Mission
To conduct innovative research, provide evidence-based education, mentor students and sexual health professionals, and engage the community in initiatives to support sexual health and wellbeing.
Vision
A healthy sexual life for all people, with access to resources for sexual wellbeing, informed decision making, and ability to live a sex-positive life free of coercion and discrimination in a stigma-free environment.
Values
The Midlands Sexual Health Research Collaborative values:
- Collecting and disseminating innovative scientific, evidence-based, accurate information
- Discovering new evidence related to sexuality, sexual health, sexual wellbeing, and gender
- Facilitating strong academic and community partnerships
- Ending discrimination and violence
- Leading advocacy efforts to promote sexual health and wellbeing
- Training future sexual health researchers, practitioners, and educators
What is the MSHRC?
Who We Are
At the core of the MSHRC is a focus on applied research in sexual health. To this end, the collaborative has strong roots in the principles of community-based participatory research (CBPR) and other similar participatory and emancipatory research philosophies. Through our research, we work to create a more sexually literate world in which sexual health and well-being is experienced by all.
MSHRC is housed in the School of Health and Kinesiology at the University of Nebraska at Omaha. The Collaborative is a multi-disciplinary group with strong ties to multipe academic departments at UNO, including Health and Kinesology, Social Work, and Sociology and Anthropology. We also collaborate regularly with partners from community-based organizations, non-profit organizations, and other universities.
The faculty and students of the MSHRC are diverse and growing in numbers. If you are interested in joining the collaborative, please contact Dr. Sofia Jawed-Wessel. Faculty span the gamut of health behavior, human sexuality studies, sociology, medical anthropology, health education, adolescent and family development, systems research, political science and epidemiology.
We are grateful for your support of our work. Please consider making a tax deductible donation to support our critical work in sexual health. Thank you!
Women's Sexual Pleasure: What are we so afraid of? TEDxOmaha, Dr. Sofia Jawed-Wessel
Breaking through Trans language: Lessons from the community. TEDxUNO, Dr. Jay Irwin