Picture this: you’re taking a physics test in the Gelb Science Center, your head in your hands because you can’t solve the problem, and suddenly you realize you got your period. You don’t have a pad or a tampon, and you certainly know the Gelb bathrooms don’t have anything. Of course, you cannot ask a classmate if they have anything because you’ll be shunned for talking in testing conditions. You’re wearing your favorite light blue sweatpants, and they become not so light blue anymore. You might get lucky, solve the problem, make it back to your dorm in time, and find the pad you knew was in your drawer.
But what if you were stuck at that table? What if you don’t have period products because you forgot to buy them, or can’t afford them? What if you are forced to miss class to fix an unfortunate situation you had no control over? What if Andover provided access to menstrual products in all bathrooms across campus, and situations like these would never happen ever again?
Barriers to accessing menstrual products are ubiquitous in boarding campuses like that of Andover. According to a nationwide survey released late 2023 from health brand INTIMINA, almost one in five students experienced “period poverty,” a newly invented phrase that refers to the general lack of access to safe and hygienic period products and basic sanitation services. Period poverty in students is generally driven by financial reasons. And on a campus like Andover’s where students come from all walks of life and class backgrounds, period poverty can be even more present.
Beyond financial issues, though, the stress perpetuated by the Andover life and environment can also exacerbate periods. According to GoodRX, stress can lead to not only more irregular periods, but also more painful periods. This can compound together to ultimately make the experience of a low income student who gets periods extremely difficult. Inaccessibility to period products and resources that alleviate discomfort stemming from periods can lead to worse focus and performance in classes, missing engagements, and higher rates of moderate depression — all things that Andover prides itself on avoiding. Yet Andover is not consistent in its response to provide period products for all. Its approach is patchwork, and simply not good enough.
Andover does not consistently provide menstrual products in bathrooms all across campus, including all academic buildings and dorms, and this is an account where it fails its students and falls behind other institutions. I’ve had more than a handful of emergencies and had to figure it out myself because the building I was in (Gelb Science Center, Pearson Hall, Bulfinch Hall, I can go on) had nothing. Even the buildings that do provide period products have limited amounts and are often low quality.
Considering that the school prides itself on its level of classes, environment, and agency of students matching that of colleges, Andover should keep up with these higher education institutions to adequately support its students from a medical and holistic perspective. George Mason University has worked to provide universal access to period products across its campus, and many other higher education institutions are also working towards a similar goal. It is now required by law in several states that public schools must have access to period products as well. As prestigious and well-funded as Andover is, we must hold our school to the same standard — we have the financial standing to provide these products to all students, so why don’t we?
In truth, the fact that Andover cannot provide period products to all students speaks to the larger issue of menstrual health and resources as a seriously neglected public health problem. If a school with a tuition of almost a whopping 70,000 dollars cannot put a pad in every bathroom, then what about the schools in the rest of the country? Just as there are states that require access to period products, there are many that do not. All people who get periods should have access to the proper resources. Menstrual health needs to be a priority because having access to basic sanitation products is a human right. Pads and tampons are just as important and needed as toilet paper or soap in a bathroom.
And ultimately, Andover should stock all bathrooms across campus (academic and residential) with free period products consistently and reliably. Any student should be able to walk into their dorm bathroom or into an academic building bathroom and find something they need. If Andover is truly a home, then it needs to feel like one — it should be a haven where safe and clean products are abundant and available for all. Andover can end period poverty on campus to show its commitment to support for low income, gender marginalized students, and for an equitable world.
