Last modified: Thursday, October 13, 2011
Indiana University research grants to honor former U.S. Surgeon General C. Everett Koop
New endowed grant announced on eve of Koop's 95th birthday
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Oct. 13, 2011
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- The Rural Center for AIDS/STD Prevention at Indiana University announced plans today (Oct. 13) to honor the legacy of C. Everett Koop, M.D., former U.S. surgeon general, with the establishment of an endowed research grant that will support doctoral student research related to AIDS/HIV prevention.
Photo copyright Jon Gilbert Fox
C. Everett Koop
Beginning in the 2012-2013 academic year, the Surgeon General C. Everett Koop HIV/AIDS Research Grant will be awarded annually by RCAP on a competitive basis to support the research of doctoral students nationally.
Koop, who turns 95 tomorrow (Oct. 14), was the federal government's chief spokesman regarding AIDS while serving as U.S. Surgeon General in the 1980s. He was the recipient of the 2010 Ryan White Distinguished Leadership Award (see video), presented by RCAP and Jeanne White Ginder, mother of the beloved young AIDS activist from Indiana.
Both the named research grant and leadership award recognize Koop's "bold" and "courageous" measures to raise public awareness about AIDS at a time when little was known about the disease and fear and discrimination, as experienced by Ryan White, were rife.
"This research grant fills an important need in the broad spectrum of our fight against AIDS," Koop said earlier this week.
William L. Yarber, RCAP senior director, said the center raised funds to endow the research grant. He described Koop's efforts toward addressing AIDS and HIV as "very significant and courageous."
"It was exactly what the country needed, and he did this despite opposition," said Yarber, a professor in the School of Health, Physical Education and Recreation at IU Bloomington. "By honoring him with this annual grant, we won't forget his contribution to educating Americans about AIDS."
The grant program initially will award several $600 grants, but is expected to increase the number and dollar value of the grants as the endowment grows. For more information about the research grant, contact Yarber at aids@indiana.edu. To make a contribution to the endowment fund, contact Natalie Kubat at nkubat@indiana.edu or 812-855-7891.
About the Rural Center for AIDS/STD Prevention
RCAP, funded in part by the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, is a joint project of IU, University of Colorado and the University of Kentucky, and is headquartered at IU. The center, the only one of its type in the U.S., was created in 1994 to promote HIV/STD prevention in rural America, with the goal of reducing HIV/STD incidence. It serves as an information resource for rural prevention specialists nationwide through its fact sheets, monthly prevention bulletins, national listserv network and biennial conference, and by conducting research on risk behavior in rural communities.
