by Ketki Chauhan ’16

The Board of Education voted November 12 against closing school on Muslim holidays with a vote of 5­-2. The board argues that if the school system were to close on every major religious holiday, minor religions would then insist on closing school on their religious holidays, too.

Board Member Michael Durso was one of two members who voted against the calendar for not including Muslim holidays. “I don’t see how we can be consistent and deny the Muslim holidays,” said Durso. The other voter was Student Member of the Board, Justin Kim.

The effort to cancel school on Muslim holidays was pushed by the Maryland Chapter of the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR). At the Board of Education meeting, several representatives from CAIR provided testimonies for the debate that were later voted against.

The topic of closing schools on Islamic holidays was addressed last year and voted down with a sole “nay”  from Durso. “This year there were two [that opposed the calendar]. I’d like to think we’re making some progress, but it’s been very slow,” he said.

The rationale used to cancel school on the Jewish holidays Yom Kippur and Rosh Hashanah is that a significant number of students and teachers would be absent. The data collected in the 1970s stated 15 percent of students and teachers missed school on the first day of Rosh Hashanah. “We are a much different school system and a much different community since then,” noted Durso.

However, board member Philip Kauffman believes the county is being consistent in keeping school closed on Jewish holidays and open on Muslim holidays because the standards being used are the same. “We are being consistent. We need to apply the same standards for Muslims and Jews. It would be illegal not to look at absentee data because of the establishment clause [in the Constitution],” Kauffman said.

Despite believing the county has grown more diverse, Kauffman acknowledges that while the data is 40 years old, it is the only information the school system has regarding absentees. While there is no set percentage of students necessary to be absent for school to be closed, he explains the guidelines are up to the superintendent.

The two largest Muslim holidays are Eid­-al-­Fitr and Eid­-al-­Adha. MCPS states that those days are non-­testing days; however, there is no enforcement of this. Durso suggests a better job of enforcement by the county, but communication from the school system to the principal and then from the principal to the teachers is necessary. Similarly, Kauffman notes it is up to the school principals to ensure proper accommodations for Muslim students.

“If it got to the point where there was an impact [by absentees], there would be a good chance in the future that the Board of Education would make a decision,” Kauffman said. “If [the number of absentees] we have stays the same, my position will likely be the same.”

Durso believes that MCPS will eventually give these holidays off. “What does a Muslim parent say to their … children that our holidays are not being honored, but others are?” he asked.