By Katie Perkowski

Universities, including Yale University, the University of Oregon and Northwestern University, have been participating in “sex weeks” for years, but Monday marks the beginning of UK’s first Sex Week.

The purpose of Sex Week is to increase sexual literacy by initiating an informed and open discussion about human sexuality within the campus community, according to the event Web site. There will be events going on through Sunday to promote this mission.

Jason Hans, assistant professor of family studies and faculty adviser of Sex Week, said a lot of people like to talk about sex and sexuality, but it is always in a teasing or misinformative way.

Pure Romance, a Cincinnati-based in-home party company that offers an exclusive line of bedroom accessories, is a major sponsor of the event, according to the Web site. Hans said the company has been doing presentations at his class for years and they suggested bringing this type of event to UK.

“Very rarely do we talk about things related to sexuality … this is an opportunity for the larger campus to become involved in a more enlightened discussion about all the aspects of sexuality,” Hans said.

There have been neon flyers posted at various campus locations to promote the event. Hans said those flyers were intentionally vague so students would start wondering what they meant and open discussion on the topic.

Hans said a lot of people initially had a negative reaction to the event  because they made assumptions of what Sex Week is, but he has not heard of anyone who has complained after seeing the full schedule.

“Most people who I’ve heard from are pretty excited about it,” Hans said.

Pure Romance will have a booth set up in front of Kennedy’s Bookstore on South Limestone from noon to 2 p.m. Monday through Thursday, Hans said.

For more information visit, (http://www.familystudies.info/SexWeek/Home.cfm).

Schedule for Sex Week:

Monday:

10 a.m. to 2 p.m.: Sexual Health Fair at the Student Center patio: Informational booths from campus and community organizations that focus on sexual health. Free condoms and HIV testing will be available.

7 p.m.: Sexual Education Debate at Memorial Hall: Sex educator and textbook author Dr. Janell Carroll will debate the questions of how children and adolescents should be taught about sexuality with Heritage of Kentucky President and CEO Greg Williams.

8:30 p.m.: Sex Toys 101 at Memorial Hall: Pure Romance, a Cincinnati-based in-home party company that offers an exclusive line of bedroom accessories, will discuss misconceptions about bedroom accessories.

Tuesday:

8 p.m.: Poetry slams and sensual poetry at Third Street Stuff: Members of the community can listen to or participate in sexually-charged poetry.

8 p.m. to 11 p.m.: Sex in Art Gallery Walk at Third Street Stuff: On display will be an expressive display of sexually-based art by UK students.

9:30 p.m.: Belly dancing class at the Johnson Center: Teresa Tomb of Mecca Live Studio & Gallery will teach an introductory belly dancing class.

Wednesday:

6:30 p.m.: Religion and Sexuality, Multiple Perspectives in the W.T. Young library auditorium: A panel of clergy from a range of faiths, including Buddhist, Christian and Islamic, will discuss issues of sexuality relating to their faiths.

8 p.m.: America’s War on Sex: Why should you care? Held at Memorial Hall, Dr. Marty Klein, internationally acclaimed sex therapist and author, will address issues throughout his book “America’s War on Sex.”

10 p.m.: Belly dancing class at the Johnson Center: Teresa Tomb will offer an introductory belly dancing class.

Thursday:

6:30 p.m.: Living with HIV: This is My Life at the Young library auditorium: Annette Owens, a person living with HIV, will give a first-person account of what it is like.

7:30 p.m.: Vagina Monologues at Worsham Theater: The Vagina Monologues will show an eclectic group of females voices which will include a six-year-old girl, a Bosnian survivor of rape and a vagina workshop participant.

10 p.m.: Film Series: Kinsey: Lets Talk About Sex at Worsham Theater: This award-winning film, by University of Indiana professor Dr. Alfred Kinsey, that introduced social and cultural values in the U.S. by trailblazing sex research in the 1940s and early 1950s.

Friday:

10 a.m. to 4 p.m.: Coming out day at the Student Center patio: Gays and lesbians can come together in a supportive atmosphere to celebrate each other. This event includes music, a bake sale and gay trivia.

6:30 p.m. Date night dinner and entertainment at the Student Center Grand Ballroom: singles can participate in a sit-down dinner and entertainment. Students can reserve their spot at (http://datenight.sexweek.info).

11 p.m.: Sex Week after party at Mia’s: A Sex Week after party with a DJ will be at Mia’s. Individuals 18 and up are welcome and drinks will be available to people ages 21 and up.

Sunday:

2:30 p.m.: Walk a mile in her shoes at the Sex Week booth on the south side of Main Street near Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. across from Subway: Men will walk a mile in women’s high heels through the closed streets of downtown to march against rape, sexual assault and gender violence. People can sign up at (http://walkamile.sexweek.info).