Mississippi is ranked 20th out of 50 states in children and adolescents diagnosed with HIV last year, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). This is only one out of the many sexually transmitted infections (STIs) measured per year.
According to JuLeigh Baker, health education specialist for Mississippi State University’s  Department of Health Promotion and Wellness, the state typically ranks very high in the number of people with STIs.
“The state of Mississippi is usually higher than other states, we’re usually in the top five and sometimes even No. 1 or No. 2,” Baker said.
Baker said MSU feeds their data on STIs into the local Oktibbeha County Health Department, so there is not an exact number for students with STIs on campus.
Baker said the Longest Student Health Center has programs in place to teach students about the spread of STIs.
“We teach with our promotion programs, the only fully effective way to avoid an STI is not to be sexually active, or even be involved in intimate touching because there are some STIs that are contractible even with touching,” Baker said.
Baker said if students are going to be sexually active, they teach about barrier methods such as male and female condoms. However, none of these are 100 percent risk free.
“We make sure that they’re aware it’s not just vaginal sex that there’s a risk–there’s anal sex, oral sex and intimate touching that there’s also risk with all of that,” Baker said.
Baker said the health center suggests if students are in a mutually monogamous relationship, they should be tested once a year; or with every new partner, whichever is more frequent. 
For students with STIs, Baker suggests visiting the counseling center if they are seeking emotional support. She said the nurse practitioners at the health center are also available to talk to students.
“I’ve had students come meet with me one on one that had further questions, or even emailing me with other stuff along that list,” Baker said. 
According to Baker, the CDC made the distinction between sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) and STIs several years ago because of the negative connotation with the term disease. She said the term infection relays that many of these can be treated or possibly cured.
Beth Serigny, a graduate assistant at the health center said although she has not done research on the topic, she feels college students are conscious of STIs.
“However, I also feel that college students can never learn enough about safer sex,” Serigny said. “It is an important topic that should be discussed.”
According to a Mississippi State Department of Health report from 2010, Mississippi public schools were not required to teach sex education until 2011. House Bill 999 mandated that by June 30, 2012 public schools would teach sex education and implement either an abstinence or abstinence-plus curriculum. 
A legislation document provided on the National Conference of State Legislatures’ website also shows five bills to revise sex education failed in Mississippi this year.