The SARS-CoV-2 (Covid-19) virus has had severe impacts on college students' ways of life. To examine how students were coping and perceiving the Covid-19 pandemic, a secondary analysis of an online survey across the three Arizona public universities investigated students’ knowledge about Covid-19, engagement with preventive strategies, pandemic preparedness and gauged their risk perception. Results from our analysis indicate that the students were knowledgeable about Covid-19 and were changing their habits and engaging with preventive measures. Results further suggest that students were prepared for the pandemic in terms of resources and were exhibiting high-risk perceptions. The data also revealed that students who were being cautious and engaging with preventive behaviors had a higher risk-perception than individuals who were not. As for individuals who were prepared for the pandemic in terms of supplies, their risk perception was similar to those who did not have supplies. Individuals who were prepared and capable of providing a single caretaker to tend to their sick household members and isolate them in a separate room had a higher risk perception than those who could not. These results can help describe how college students will react to a future significant event, what resources students may be in need of, and how universities can take additional steps to keep their students safe and healthy. The results from this study and recommendations will provide for a stronger and more understanding campus community during times of distress and can improve upon already established university protocols for health crises and even natural disasters.

The SARS-CoV-2 (Covid-19) virus has had severe impacts on college students' ways of life. To examine how students were coping and perceiving the Covid-19 pandemic, a secondary analysis of an online survey across the three Arizona public universities investigated students’ knowledge about Covid-19, engagement with preventive strategies, pandemic preparedness and gauged their risk-perception. Results from our analysis indicate that the students were knowledgeable about Covid-19 and were changing their habits and engaging with preventive measures. Results further suggest that students were prepared for the pandemic in terms of resources and were exhibiting high-risk perceptions. The data also revealed that students who were being cautious and engaging with preventive behaviors had a higher risk-perception than individuals who were not. As for individuals who were prepared for the pandemic in terms of supplies, their risk perception was similar to those who did not have supplies. Individuals who were prepared and capable of providing a single caretaker to tend to their sick household members and isolate them in a separate room had a higher risk perception than those who could not. These results can help describe how college students will react to a future significant event, what resources students may be in need of, and how universities can take additional steps to keep their students safe and healthy. The results from this study and recommendations will provide for a stronger and more understanding campus community during times of distress and can improve upon already established university protocols for health crises and even natural disasters.

The COVID-19 pandemic has renewed interest in the importance of indoor air quality for health. The spread of respiratory aerosols is the primary mechanism for COVID-19 transmission, making it crucial to understand the role of effective ventilation in managing the risk of disease transmission. The concentration of exhaled carbon dioxide (CO2) in indoor spaces can be used as a proxy measure of ventilation efficiency. Poor indoor air quality has been associated with a range of acute and chronic health problems, including respiratory issues, cardiovascular disease, and cancer. Poor air quality may also impair cognitive performance and productivity. Social and economic inequalities exacerbate the impact of indoor air quality issues, making it crucial to address these problems in an equitable manner. Public libraries have been identified as an effective intermediary for providing education and free air quality monitoring technology to communities, with the ultimate goal of promoting awareness and increasing access to tools to promote accountability for maintaining high indoor air quality standards. The primary objectives of this initiative are to: 1) develop a citizen science toolkit for assessing indoor air quality in public spaces and deploy the toolkit to public libraries in Arizona; and 2) to conduct a program evaluation to determine whether this kit can be effectively deployed through public libraries to promote citizen science efforts and engage community members in promoting healthier indoor air quality, identify areas where improvements can be made, and prepare the program to be scaled to a larger audience.

SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2) is an enveloped single-stranded positive-sense RNA virus that originated in China and has rapidly spread worldwide. With the Delta variant arriving before many K-12 schools in Arizona resumed in-person learning for the 2021-2022 academic year, a plethora of mitigation measures were utilized by schools. Public schools in both Maricopa and Pima county without mask mandates were found to be 3.5 times more likely to have COVID-19 outbreaks in comparison to those with mask requirements at the start of the school year. In addition, when analyzing the presence of three other mitigation measures (cohorting, random testing, and use of improved air filtration), only 5.42% were found to use all four mitigation measures.

HIV &AIDS is a global epidemic that has affected the lives of millions of people across the world. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 37.7 million people were living with HIV in 2020. Sub-Saharan Africa has been particularly affected by the epidemic, specifically, the Southern and Eastern Africa region which accounts for the highest number of new HIV infections, the highest number of people living with HIV, and the highest number of AIDS-related deaths. Botswana, Eswatini and South Africa are countries located in Southern Africa and have been greatly affected by the HIV & AIDS epidemic as Botswana had the highest HIV prevalence from the late 90s to the early 2000s while Eswatini currently has the HIV highest prevalence rate, and South Africa currently has the highest number of people living with HIV in the world. This paper examines the HIV & AIDS health policies adopted by these three countries in their responses to the HIV & AIDS epidemic.