Area schools are increasingly accommodating Muslim students and staff on Islamic holidays, but not canceling classes as with Jewish and Christian observances.
Many Capital Region schools in recent years have put Eid al-Fitr and Eid ul-Adha on their education calendars, which allows Muslims to take the days off as unmarked absences and make up missed lessons.
The two holy days fall on different days each year. The Eid al-Fitr festival marks the end of Ramadan, a holy month of fasting, and is celebrated this year on Sunday. Eid al-Adha occurs on Nov. 27, at the end of the holy annual Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca.
But five years after the University at Albany tried canceling classes for the Muslim calendar’s most important holidays, it and other public schools stay open during those holidays.
That bothers some area Muslim leaders and students.
“My opinion is I think it should be the same as other religious holidays,” said Haider Khwaja, past president of the Pakistan Association of New York -- Capital District. “It’s a really nice country and we all are here, so I think it should be treated fairly.”
School officials say they don’t have big enough Muslim populations to justify two more school holidays a year.
“We have not been asked by Muslim groups to suspend classes for religious holidays this year,” UAlbany spokesman Karl Luntta said. As state law dictates, the university cancels classes for religious observances only when normal academic operations would be challenged or disrupted by high absenteeism, he said.
Like most schools, UAlbany and the region’s two biggest public school districts -- Albany City School District and Shenendehowa Central School District -- designate Yom Kippur (Sept. 28) and Christmas as non-school days. But all conduct classes during Muslim holidays.
“It comes down to attendance and substitutes,” Shenendehowa spokeswoman Kelly DeFeciani said.
The Clifton Park community is becoming increasingly diverse, but schools are required to provide 180 days a year of instruction, she noted. The district observes Muslim holidays on its calendar and takes precautionary steps for fasting of Muslim students during Ramadan, she said. It recommends no testing be done on the holidays and gives Muslims the chance to catch up on work should they opt not to attend school on their holy days.
While some New York City schools have debated canceling classes for Muslim holidays, it hasn’t exploded into a statewide issue, said Jay Worons, counsel for the New York State School Boards Association. “One request we have seen is for a room during Ramadan for students to pray in, and many districts are attempting to provide those,” he said.
In 2004, UAlbany became one of the few schools in the country to suspend classes for Eid al-Fitr and Eid ul-Adha. The university reverted to its previous policies in 2005.
“Unfortunately, I am not surprised, and I don’t think it’s something that will change soon unless we have a large amount of Muslims get together and petition for it,” said Hassan Naqvi, a junior at UAlbany from Newburgh.
The university doesn’t keep statistics on students’ religious affiliations. But there are hundreds of members of the Muslim Students Association based at the school.
More important to Naqvi would be the campus cafeterias serving Halal foods, which adhere to Islamic dietary codes and are favored by many Muslims. He said he moved off-campus this year in part because the kitchen did not offer Halal meats, those that come from animals slaughtered in accordance with Islamic law.
The campus kitchen provides boxed Halal meals during Ramadan and officials plan to visit other local universities this fall to evaluate Halal programs for potential future use at UAlbany, Luntta said. Muslim students at UAlbany are excused from tests and assignments during holidays.
Recognizing all religious holidays is important because it can educate students of different religions, Naqvi said.
“Growing up, when I would not come into school because it was a religious holiday, people were confused and had no idea that a Muslim does not celebrate Christmas.”