'Yes Means Yes' sexual education class provides PE credit

Yvonne Dean-Bailey Massachusetts Campus Correspondent / on Oct 20, 2014

As part of a university initiative to curb sexual assault on campus, Colgate University in New York now offers a “Yes Means Yes” (YMY) sexual education course to students for physical education credit.

What formerly began as a student thesis in 2009 is now a full-fledged seminar class that meets for six weeks every term. The seminar, which the school bills as an “extracurricular program,” has been leading the discussion on affirmative consent on campus for the past four years.

“I've heard a lot about change and the entire campus seems committed to it,” Caroline Boudreau, a sophomore at Colgate, told Campus Reform. “The frats and sororities are very active. It’s not something every student is active with, but it is definitely something everyone supports and is aware of on campus."

The YMY course is offered to Colgate students for college credit but is also open to faculty and staff in order to encourage openness on the university’s sex culture. At the same time, the course is meant to educate students on the proper sex skills, “Colgate hookup culture,” and encourage the campaign’s motto of affirmative consent—“Yes Means Yes”.