UK’s first week of sex has begun.

Five booths were set up on the Student Center patio to promote “Sex Week @ UK” to the constant flow of students that passed Monday morning.

The week is full of events to promote sexual health awareness, as well as to initiate a dialogue of human sexuality throughout campus, according to the event’s Web site, sexweek.info.

Barrett Gargala, a family studies senior and co-coordinator of Sex Week, manned the official booth of the department’s new event. She said the students strolling through the Student Center patio got a “surprise.”

“People, when they hear the words ‘sex,’ get interested,” Gargala said.

The other booths included representatives from Voices for Planned Parenthood, Volunteers of America, the UK Gay-Straight Alliance and OUTsource.

The other student coordinators, Courtney Roberts and Trisha Telles, are helping organize the week’s events, as well as the Sex Week faculty adviser, Jason Hans  said.

Hans, an assistant professor of family studies, said college students need more sexual literacy.

“American young adults have the highest rates of teen pregnancy, abortion, child birth, and STI’s (Sexually Transmitted Infections) among all comparable developed countries,” Hans said.

Katie Miller, a public service and leadership in agriculture education junior, said she was attending the health fair for her family studies class but will attend more of the events “out of curiosity.”

“UK needs to have more health awareness,” Miller said.  “It’s not taken seriously (by students).”

Hans said more than 500 students enrolled in family studies classes will be attending the Sex Week events for class assignments.

“The whole week is about sex literacy,” Hans said.  “There’s a lot of misinformation that is perpetuated in the media … and by parents, by peers.

“We’re trying to provide an educational forum where people can become more sexually literate from a reliable source.”