BLOOMINGTON – The Indiana University Board of Trustees will meet Friday to hear a proposal that would allow the university to spin off the Kinsey Institute into a nonprofit.
Established by famed sexologist Alfred Kinsey, the Kinsey Institute has been housed at Indiana University since 1947. The Institute’s mission is to foster and promote a greater understanding of human sexuality and relationships through research, outreach, education, and historical preservation. The goal is to be the premier research institute on human sexuality and relationships
Kinsey Institute, topic intensives, provide students with an in-depth exploration of current research and foundational concepts in a focused area of sex research. In partnership with the IU School of Medicine’s Bloomington campus, the Kinsey Institute offers a scholarly concentration in human sexuality and health for medical students enrolled at IU.
According to Senior Scientist Cynthia Graham, the institute’s goal is to promote a greater understanding of sexuality through research. Dr. Graham’s research interests include sexual health in older adults, sexual problems in women, gender and clinical sexology, the design and implementation of interventions to improve the uptake and experience of condom use, and innovative sex education interventions for adolescents. One of her most recent projects evaluates the use of video gamification as an intervention in sex education among adolescents and young adults.
Last spring, the state legislature voted on a budget amendment barring Kinsey from receiving any state funds. Kinsey Institute currently receives funding from grants and awards.
If the IU Board of Trustees votes to separate the university from Kinsey, the university will keep Kinsey’s world-renowned collection of erotic art.
