DURHAM, N.H. - William Darrow, the public health researcher who played a role in demonstrating the sexual transmission of the AIDS virus, will speak at the University of New Hampshire Thursday, April 14, 2011. His free public lecture, hosted by the Kidder Fund and the UNH College of Health and Human Services, will address "The AIDS Pandemic: What Went Wrong, When and Why." Darrow's talk is in Murkland Hall, room 115, at 12:40 p.m.

Darrow is professor of public health at Florida International University, where he is principal investigator for a multi-million dollar HIV-prevention project and conducts research on the social and behavioral aspects of AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases. He is also a member of the Dade County HIV/AIDS Prevention Community Planning Group, Miami-Dade County AIDS Prevention Task Force, and the South Beach AIDS Project Advisory Board.

Darrow's role in demonstrating the sexual transmission of the AIDS virus was described by Randy Shilts in the 1987 book "And the Band Played On," a nonfiction chronicle of the discovery and spread of HIV/AIDS. Prior to joining FIU, he was chief of the Behavioral and Prevention Research Branch, Division of STD/HIV Prevention at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. He has consulted with the World Health Organization, the European Union, and the Global Program on AIDS.

Darrow received a master's degree in sociology from UNH in 1968.

The Kidder Fund at UNH sponsors and encourages educational efforts that will enhance understanding of and advancing opportunities for those whose sexual orientation differs from the majority in our culture, to foster AIDS awareness, and to demonstrate the constructive contributions this important segment of our society is making. It is named for William "Bill" Kidder, an alumnus of UNH who served in many positions at the university, most notably dean of students. Kidder died as a result of complications due to AIDS. He had donated funding as a way to continue his good work.

The University of New Hampshire, founded in 1866, is a world-class public research university with the feel of a New England liberal arts college. A land, sea, and space-grant university, UNH is the state's flagship public institution, enrolling 12,200 undergraduate and 2,300 graduate students.

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Photograph available to download: /unhtoday/news/cj_nr/2011/mar/bp30lecture.jpg
Caption: William Darrow, professor of public health at Florida International University and a pioneering AIDS researcher, will speak at the University of New Hampshire Thursday, April 14, 2011.