MIHS Maroon Project Advocates In Olympia For Student Health Changes In Washington State Code

From left to right: Representative My-Linh Thai, Representative Tana Senn, Amelia Han, Isabella Sullivan, Adelaide Swenson, Sophia Loiselle, Justin Li, Ella Gao, Senator Lisa Wellman

Mercer Island, WA, February 7, 2024 - On January 25 MIHS students Ella Gao, Amelia Han, Justin Li, Sophia Loiselle, Isabella Sullivan, and Adelaide Swenson traveled to the Washington State Capitol in Olympia to represent the MIHS Maroon Project.

The Maroon Project is a student-led organization dedicated to combating menstrual poverty. These students led the discussion on implementing improvements to the Washington State Code.

Together with Senator Lisa Wellman and Representatives Tana Senn and My-Linh Thai, The Maroon Project proposed amendments to Washington House Bill 1273—the bill in which all Washington schools must provide menstrual products at no cost in all bathrooms—to give better accessibility to those in Title 1 Schools.

While pushing for the passing of the federal Menstrual Equity for All Act of 2023 (HR 3646), the students discussed the importance of hygienic materials to become necessary items and covered underneath the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) Program benefits.