Although many young people enter college with the belief that they know everything there is to know about sex, most universities have stringent restrictions on what can be taught about the subject.

SF State, a leader in human sexuality studies, has flourished as one of the few universities to offer a masters and a minor in the department, as well as a minor in the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Studies program. It was also the first institution to offer a course on cybersex, “Exploring Cybersexualities.” Unlike other colleges, the school places no restrictions on what can be taught in the department, according to Mona Sagapolutele, program coordinator for the department.

John Elia, SF State professor of Human Sexuality, has been with the department for 20 years and has witnessed first hand the evolution of the program.

“I realized a lot of people were being oppressed because of their sexuality and gender presentation,” Elia said. “I wanted to make the effort to turn the tide on sex negativity.”

Elia currently teaches two of the 20-30 sex classes available at SF State, including Variations in Human Sexuality and Contemporary Sexuality Studies.

According to the SF State bulletin, the department “provides students with knowledge about the processes and variations in: sexual functions and reproduction, intimate relationships, sexual and gender role development, memory behavior and the social, cultural, historical and moral contexts of sex and love.”

While many colleges leave human sexuality to biology and anthropology departments, SF State offers a wide variety of courses related to sex, including “Images of Eroticism,” a course that explores sex on film and in literature, a class that has caused controversy on other campuses.

In 2004, Kansas Sen. Susan Wagle introduced a budget amendment aimed at prohibiting state universities from showing what she called “obscene” videos in sex education classes. Although the governor ultimately vetoed the amendment, the controversy shed light on the opposition by many teaching explicit material.

At Arizona State University, professor Peter Lehman, who teaches “Sexuality in the Media,” became the center of controversy when a university employee resigned after being ordered to serve as the audio/visual provider for the class. The class, which required the viewing of X-rated movies such as “Deep Throat” and “Insatiable,” prompted Arizona legislators to threaten to cut any state funding that supported the course.

Currently, universities that teach eroticism include SF State, Wesleyan University, UC Santa Cruz, University of Massachusetts-Amherst, Chapman University, and Northwestern University.

For those students who take human sexuality courses, whether it is required for their major, minor, segment III, or whether it is by choice, many are brought to new perspectives and knowledge that was not available to them in high school.

Creative writing senior Romel Michael Alonzo, 27, attended an all-male Catholic high school where sex education was “fear-driven” and abstinence-only based. Now enrolled in a Contemporary Sexuality course, Alonzo said he has received a worthy education.

“I’m interested in sex education, probably because of my repressed curiosities,” he said.

It is students like Alonzo, who were denied a fair sexual education, that make Elia’s job even more relevant.

“We live in a sex-negative culture,” he said. “I think our sex education should be comprehensive. People should be given choices on what they can learn and be respected about their sexuality.”