HEALTH: Contraceptives, reproductive health care available for college students

By Alyssa Arreola
Bridge contributing writer
Published Tuesday, Sept. 2025

Both activists and medical professionals express how access to contraceptives is important for TAMIU students. Student Health Services Director Claudia Beltran said the University offers these services for students.

Back on June 24, 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization that overturned Roe v. Wade, reversing the constitutional right to abortion and returning authority to individual states to regulate or ban the procedure. The Roe v. Wade ruling previously protected the right to an abortion for nearly 50 years.

As a result, Texas reverted to a near-total ban on abortion through the immediate triggering of the Texas Human Life Protection Act and the Texas Heartbeat Act (S.B. 8), both previously passed in 2021 in anticipation of the Supreme Court’s decision.

While many students and activists became and are still concerned about their options and choices, the ruling and the Texas laws did not affect the legality of Plan B emergency contraception, which remains legal and available in Texas according to a Texas Tribune article from June 24, 2022.

“We’re set up like a small urgent care,” Beltran said of TAMIU’s health care services. “We provide first aid, vaccines and we offer women’s health services.”

Beltran continued by expressing concern for the limitation of reproductive and other health care services.

“It can create some stress for students,” she said. “I think it’s very important to be able to get the help that you need. So, we do our best to promote the department.”

She further expressed how Texas A&M International University students should practice being safe and protected with their bodies.

“We promote the HPV vaccine,” she said. “We also partner with the city health department to provide condoms, and we also have female condoms; you know, maybe the woman is empowered.”

The Human Papillomavirus vaccine, commonly called HPV, is a vaccination that protects against infections caused by a group of viruses that can transmit sexually.

Beltran said the Student Health Services Department is essential and reliable for students and the community.

“We try hard to educate our students,” she said. “We don’t want to add any more barriers to students. We want to be able to alleviate that and help students be successful.”

TAMIU student activists are one of the ways students receive information on resources, contraceptives and campus protesting events and those in the Laredo community.

Katherin De Leon is one of many activists at TAMIU who campaign for reproductive health care, sexual education, immigration and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.

De Leon participated in a handful of events, all of which advocated for things she strongly believes in.

“I would say I’ve participated in about 20 events,” she said. “[The] majority of the events are local; so, we’ll do coffee shops, bars or just like even in the street.”

De Leon also said some of the services by TAMIU activists inspire safer sex.

“At the Rec and the health center, there’s always free condoms up for grabs, but if you need anything like Plan B, dental dams or informational pamphlets, you would usually go to ReproJustice,” De Leon explains. “Through a link in our bio, fill out what you need and we’ll deliver.”

Reproductive Justice is a framework defined by the right to personal bodily autonomy, the right to have children or not and the right to parent children in safe, healthy and sustainable communities. It’s also a Laredo-based community organization, sometimes nicknamed ReproJustice, often in collaboration with a separate student group known as Reproductive Justice 956, which actively engages with and recruits student volunteers on campus.

If laws were to change, limitations on access to contraceptives could negatively affect students and the local community.

“It will definitely affect the pregnancy rates, and it’ll specifically affect college students, because they’ll have no other safe option besides going through with the pregnancy that they might not want,” De Leon said. “I think having conversations about these topics really helps to destigmatize it and helps people not be scared to approach these topics. Having events like tables and panels, where people are kind of forced to hear you talk, really helps people not be scared.” 

Reproductive Justice member Reanna Renteria advocates for fair and accessible reproductive health care for all, along with the other members.

As one of its first members, Renteria said it provided her with a good perception of the organization’s change around the campus and community.

“I’ve gotten the chance to see it grow in both member count and capability,” she said.

Renteria said Reproductive Justice, which is not an official university-registered organization through SOLE or Presence, offers several things to TAMIU students.

“ReproJustice is one of the orgs most known for our safe sex kits,” she said. “We hand out free condoms and Plan B to students to encourage safe and healthy activity.”

The organization’s purpose is made clear by its new members to its founding officers.

“We have a number of different info cards, flyers and brochures on things like safe sex info, what consent looks like, STD information, clinics that take people without insurance, sexual assault help, and much more.”

Reproductive Justice offers events on campus to spread awareness about reproductive health care.

“We have a few events in the works,” Renteria said. “We want to do a panel event with professors explaining medically accurate sexual health care information.”

Reproductive Justice also works with organizations outside of TAMIU to advocate for reproductive health care.

“We work with organizations like Advocates for Youth and the Emergency Contraceptive Access Network to have the means to keep our community safe.”