When the HIV/AIDS epidemic reached Sweden in the early 1980s, a “national crisis” erupted. Several policy measures were taken, including the appointment of an AIDS delegation to coordinate efforts to combat HIV/AIDS, including several major nationwide information campaigns. However, previous research has not paid attention to the role of education in the work against HIV/AIDS in Sweden. This article is a case study describing the efforts made by the Swedish National Agency for Education to reach out to teachers and students with sex education, including values education relating to HIV/AIDS. It examines how this particular government agency strategised in order to implement its own ideas about how to deal with the HIV/AIDS epidemic in schools. The goal of the new sexuality education was not only to change students’ attitudes, but also to change their sexual behaviour, according to the agency. A prominent theme in this values education was to train students to deal with their fear of death, which was directly related to HIV/AIDS. Key questions are: how did the government agency for education deal with the new situation when the HIV/AIDS epidemic arrived in Sweden? What did its suggestions for a reformed sex education entail? What images of young people and sexuality did the agency construct in its efforts to fight the epidemic?