Massachusetts Teens Battle Complacency on Education About AIDS

In 1995, Richard M. Marchand was teaching a health class at Shrewsbury High School in Shrewsbury, Mass., when some 10th graders shared a disturbing anecdote with him: They had met students from another local high school who had never been taught about HIV/AIDS.

In response, Marchand and his students began the Dream Team, short for Daring to Reform Education on AIDS Matters. The Dream Team, which grew from 28 students to more than 200 today, raises money for acupuncture for AIDS victims, baby-sits HIV-positive children, and volunteers with the AIDS Project Worcester, said Marchand. The Dream Team went on to draft a congressional resolution calling for more HIV/AIDS education programs, which was accepted by Congress in 1996. That same year, the team was honored by the Ryan White Foundation as youth group of the year.

"People got complacent, people thought it wasn't an issue anymore. Our kids are active helping people directly impacted by the virus," Marchand said. "The kids want to know and they need a platform to learn."

"You cannot teach about AIDS and HIV without talking about sexuality," Marchand continued. Many schools do not have health classes and if they do, HIV/AIDS comprises a tiny part of the curriculum, he said.

As an original member of the Dream Team, Brian Mawdsley, 23, said he is glad he received a strong education on AIDS before entering college. "You don't have health class in college. You're out and on your own, and it's something you should have already learned," said Mawdsley.

Melissa Pessolano, 21, was also a member of the Dream Team at Shrewsbury High. She was surprised to find that her college peers had not received much in the way of AIDS education while in high school. "In general I think other schools would benefit" by having their own Dream Teams, she said.

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