Almost three years ago, a group of Albuquerque Academy seniors, Noor, Marly, Sophia, and Mireya, drafted and passed a bill that required menstrual products to be supplied in elementary, middle, and high school bathrooms around the state. Taking strides to address the much larger, nationwide problem of period poverty, the bill, House Bill 134, grants kids in New Mexico free access to period products. The bill requires that products are provided and dispensers are installed in every women’s and gender neutral bathroom and in at least one men’s bathroom at all middle and high schools in the state. You can read more about it here.
At Academy, we’ve had period products supplied in our bathrooms for a few years now, and, while for many it is appreciated, we may at times take it for granted. A major positive is simply the convenience. One student said that it eliminates the stress and embarrassment of walking to the bathroom with a bag in hand. Another student mentioned how she was grateful that the bathrooms were always stocked with “a wide variety of [products] like pads, liners, and tampons in different sizes.” Grace Knouse, a leader of feminism club, said that having access to period products is essential due to “the unpredictability of the menstrual cycle, health issues, and the overwhelming stress of it all.”
So how has this bill impacted public schools in New Mexico? At Title 1 schools, having dispensers with pads and tampons helps students whose parents can’t supply them with products. However, at some elementary schools, like Hubert Humphrey, many kids are too young to take advantage of the products supplied. Their school nurse said that those who need them “usually have supplies provided to them by their parents.” Additionally, many schools around the state had period products provided in the nurse’s office, even before the bill was passed, but a high school principal acknowledged that the bill has “taken away” the need “to go to the nurse and ask for it.” Even when products are available through a nurse’s office, it can be awkward and uncomfortable to have to go request products or carry them with you. By supplying products in the bathroom, students can grab them as needed and as discreetly as they wish.
An anonymous principal from a NM high school discussed backlash in their district to the part of the bill which requires period products to be supplied in at least one men’s bathroom at schools. This same provision received criticism before the bill was passed as Rep. Jack Chatfield, a Republican from Mosquero, said, “It will cause some unnecessary silliness.” In more conservative districts, there was hesitancy to supply products, especially in boys bathrooms, at younger grades. Even in districts where there was criticism like the one mentioned above, products were still provided in girl’s and gender neutral bathrooms as well as some boys bathrooms, although likely not as many as intended. So, while the bill was eventually passed in spite of difficulty, some aspects, like providing products in boys bathrooms, are still hard to enforce which makes it less impactful.
The bill faced another hiccup because, when dispensers were installed, many weren’t compatible with the products already supplied by the school nurse, so the dispensers went unused and the products were supplied through baskets. The goal of the bill, supplying products, was still achieved, but dispensers provided an extra obstacle and were largely unnecessary.
Despite all these obstacles, it’s easy to see that there are positive impacts of this bill around the state. Helping students get access to necessary healthcare supplies supports the learning of all people who experience periods. The ultimate goal of House Bill 134 was to protect the education of kids in NM, so whether they can’t purchase products on their own or they’re getting made fun of for bringing a bag with them to the bathroom, by supplying products in bathrooms, kids can focus on learning.
