’ because students are actively involved in creating and performing the play. This allows them to think about issues of AIDS and converse with the facts on a deeper level. It also gives the students an opportunity to present the information in a way that they think other students their age will enjoy. It also goes beyond just volunteering because the volunteers are hoping to change students’ actions. They are educating. They are trying to save lives. They are working to help many receive the comfort they need. Another goal is to help break barriers between insiders and outsiders. Since the play is built for audience who are mainly under the age of twenty five, the concept of insiders/outsiders is highly prevalent. According to Debra, the author of ‘Child Development: Inter-group’s attitudes”, those of adolescent years have a more prominent bias concept of insiders and outsiders. The play is going to work toward breaking all of those concepts. The students will better understand that HIV/AIDS can affect anyone no matter the age, gender, race, sexual preference, popularity, etc. Those who are on the outside can feel like there are insiders who will listen to the voice or try to understand. Homosexuals can feel less targeted when the subject of HIV/AIDS comes about. The students will understand that the cool kids can contract it too. The less popular kids, who May be looked at as outsiders, can learn not to give into sexual peer pressure just to feel more associated with their group or the insiders. Although AIDS is more prevalent among minorities, the Caucasians will understand that they are still at high risk as well. Most importantly those affected by AIDS will know that there are some insiders (ACR) there willing to listen understand, and help them no longer feel like an outcast. The play will aim to destroy all barriers of insiders and outsiders dealing with the issue of AIDS. __Methodology__ The goal of this relationship between the University and the AIDS Community resources (ACR) is to create a meaningful collaboration that would help communicate the ACR's mission statement to the community of Syracuse, NY. This type of collaboration is meant to benefit the students within the University and the organization itself. The partnership would consist of a Universirty course that is directed toward students who are interested in doing service. This course would be an Arts & Sciences elective because it is the home college to many students, including those who have dual majors in different colleges. The course would require students to do research on AIDS and AIDS awareness and script and perform a few short plays that communicates to the audience the dangers of AIDS. The students would work closely with the ACR to pinpoint the content that is to go into each of the plays performed. The ACR will conduct interviews with each of the students, providing them with direction and suggestions about the issues that each of the plays shoud address. Once the students have aquired some direction, they will work in teams to do research and craft a script that portrays the message that the ACR would like to communicate. After the script is written, the ACR worker will screen the script to make sure that all the information is accurate and the content coincides with their mission as an organization. The students will then go into the community and seek high schools and various venues across campus that would allow them to perform their plays. After the plays are done, the cast, crew, and a representative from the ACR (potentially a client of the organization who is willing to speak about his/her experience with AIDS) will generate a qualitative discussion about the issues of AIDS. The goal of having this type of discussion will hopefully disprove misconceived notions about AIDS. It would also break down barriers between different groups of people. By addressing a topic that is not normally discussed in public discourse, it forces people to talk to one another about things that might make them uncomfortable. This will only generate more and more opinions leading to a discussion that is deep and informative. This will also fulfill Nancy Cantor's objective of "scholarship in action" because it is working to bridge gaps between different established groups. A local theater group in Madrad, India created a two-hour long play about AIDS/HIV. The audience, who was polled before and after the play, was found to be significantly more aware about AIDS. ([]) A professor at Johns Hopkins University assess why he thinks drama is the most effective way to communicate this type of information: "A community drama group is able to tailor its message to a local audience. And, unlike being counseled individually about the disease, watching a dramatic performance about AIDS and HIV may decrease the amount of discomfort associated with the subject." The reason the goal of this partnership is to reach out to young adults is because the students who are writing the play will be able to tailor their message to the audience much like the local theatre group in India. Also, this demographic is at high risk for contracting AIDS because they participate in high risk behaviors that could lead to AIDS. By creating this awareness in the audience, the propoer terminology and background information can be given to the students so that they can actively participate in the discussion. __Evaluations__ We will measure the success of the partnership in several ways. The outcome of the plays is a great measurement. If more people begin to voluntarily come, then it shows that the play is receiving recognition. The greater the outcome, the more people will hear the message. The reaction of the audience will also be considered. If people are providing all their attention during the play rather than sleeping, then they are responding well. The audience can also show interest after the play. The number of thoughtful questioners and listeners during Q&A is measured. The Q&A session is very informative but does not have to be formal. It will be a dialogue between the audience, members of the play, and ARC members. It can start out with a few jokes and the play members can start the questions/discussion. This way the audience can ‘loosen up’ and feel comfortable with participating in the conversation. The responses toward the ARC are also measured. The center should ask every new comer: ‘how did you hear about our program?’, whether it was a call, a visit to the website, or a visit to the actual center. This way the center can know if the partnership’s promotions are helpful. Surveys may also be conducted to measure effectiveness. We can have mini surveys after the play. They will ask specific questions about AIDS and other issues presented during the play. We are trying to create prevention, so we hope to also change people’s actions as well. They will also be given hypothetical situations in their surveys and will be asked about their hypothetical actions. That way we can determine if they learned more than just facts about AIDS. The surveys are a great way to determine what the students learned, if any. It also determines if they have the right actions in mind for prevention, ending discrimination and breaking the cycle of insiders vs. outsiders. It is beneficial to the community as well as the students of Syracuse University to collaborate with one another, no matter what the issue is at hand. But the ARC has a long standing history of voluntary work within the Central New York State community which aims at two key notes: providing aid to AIDS positive people and striving to end discrimination towards AIDS and HIV. The University itself is very much separate from the rest of the city, and misunderstandings about the city's functions can emerge quite easily. It should be the duty of the students and community members to make an effort to communicate with each other and learn from one another. Therefore, the ARC''s role as a bridge connector could potentially bridge some gaps or misunderstandings between students and the community. The ARC would be able to provide safe methods of interaction, and the University could provide the resources. The AIDS class is an effort to teach students not only about AIDS but try to clarify facts and misconceptions on the disease. As an Arts and Sciences class it would be easily assessable to all students including ESF students. This class would also directly collaborate with the ARC. Group assignments include the play which extend the students knowledge out into the community, further influencing the communities opinions on the disease. As college students we relate to the youth, and our actions and opinions greatly influence the community youth, especially after the play has been performed in less developed neighborhoods. Awareness, is the main focus, in not just connecting students with the public but also making a significant difference in how people perceive illnesses. Hopefully, by the end of the year, if enough people sign up for the class and the community appears to appreciate the students efforts, then another leveled AIDS class could be created. So that the next year they go to class, they would have had built some sort of relationship and trust within the community.
 * Prevent the incidence of HIV infections
 * Enhance the quality of life for people infected/affected by HIV/AIDS
 * Collaborate in communities to address HIV/AIDS related needs in Central, Northern, and Mohawk regions of New York State.
 * Facilitate access to available resources
 * End discrimination
 * Benefits for both the organization and SU:**

Budget: There are many things we must consider for our budget. • Stage/auditorium prices. • Flyers (and all other things that include promoting the plays, i.e. food) • All things needed for the actual play - Props - Materials - Costumes - Lighting - Special effects - Etc • Travel expenses (if we decide to travel to the schools in the community) • Drama department stipend (if they would charge, instead of giving up volunteer time) • Speakers (Physicians, AIDS patients, Researchers) • Professors, Classroom facilities, Classroom supplies,

__-Budget__ There are many things we must consider for our budget. - Props - Materials - Costumes - Lighting - Special effects - Etc __**Sources**__ Ferguson, Debra. __Child development: Intergroup Attitudes__. 1999. Mar. 2000 . here is a source I used in MLA format -De'Jon
 * Stage/auditorium prices – ranges: free - $2,000
 * Flyers (and all other things that include promoting the plays) – ranges: $100 - $400
 * All things needed for the actual play – ranges: $1000 -$6000
 * Travel expenses – ranges: $200 - $600 per round trip
 * Drama department stipend (if they would charge, instead of giving up volunteer time or any charges that the school would charge for the course)