This past semester, U-M Sociology, along with U-M School of Social Work and U-M School of Nursing, launched the U-M Sexual Citizens Course and Research Project for first-year students. This innovative program is designed to equip students with the knowledge and skills needed to build consent, set boundaries, foster healthy relationships, and develop sexual agency throughout their college years and beyond. As the first program of its kind, if successful, it could serve as a national model for other public universities working to create safer and more inclusive campus communities.
Developed in collaboration with faculty experts and informed by national research, the project is committed to fostering sexual well-being and preventing harm. As U-M Sociolofy Associate Professor and study Co-Investigator Sandra Levitsky explains, this study and course initiative can help to address the critical gap in sex education, as fewer students now receive comprehensive sex-ed in high school before arriving on college campuses. Lecturer Samantha Leonard, a recent addition to the U-M Department of Sociology, also spoke with the Michigan Daily about her experience leading the first semester of this new course, highlighting its ability to create a “community for open, supportive dialogue around these issues.”
Currently, the course operates on an invite-only basis for selecting randomized participants. If you have been selected to participate and are interested in learning more, please reach out at info-sexualcitizenship@umich.edu.
