The University of Illinois rose 63 places from last year, taking MSU’s old second place spot as the highest in the Big Ten. Columbia University in New York City kept its top place from last year, while the University of Michigan dropped from four to six.

The ranking largely is based on the quality of each school’s sexual health resources available for students, but Olin Health Center isn’t giving the fall too much thought.

“Whether we’re ranked first or 25th, we know where we rank as far as with the students,” said Dennis Martell, Olin’s Health Education Services Coordinator. “We haven’t changed our program at all (from last year).”

Despite the drop, the ranking doesn’t show the university has gone soft on sexual health, experts say.

MSU still remains in the top 50, showing the university still is one of the leaders of sexual health among the country’s college campuses, said Bert Sperling, president of Sperling’s Best Places, a research firm in Portland, Ore., who conducted the survey for Trojan.

The university’s plummet really came down to one factor.

“We couldn’t find any program or column … where students can ask for anonymous advice,”
Sperling said. “When schools are near the top, one category can make a lot of difference.”

Some at MSU question the ranking’s validity.

“Any time you do a survey like that, it’s really hard to make it scientifically valid,” said Donald Greydanus, a professor in the College of Human Medicine who specializes in sexual health.

“Other than (making condoms), I don’t know what expertise this company has.”

Olin buys bulk condoms — thousands at a time — that students have free access to, Martell said.

One of the more visible programs on campus, Condom Connection, gives resident mentors 40 free condoms to keep at hand for their residents, providing refills as needed. The vast majority of mentors — at least 350, according to Olin — utilize the service, although it is not mandatory.

Lyman Briggs freshman Marisa Martini said most students in the dorms only use the program as a backup, but nearly all are aware of the option.

“For the most part people are pretty prepared ahead of time,” Martini said. “But everyone knows it’s there.”