This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Mizzou chapter.
With Vagina Monologues happening this past weekend, women’s sexuality and healthy relationships have been hot topics. Sarah Billingsly, senior from St. Louis, is the president of SHAPE, a program that focuses on sexual health. Sarah is also a double major in health sciences and psychology with a minor in women’s and gender studies. Her Campus Mizzou caught up with her to find out more about her and the SHAPE program.
Her Campus Mizzou: What does SHAPE stand for and what work do you do through SHAPE?
Sarah Billingsly: SHAPE stands for Sexual Health Advocate Peer Education — we are an organization that seeks to educate the campus and community and provide sexual health resources such as STI testing and access to barrier methods on MU’s campus.
HCM: What types of programs does SHAPE offer?
SB: SHAPE offers educational programs covering a wide variety of topics — orgasms, contraception, barrier method usage, consent, communication, etc. We can also tailor a program to pretty much any groups needs.
HCM: Why did you decide to get involved in SHAPE?
SB: I originally got involved with the RSVP Center as a peer educator and from there followed the opportunity to get involved with SHAPE. I’m passionate about education as a form of empowerment, and SHAPE sparked my interest in sexual and reproductive health. I came in to my undergrad very interested in health and health outcomes, but SHAPE helped me connect those interests to my passions in social justice, feminism and human sexuality.
HCM: How would someone looking to get involved in SHAPE do so?
SB: If someone is interested in applying to become a SHAPE peer educator, they can visit our page on the Student Health Center’s website. There you can find more information about the program, application instructions and what training looks like for new peers!
HCM: Are you involved in any other organizations on campus? If so, which ones?
SB: I’m involved with the MU Relationship and Sexual Violence Prevention (RSVP) Center as a coordinator for their peer education program. I’m a member of a Panhellenic sorority, am involved with Mizzou Alternative Breaks, and have been on cast with Vagina Monologues for the past two years. I also co-host a speciality show on KCOU called Femaliarity.
