Muslim students and families in Niles Township last week asked District 219 high school officials to recognize their faith’s major holy days by closing district schools on those days.
“You’ve brought up some good points,” Niles Township District 219 school board president Robert Silverman told Niles West junior Farah Khan. Khan, of Lincolnwood. “This is a start, so our administration can definitely look at it.”
Khan spoke to the board on Nov. 17, on behalf of a group of about 20 students and parents. She said the Muslim community is growing -- about 14 percent of Niles West students are Muslim, she said -- and they would like parity with other groups whose holy days prompt school closings.
Muslims celebrate two major holidays, Khan said. Eid al Fitr, is the feast ending the month-long Ramadan observance. Eid al Adha, which honors the prophet Abraham, follows Eid al Fitr by about 75 days.
“If a student misses half a day of school, they can’t participate in after school activities either,” Khan said. “Instead of making (either holiday) a joyous day, it becomes a burdensome day for many of us.”
District 219 recognizes Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish new year, and Yom Kippur, the Jewish day of atonement, by closing schools, “and we’d like equal recognition,” Khan said. (The 2008-09 District 219 calendar shows schools are closed Sept. 30 and Oct. 9, Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. Winter break and spring break periods include Christian year holy days.)
Niles West attendance drops noticeably on the Eid holy days, Khan said. The school usually has about 50 excused absences daily, but reported between 90 and 365 on those days. While Muslim students appreciate getting excused absences for observances, “they shouldn’t have to worry about missing instruction, tests, quizzes or extra curricular activities.”
Niles West Assistant Principal Ryan McTage said the school’s excused absence figures generally match the numbers Khan gave, although they don’t specify whether they were for religious holidays.
Board member Jeffrey Greenspan said the district should be able to accommodate Muslim students, but worried about how to predict when Eid al Fitr and Eid al Adha take place each year, since both are figured on the lunar calendar. Khan said the Islamic Society of North America provides yearly predictions. Silverman also assured her that policy doesn’t prohibit after-school activities in the case of absences for religious reasons.