Period Access Los Angeles

Food insecurity and access to basic needs

Expand existing project, program, or initiative (expanding and continuing ongoing, successful work)

77% of students believe there needs to be more in-depth education about menstrual health. 85% of students agree that public schools should provide free period products. Most American people with a uterus get their first period between the ages of 12 and 15, but some people get theirs earlier or later than that. Black, Indigenous, and Hispanic adolescents experience menarche at earlier ages than their white counterparts. There are no federal regulations surrounding sexual health education, so curriculum requirements are determined by the state and the school districts. According to a 2015 study,” there has been a recent decline in adolescents receipt of formal sex education about a range of topics including puberty”. Low income women from racial minority backgrounds are disproportionately affected, the 2019 census stated Los Angeles County minority population is “73%”, which is a large portion of the population that has a higher rate of being susceptible to reproductive health issues.

#HappyPeriod produces programs with love centered on menstrual care. We are committed to reshaping the discussion surrounding menstruation and empowering communities to advocate for their own body and well-being by learning and understanding their menstrual cycle. FLOW, our period care program is an activation for introducing menstrual health methods and safe products for pre-teens to young adults. Our intention is to be advocates encouraging body literacy to promote healthy self esteem and self efficacy. Participants have a personalized workshop facilitated by a certified teacher or medical professional, a physical activity session (yoga, pilates, breathing meditation). Lastly they are gifted with safe period essentials to take home. The intention is lasting impact by creating an uplifting experience centered on body literacy.

Objective 1: Facilitate workshops through our programming. Output: At least 70% of participants will have shown an increase in menstrual health knowledge and self-efficacy with their hygiene by the end of the workshop. Objective 2: Reduce anxiety triggered by period poverty by providing participants with access to affordable menstrual products. Output: 100% of participants will receive a gift at the end of our workshop or coupon code to order menstrual products at a reduced price or for free. Objective 3: Create new and strengthen existing partnerships with schools and community organizations to promote better ally-ship and mental health support for the youth. Output: By the end of program year 1, a minimum of 500 young women and girls ages 9-24 will have attended our workshops. Objective 4: Raise general awareness around menstrual discomforts and conditions. Output: 100% of participants will be able to confidently identify and define menstrual discomforts and conditions.

We’ve built a youth-centric curriculum focused on empowering Black, Indigenous, and Latinx adolescents ages 9-12, teens ages of 13-17, and young adults between the ages of 18-24 years old. We measure our FLOW program with Pre and Post assessments. This helps us understand the quantitative and qualitative impact around period poverty and menstrual health awareness. We have an assessment to collect insight from our participants, parents, educators, and other community partners. We have created numerous assessments to collect data from the public to collaborate with them and understand what needs to be included in our curriculum and programs. Our assessments have given us data around age, ethnicity, location, symptoms, treatments and even experiences with doctors. This helps us understand our program's impact with girls ages 9-17 and the education that is learned from the program. We also provide program surveys to teachers and parents, empowering them to share any feedback with us.