After securing funding for period products for the first time ever in the 2024/25 budget, the 2025-26 budget once again includes $3 million to ensure students have access to hygiene products to help them stay in school and focus on learning. In fact, on February 25, 2026, the PA Departments of Health (PDH) and Education (PDE) announced that $3 million allocated in the 2025/26 budget will be distributed to more than 750 Pennsylvania school districts, intermediate units, career and technical centers, and brick-and-mortar charter schools to continue providing free period products to their students.  

The funding enables schools to provide students with access to period products at no cost, in line with efforts by the Shapiro Administration to improve health equity.

The program has become a vital source of funding for schools in every corner of the Commonwealth, taking one more burden off students’ plates and ensuring they are focused on learning.

Applications and reimbursement requests will not be required. All qualifying school entities will receive funding proportional to the total number of students enrolled at a rate of $1.79 per student.

Schools may use the funding for period product purchases made between July 1, 2025, and June 30, 2026.

School funding allocations for the 2025-26 Feminine Hygiene Product Grant Program’s non-competitive, non-solicitation grants are available on the Pennsylvania Department of Health website. Schools can opt out of receiving grant funding. Any remaining funds following the first round of grant funding will be dispersed in a second round.

Schools should consider privacy, responsiveness, access, and education when developing and implementing strategies to make period products available to their students. Additional guidance and suggestions are available in the Menstrual Equity for Pennsylvania Students – Guidance for School Entities.

Recorded January 2026, you can receive a legal overview and best practices to create a school environment that respects the rights of immigrant students, and an update on the status of national legal challenges that could impact schools serving immigrant students. In January 2025, the U.S. government rescinded the longstanding “Sensitive Locations” policy, which has resulted in disruptions at schools. The video will cover immigrant students’ rights in enrollment, attendance, non-discrimination, Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) protections, and warrant requirements for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) at schools. You can also view a model Welcoming Schools policy and protocol.

Click to Watch legal “Rights of Immigrants”

The Pennsylvania Department of Education’s Refugee Education Program offers advocacy for a special population of students and parents who otherwise may not have support. A refugee is someone who has been forced to flee their home country due to war, violence, persecution, or natural disaster. Refugee students often face significant challenges—language barriers, discrimination, disrupted education, and trauma from displacement—that can impact their experiences in the classroom.