When Junior Aayda Padmanabhan realized how many students lacked access to menstrual products, she decided to do something about it. Now, she’s reviving the high school’s Period Club to make that change happen.
“I thought that if I can work with women’s shelters and get them stuff that’s actually good for them, it would be a really good cause,” Padmanabhan said.
When she was in middle school, Padmanabhan heard about the Period Club at SHHS and thought it was a really good idea. She saw things on the internet concerning period poverty, which is defined by the inability to purchase menstrual products such as pads and tampons.
According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, nearly 12 million people who menstruate in the U.S. struggle to afford period products. Even when products are available, they are often low-quality and can contain endocrine-disrupting chemicals—such as phthalates, phenols and parabens—that have been linked to long-term hormonal and reproductive health effects.
The original Period Club partnered with outside organizations, ordered supplies and discreetly and distributed them through requests submitted via Google form.
The club has met on and off since it started. “No one was interested in doing the Period Club because there were so many other clubs to choose from,” Psychology teacher Victoria Berndt said. “Aadya brought it up to my attention to see if I would be an adviser if she wanted to revamp it and bring it back to life.”
Padmanabhan hopes to make an impact in the community beyond the high school with the help of Berndt. “Eventually I would like to go to women’s shelters and make a difference beyond high school,” Padmanabhan said.
This school year, the Period Club will meet during conferences in Room 222.The club reflects the school’s broader commitment to student-led advocacy. “We want to support not just the Shaker community, but the Shaker high school community, with products, education and information about menstrual cycles and general health,” Berndt said.
For now, the club has yet to hold its first meeting. Padmanabhan said she plans to start small, working with a core group of members to lay out the goals and fundamentals to new members and then make their difference known. “The students get their voice and their say. So once we have a general agreement on where we want to go and when we want to start, then there will be more.”
