Feminine hygiene products are fundamental to the health and well-being of young and adult women. Yet with tampons and pads retailing for an average price of $10 per box, this monthly expense adds up to a costly fee for simply maintaining proper health. Since all female-bodied people experience the trials and tribulations of the menstrual cycle, it seems like a blatant act of human decency to provide hygiene products in the women\u2019s restroom. However, this seemingly apparent choice proves itself to be not so obvious after all in the Grace community. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt comes down to an equity issue because female-bodied students and people have the right to have menstrual products provided free of cost,\u201d said Ilana Laurence, Dean of Student life at Grace. As many students have noticed, Grace has consistently failed to supply feminine hygiene products in girls\u2019 bathrooms. Ms. Laurence explained that \u201cThe school has every intention of supplying the menstrual products, but the implementation of that has still not been perfected.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Issues surrounding communication between maintenance and cleaning staff have inhibited the allocation of tampons and pads to dispensers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Mary H. \u201825 emphasized Ms. Laurence\u2019s critical points as she said, \u201cThis is not just a women\u2019s issue; this is a health issue.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Mary, a leader of the Gender Equity Club, explained her experience with being forced to scour multiple bathrooms in the school before finding one with tampons or pads. She continued, \u201cYou shouldn\u2019t have to go to the nurse\u2019s office or all the way to the third-floor girl\u2019s bathroom… You shouldn\u2019t have to search the school to find the products that you need.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
As Mary explained, women should not be expected, nor forced to travel flights of stairs in search of basic necessities. During times of dire need, the stress of searching for hygiene products simply makes this bothersome time of the month that much more stressful. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
While one may argue: if a bathroom is out of products, the easy option would be to consult the school nurse. At least one student, who asked to remain anonymous, described feeling uncomfortable going to the nurse or an administrator to ask for feminine hygiene products, as it is a very personal subject.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe subject of menstruation is extremely stigmatized,\u201d Mary agreed. Talking about these issues with administrators or teachers is \u201cawkward\u201d for many students and \u201csomething they would rather avoid doing.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
One student, who asked to remain anonymous, recounted a time last spring when she lost time on a math test because she could not find a tampon or pad. She didn\u2019t feel comfortable asking an administrator for one, \u201cor even telling [her] teacher why [she] had left the classroom because he was male and [she] felt it would be awkward.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ms. Laurence continued, \u201cWe need to develop a better system because female-bodied people shouldn\u2019t be penalized for the fact that these products aren\u2019t readily available.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to Cammy Ollivierre, the Director of Facilities at Grace, distributing tampons and pads into the dispensers and bins in the bathrooms is managed by the cleaning crew, who arrive in the school buildings after school. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
In an interview with the Gazette, Mr. Ollivierre recalled that, by the end of September, he realized that many of the tampon and pad dispensers were empty or broken. Mr. Ollivierre reached out to the cleaning crew to ask when they last checked the dispensers and came to understand that the cleaning team had not completed the checks in a while due to many of the notifiers on the machines malfunctioning. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI have checked the dispensers around the school and I am contacting the supplier to get information on how I can fix them,\u201d he said in last month\u2019s interview. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Currently, the bins in the bathrooms hold small, cardboard tampons that students have referred to as \u201cantiquated\u201d and \u201cuseless.\u201d A student who wished to stay anonymous noted that \u201cevery girl has a different flow, so how can the same ineffectual tampons work for us all?\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The tampons in the bathroom are thin and do not support heavy menstrual flows. Along with that, students complained that the cardboard applicators are \u201cpainful\u201d to insert. Unlike the overall lack of products, this problem cannot be solved by communication; only funding and coordination. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIf we don\u2019t know, then we can\u2019t help,\u201d said Mr. Ollivierre. He encourages students to contact Dana Foote, student and family coordinator admissions associate, or Vicki King, the high school nurse, if they notice a lack of feminine hygiene products in the bathrooms. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The problems surrounding menstruation and feminine hygiene products go beyond their stigma. Access to menstrual supplies can have a serious effect on a student\u2019s education. Without easy access to menstrual supplies, students often miss class or do not participate to the extent they normally would. The less stressed a student is about their health, the more focused they can be on their learning. The bare minimum that a school can do to support menstruating students is to provide conveniently available feminine hygiene products.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"