The Sexual Health Resource Centre is a brand new and exciting service of the Acadia Students’ Union, opening this Monday, February 8th!
What is the Sexual Health Resource Centre?
The Sexual Health Resource Centre, or SHRC for short, is a student-funded organization which serves to be the central point for the Acadia Community when it comes to sex, sexuality, and sexual and reproductive health.
The SHRC works to facilitate students’ advancement, growth, and development of sexual health knowledge and practices. We do that by providing education, resources, support and access to products for the Acadia community.
We strive to create a welcoming environment and safe space at the SHRC and our guiding values reflect that. The SHRC is an inclusive, confidential, non-judgmental, sex-positive, and pro-choice organization. We believe that every individual has the right to access accurate, up-to-date, unbiased, evidence-informed information and services when it comes to sexual and reproductive health.
What services does the SHRC provide to Acadia students?
The SHRC offers a variety of free products, programming and workshops, borrowing resource library, and products for purchase. Keep reading to learn more about each of these service areas!
Free Products
We offer a variety of free products to anyone who needs them—this includes free internal and external condoms, free pregnancy tests, free personal lubricant testers, and free menstrual products.
Programming and Workshops
The SHRC offers a range of in-house and virtual educational programs and hands-on workshops. While the topics covered in our programs are vast, some examples include healthy relationships, sexual pleasure (solo and with a partner), sex toy FAQ, and communicating consent and boundaries. Our workshops are offered on a pre-determined programming schedule and are available by request for group bookings.
For our opening month of February we have some great events planned, such as our Valentine’s Day Open House (Feb. 11th) , Sex toy 101 workshop (Feb. 17th), Come as you are workshop, and a Sexy Scattergories night at the Axe lounge (Feb. 25th).
Resource Library
We also have a well-stocked resource library, where all of our books, zines, and magazines are free to borrow for up to two weeks. Simply provide us with your student email and name, and we will send you out a reminder three days before your items are due. We currently have over 200 books spanning a wide range of topics, including how-to guides, sexual and reproductive health, gender and sexuality, dating and relationships, erotica, sex and religion, disability and sexuality, queer issues, and memoir and fiction. If there is a book you would like to see us carry, please reach out and let us know and we will be happy to order it for the resource library.
In addition to our resource library, we also have a wide selection of free pamphlets, information cards, and articles covering on-campus & community resources, STIs and STI testing and treatment, contraceptive options, pregnancy options counselling and abortion access in Nova Scotia, HIV/AIDS, hormone therapy, sex toy use and care, hormone therapy, and health insurance coverage and fees.
Products for Purchase
We also offer a variety of products for sale, including affordable sex toys, massage oil and lube, menstrual cups and dilator kits, and at-cost gender-affirming gear. At the SHRC we are dedicated to providing our products at low prices, as affordability is central to our mission of sex-positive, shame-free, and accessible when it comes to sexuality and sex education. Plus, as a student-funded not-for-profit organization, any revenue generated from our sales goes directly back into funding the SHRC’s services!! Our manager is educated on all of the products we sell and is happy to help you find the toy or product right for you.
Who works at the SHRC?
The SHRC is staffed by one full-time employee, the SHRC Manager, Hannah Hutchinson. Hannah is an Acadia Alumna (Class of 2017) and is excited to be back on campus in a new role. She has a BA(h) in Sociology and WGST and an MA in Sociology. She is passionate about sex-positive education, sexual violence prevention, and providing support to students. In addition to the manager, the SHRC is looking for interested students to volunteer with us as peer educators. Stay tuned for more details on volunteer opportunities, coming spring 2021.
Where and when can I visit the SHRC?
We look forward to seeing you! Visit us in the Student Union Building, room 509 (the upper mezzanine directly beside the Acadia Food Cupboard). You can also reach out via email ([email protected]) and find us on social media (Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter) @SHRCAcadia. For the Winter 2021 semester, the SHRC’s regular operating hours are from 9am – 4 pm Monday to Friday. We will be expanding our hours to include weekend and evening hours in the future.