Dear Vanderbilt Students,
We hope you are all having a good start to the spring semester. As you plan your semester, we are writing to remind you that many religious and spiritual groups represented on our campus will be observing significant holy days during the upcoming weeks and months.
As previously communicated, we encourage you to be proactive when planning academic or work responsibilities around your observation of holy days, including by reviewing the academic calendars to plan ahead. A written request in advance should be submitted to an instructor of a course for consideration of a religious observance. If you have questions or concerns about academic accommodations for religious observance or religious beliefs, please contact Equal Opportunity and Access (EOA). You are also encouraged to connect with the Center for Spiritual and Religious Life (CSRL) for support, if needed. Additional information about accommodations for Jewish students observing holy days during final examinations this semester can be found below.
Muslim, Jewish, Christian, Hindu, Sikh and community members of other spiritual perspectives will all mark important holidays through the spring, some of which will be work restricted. More specifically, our Muslim community members will be fasting for the holy month of Ramadan beginning on Sunday evening, March 10, through the evening of Tuesday, April 9. The evening of Monday, April 8, through the evening of Tuesday, April 9, is Eid al-Fitr, a community celebration of the end of Ramadan.
The beginning of Eid al-Fitr may shift, depending on sighting the moon, and cultural practice may extend the observance to three days. This period includes the end of classes and may include important academic deadlines at many of Vanderbilt’s colleges and schools. Muslim students and employees will be fasting (abstaining from food and water) for an extended time during daylight hours, which may result in less stamina and a need for evening accommodations.
In addition, our Jewish community members will be observing Pesach, or Passover, from the evening of Monday, April 22, through sundown on Tuesday, April 30. There are important observances on the evenings of Monday, April 22 and Sunday, April 28, as well as all day on Tuesday, April 23, Wednesday, April 24, Monday, April 29, and Tuesday, April 30.
We recognize the conclusion of the Spring semester and final examinations overlap with Passover this year. If you require accommodations for final examinations due to observance of non-working days during Passover, please review your syllabi and final examination schedules and discuss with your faculty members potential alternate arrangements. If you are still in need of assistance after connecting with your instructors, please complete the Passover Accommodation Request Form for Final Examinations by February 16. Your information will then be reviewed, and you will be contacted about next steps regarding your accommodations in early April. If you have any questions about the form or process, contact deanofstudents@vanderbilt.edu.
We are proud of the diverse religious and spiritual traditions observed by members of the Vanderbilt community, and we wish you all the best in the weeks to come.
G.L. Black
Vice Provost for Student Affairs and Dean of Students
Tiffiny A. Tung
Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education
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