Cedar Falls Girl Scout Rallies Support and Stimulates Iowa Bill HF883
Elle Smith from Cedar Falls, Iowa, has achieved the Gold Award, the highest award a Girl Scout can earn, for working to end period poverty in schools and stimulating the creation of an Iowa Bill, HF883. The goal of this bill is to provide access to feminine hygiene products in public school restrooms in the state of Iowa.
“Period poverty is when a woman doesn’t have the ability to pay for the items necessary during her period. This is a real issue for women across the country; in fact, 23% of teenage girls say they struggle with period poverty in their family,” says Smith. “There is a serious issue surrounding girls’ ability to go to school and learn because they don’t have the products they need while they are menstruating, and my ultimate goal was lessening or eliminating that in the state of Iowa.”
Smith wanted to enlighten communities about how many girls are impacted by period poverty and how easily the issue can be resolved once the negative stigma around periods ends. She came up with two main goals: to pass a bill in the state of Iowa and share her knowledge and passion on the topic with others. While the bill wasn’t passed, Smith took the lead in stimulating it for the future; rallying support from across the state.
“I met with senators and representatives on the bill’s behalf and worked hard toward making sure that it stayed alive and kept moving through the House,” says the Gold Award Girl Scout. “As far as the groups I presented to—that went so much further than I could’ve imagined. I spoke to several college classes and advocacy groups, wrote an essay, made a TikTok and a YouTube video, and created a petition that received nearly 300 signatures. I was able to spread so much awareness about period poverty as a whole and inspired so many people in every group that I spoke to.”
Smith’s ambition and drive helped her to reach hundreds of individuals and inspire groups within the community to show their support for this cause. One such group included nurses who agreed to start up a menstrual product drive for those impacted by period poverty.
Those who Smith spoke to gained valuable knowledge about the depth that period poverty reaches. She lessened the negative stigma around periods in conversation. Her voice was heard by legislators and influenced them to get involved and show support for HF883, which can change the lives of girls and young women across Iowa.
