JHPIEGO receives USAID contract for AIDS relief efforts

The United States Agency for International Development has awarded a JHPIEGO-led international consortium a five-year AIDS Support and Technical Assistance Resources Indefinite Quantity Contract, known as AIDSTAR. JHPIEGO is one of an anticipated eight organizations allowed to compete for a projected $500 million in future procurements.

The purpose of the contract is to establish a funding mechanism to make technical assistance, implementation and support available to the U.S. government in the 114 countries that benefit from the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, including 15 focus countries.

The JHPIEGO team--which includes representation from every international health unit at The Johns Hopkins University, as well as other international implementers of HIV/AIDS programming--will compete for contracts in the HIV/AIDS technical areas of prevention, care and support, treatment/antiretroviral therapy and related services, stigma and discrimination, gender, program- related data collection and analysis, technical capacity building/systems strengthening, and technical leadership and knowledge management.

The major partners are the Johns Hopkins Center for Global Health; Johns Hopkins schools of Public Health, Medicine and Nursing; Johns Hopkins Fogarty AIDS International Training and Research Program; HOPE worldwide; Khulisa Management Services; Reproductive Health and HIV Research Unit; Social Sectors Development Strategies; Society for Women and AIDS in Africa; Yayasan Kusuma Buana; and local and regional agencies.  

SAIS center collaborates to fight human trafficking in Puerto Rico

Committed to the eradication of human trafficking and exploitation of children, the Protection Project at SAIS, the Ricky Martin Foundation and the University of Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras campus, have signed a partnership agreement to investigate this modern form of slavery in Puerto Rico.

Mohamed Mattar, executive director of the SAIS Protection Project and research professor of law, said that the investigation will provide for a comprehensive program responding to the problem of trafficking in persons, especially women and children, in Puerto Rico.

"Among the goals of the collaborative effort between our investigators and the University of Puerto Rico investigators," he said, "is to acquire an inclusive understanding of this crime, develop a set of policy recommendations and practical tools to combat human trafficking within the Puerto Rican context and propose amendments to the existing legislation that will protect, prevent and rehabilitate potential victims."

The 18-month project is designed in three phases--research, development and public awareness- -and is to engage all sectors of society, including civil society, the private sector, the tourism industry, the government, nongovernmental organizations, schools and other academic institutions.  

Hopkins Day at Six Flags America scheduled for July 14

The fourth annual Hopkins Day at Six Flags America has been scheduled for Saturday, July 14. Specially priced tickets are $20 for adults and children ages 4 and older; admission is free for kids 3 and under. Parking is $10 per vehicle; food vouchers, $9 per meal for selected meals from park vendors. Regular prices are $54.99 for admission and $15 for parking.

Tickets are available to all Johns Hopkins Institutions faculty, staff, students, alumni and retirees and, depending on supplies, may be purchased up until Friday, July 13, from the Office of Faculty, Staff and Retiree Programs or at other Johns Hopkins locations. Go to: www.jhu.edu/fsrp/sixflagsday.html for a list of ticket sellers and information about Six Flags Day. No tickets can be reserved without payment. For online park information, go to www.sixflags.com or call 301-249-1500.  

South Gate entrance detour in effect on Homewood campus

Beginning today, July 9, and continuing for approximately three weeks, Homewood campus traffic using the South Gate will be detoured through the Decker Quad construction site, south of Mason Hall, so that final brick and stone paving can be installed on the entrance road. There will be no change to pedestrian routes.  

New for employees: Hopkins Night at Ripken Stadium

The Johns Hopkins community can enjoy an affordable night at Ripken Stadium this year, thanks to a new event arranged by the Office of Faculty, Staff and Retiree Programs. When the Aberdeen IronBirds take on the Lowell Spinners at 7:05 p.m. on Tuesday, July 17, the ticket price will be just $11.50 per seat, a cost that also entitles JHU guests to a free IronBirds baseball cap (retail value $15), game program and parking.

For more information on this offer, including how to purchase tickets, go to www.jhu .edu/fsrp and click on the link for IronBirds Game, or contact Matt Smith at 410-516-6060. For Ripken Stadium information, go to ironbirdsbaseball.com or call 410-297-9292.  

Correction

In an article on June 25 about Pamela Flaherty, the new chair of the university board of trustees, the name of a recently elected vice chair was misspelled. His name is Mark Rubenstein. In addition, due to an editing error, the article said that Flaherty grew up in Webster Groves, Miss.; it should have said Webster Groves, Mo.

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