COLUMBUS — Many high schoolers in the state will have one less thing to worry about as far as period products go and access to them.
>> Miami Twp. police officer credited with saving baby found in bathtub
One in four teenagers has missed class because they didn’t have access to a menstrual product, according to PERIOD, a national organization that fights period poverty. Ohio students will be removed from that equation during the 2023-2024 school year, our news partner, WBNS (10tv.com) is reporting.
A few students at The Ohio State University helped secure $5 million in the state budget that will now be allocated for free period products in Ohio schools.
First-year medical student Anusha Singh said she has always felt a stigma around menstruation.
“I remember leaving my fifth grade classroom where we learned about periods for the first time, and our teachers instructing us to be hush-hush about what we learned about,” she said.
She founded PERIOD’s OSU chapter, became a TEDx contributor and partnered with her fellow Buckeyes to make sure students who menstruate don’t have to miss class because they can’t afford pads or tampons.
Ella Roxey, vice president of the Ohio State PERIOD chapter, helped spearhead talks with lawmakers in the state Senate. She said support was “incredibly bipartisan.”
Now, girls across Ohio in grades six through 12 are getting a better chance at succeeding in school.
Schools in the state will get $2 million for period product dispensers and $3 million for the products themselves — making the funding total $5 million.
Singh said this is a step in the right direction with more work ahead.
Ella and Anusha’s next step is to talk with as many school districts as they can to make sure the period products are actually put in bathrooms and not just nurses offices, as they often are. They said this entire effort is about accessibility.
©2023 Cox Media Group
