Starting a non-profit organization... HIV/AIDS education/prevention?

If I were interested in doing this, how would I go about it? I would like to educate/prevent the disease. I have my BA in public relations and have several other friends who are interested in helping me get this off the ground. I have a few questions though... Do grants pay for peoples salary? If so, whats a reasonable amount? Do grants pay the lease on property for non-profits? Where can I go for more info on grants? Must they be renewed yearly? Any other helpful information? I just read that 1 in 5 college students are infected with HIV and this is alarming... I want to help...

Sorry, that was supposed to be 1 in 500... must have hit my "Num Lock" Key, thanks for catching that...

For non-profits, there are grants that can be applied for to help fund projects, but it would be extremely rare that they'd fund regular operating expenses such as salaries and building rent. Grants are normally one-time things that would have to be applied for each year if you have new projects you are requesting funding for. Operating expenses will probably have to be funded through donations and fundraisers.

http://www.grants.gov/ is a site for locating government grants. In most areas, there are also various foundations you can apply to for grants. And many large companies give grants.

That number about college students sounds very high - I'd check on those numbers.

It's a pain in the neck to start a nonprofit, especially when you're interested in doing something that's already being done. If you actually want to do the work of education, work as a program staff member with an AIDS education organization. If you start an organization, you'll spend your time building a board of directors, writing grants, raising money, writing a newsletter, learning bookkeeping and data entry, and supervising others, and you never get to do the actual educational work. So, really, find a group that's already doing it, there are certainly enough out there who would welcome your help. Oh, and grants do pay for educational and program staff, but are less likely to pay for the people running the place, like what you're thinking of, AND the first question they'll ask is why you're not working with the current groups that are already out there.