`no Way,' Said Victim Of Theft

Agencies Set Program About Drug Education

By MARK E. JONES; Times Leader Staff Writer
 Monday, December 01, 1997 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 3A 





When talking about AIDS, Jennifer Nicols won't clobber you with information
that, as she calls it, is "heavy-handed, gloomy and depressing." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 After all, you've heard the scary, no-cure message that AIDS kills. And
you've been told to protect yourself from the deadly virus- found in 30
million people worldwide- by saying no to intravenous drug use and by
practicing safe sex. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; So the 28-year-old Nicols, who has been on the AIDS-prevention lecture
circuit for six years, will spare you the numbing statistics and simply ask
one question. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Why haven't you changed your sexual behavior? &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 During a straightforward, yet sometimes funny, lecture titled "Living with
AIDS," Nicols will pose that question to Wilkes University students and other
audience members tonight. Her program, coinciding with the 10th annual World
AIDS Day, begins at 8 p.m. in Room 101 of Stark Learning Center, South River
Street, Wilkes-Barre. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 While Nicols attended high school, her younger brother Henry, a
hemophiliac, was diagnosed with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. By the time
she was 22, her brother developed full-blown AIDS, and the duo decided to
start an education program for their peers. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 They toured college campuses nationally, testified before Congress and
visited with Presidents Bush and Clinton. Filmmakers preserved their story in
an HBO documentary, "Eagle Scout: The Story of Henry Nicols." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Because of his medical condition, Henry no longer tours. Yet his sister,
now director of the American Red Cross chapter in Cooperstown, N.Y., continues
to implore people- particularly young people- to put their knowledge about
AIDS into practice. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 That's especially important on college campuses, where surveys indicate
that many students' first sexual encounters are linked with alcohol and binge
drinking, Nicols says. Consequently, collegians don't ask their partners
appropriate questions: How many sexual partners have you had? Have you ever
been tested for HIV? Do you use protection? &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 They don't take precautions; for example, by reaching for a condom from the
bedside stand or medicine cabinet. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 They put themselves at risk. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "In some ways, AIDS education has been a big success," she says. "We've
made miraculous changes in the way the public treats people with HIV. They are
no longer pariahs. They (typically) are not thrown out of homes and schools. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "On the other hand," says Nicols, "we haven't made any inroads in changing
people's habits when they have sex." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

Aids Talk Targets Behavior, Not Grim Facts 
Wilkes University Will Host Jennifer Nicols, A Straightforward, Often Humorous 
Aids-prevention Lecturer, Who Strives To Alter People's Sexual Habits

Aids Talk Targets Behavior, Not Grim Facts Wilkes University Will Host Jennifer Nicols, A Straightforward, Often Humorous Aids-prevention Lecturer, Who Strives To Alter People's Sexual Habits