Graphic design junior Jason McGhee said he’s a health conscious person who often worries about whether or not he is doing the right things in his life to stay healthy.
And McGhee said he doesn’t know enough about many personal health issues.
“A lot of times people don’t know what’s really going on,” McGhee said. “They don’t know what to do or where to go or what is true.”
To educate students, Black Student Alliance is sponsoring African American Health Awareness week this week.
Wednesday kicked off the week with a bone marrow drive sponsored by the National Pan-Hellenic Council in the Shaw Hall lower lounge. The drive will also be held today in the same location from noon to 4 p.m.
Marketing senior Porscha Edwards worked the drive Wednesday and said organizers are expecting a total of 50 donors.
“A college campus is a great place to hold a drive,” she said. “There are so many different types of people which creates a better opportunity to find matches for people in need.”
Also today, Olin Health Center, the Ingham County Health Department, Union Activities Board and the African American Health Institute will host a health fair in the hallway outside the Union Ballroom from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m.
BSA president Tonya Upthegrove said representatives from each organization will be available to answer questions and pass out information.
“This was something we did last year,” the communication senior, said. “We got an extremely positive response from students and staff so we knew this was something we needed to do again.”
After the fair, Dr. LaClaire Bouknight, a physician from Olin, will speak about how AIDS and its effects on the black community at 7 p.m. in Union Parlors A and B.
Olin will offer free walk-in HIV testing on Friday to people who attend tonight’s AIDS presentation.
On Monday, Akers Hall Black Caucus will host a program and speaker on heart disease at 8 p.m. in the Akers Hall west lounge.
Olin Health Education Services Coordinator Nancy Allen said the special week was something she worked on last year and is happy to be a part of it again.
“I think any time you can have a block of time when you can focus on health issues within the context of a particular group of people is beneficial,” she said. “It’s an opportunity to get information and ask questions and find out what actually are the issues and what are the resources that are available.”
