The TSU SHAPE Initiative "A SWAG Movement"

The Texas Southern University Substance Use, Mental Health HIV/AIDS Prevention Education (S.H.A.P.E.) Initiative (TSI) is a university and community-based collaborative providing sexual health and substance use clinical services, education, outreach, case management, and service navigation. Based at Texas Southern University (TSU), it was established in 2014 to provide HIV and Hepatitis-C (HCV) sexual health screenings and outreach to ethnic and sexual minority students and residents throughout the Greater 3rd and 5th ward communities. TSI has since then increased its service offerings to include expanded screenings for sexually transmitted infections, comprehensive substance use assessments, evidence-based intervention programming, and client and service provider education training. Furthermore, TSI expanded its geographical footprint by implementing service delivery throughout the City of Houston and Harris, Galveston, and Chambers counties. To date, it has collectively served more than 7,000 recipients, the majority of whom identify as a member of an ethnic minority group. The TSI collaborative is designed and has subsequently evolved to become a synergistic and culturally responsive approach to persistent sexual health disparities plaguing diverse ethnic and sexual minority community groups. This presentation will highlight TSI’s commitment to addressing sexual health conflicts underlying prominent sexual health disparities and its approach to reframing the sexual narrative.