Ramadan, an Islamic holy month of reflection and prayer, began the evening of Feb. 28 and ended Saturday. Between after-hours meals provided by U.Va. Dine, community events hosted by student organizations and accommodations from professors, students observing Ramadan said they felt supported throughout the month.
Students also said that they had noted an increase in overall awareness of Ramadan. Third-year Engineering student Nema Saleh said that the University has continued to improve in educating students about the holy month.
“U.Va. not only accommodated Muslim students in terms of observing the month of Ramadan, but they also made an effort to help the general U.Va. population understand what the month is,” Saleh said. “All my friends knew what [Ramadan] was. I think U.Va. is doing a really good job educating the whole student body.”
Ramadan, the ninth month in the Islamic calendar, is a month of fasting from sunrise to sunset. This year, U.Va. Dine featured a new buffet option at Za’atar at The Castle with hours reflecting the fasting period. Pre-dawn meals, known as suhoor, and meals to break the fast, known as iftar, were provided at the buffet each of the 30 days of Ramadan.
In past years, only pre-packaged meals were offered as an accommodation. The new system allowed for students to further customize their meals based on personal preference with an option to get hot food from the buffet to eat at Za’atar. Students were able to use a meal swipe to check in through the GrubHub app and could choose any items they liked once they joined the buffet line. According to Ali, the buffet included items such as chicken, sausage, croissants and eggs, as well as classic Ramadan foods like dates
First-year College student Mustafa Ali expressed contentment with the new system, which he utilized almost every day that he was on Grounds during Ramadan. Living in first-year dorms, he found the Za’atar buffet to be very convenient.
Ibrahim Ahmed, Muslim Students Association president and fourth-year College student, also appreciated the new system, specifically the reduction of food waste that came with the buffet style as opposed to the pre-packaged meals from years past. Although Ahmed did not frequent the Za’atar buffet himself much, he said he had heard only positive things about the system.
“From what I heard, the system and what they used to order was really good, because there wasn't that much food waste,” Ahmed said. “It was really efficient … I think last year was really good, but this year was even better.”
Saleh especially enjoyed the kindness of the U.Va. Dine workers and their positive attitudes even at early hours in the morning.
“[The food accommodations] have been great every year, but this year it was amazing,” Saleh said. “Something I really enjoyed was that the workers were so nice and so accommodating … even at 4:30 a.m. they were so happy to see us.”
Ramadan’s atypical hours have an effect on students' academics as well, as they have expressed concern in past years about receiving accommodations from professors. Students may have to miss evening classes to break their fast, or need extensions on assignments due to the lack of sleep during the month.
This year, students found professors to be more supportive than in past years. Ali found all but one of his professors to be accommodating in needing extensions on assignments or having to miss class.
“During the day you're going to class, you’re exhausted, and then you break your fast, and you’re at the mosque until about 10 or 11 o'clock, and then you’re kind of burnt out,” Ali said. “[Professors are all] very accommodating, and I'm really thankful for it, because it made it a lot easier to process.”
Ahmed said that two of his professors reached out to him first, as opposed to him having to reach out to them, offering to provide accommodations if needed.
“It's definitely been an improvement on the end of professors, like realizing that students actually do have messed up schedules during Ramadan and they might not be getting as much sleep,” Ahmed said. “It's obviously not perfect … but there are a couple classes that started [providing accommodations] which is really nice.”
Alongside these accommodations, student organizations also hosted events centered around Ramadan. MSA hosted a Fast-a-Thon event March 5 in Alumni Hall. Non-Muslim community members were invited to fast in solidarity with Muslim students, and at the end of their fast, all were encouraged to attend the evening iftar. At the iftar, MSA members presented about the holy month and educated attendees about the significance of fasting. According to Ahmed, there were more than 200 attendees. The event was catered by Dino’s Wood-Fired Pizza & Grill, free of charge.
MSA also hosted iftars throughout the month in collaboration with College Council, Student Council and contracted independent organizations, such as the Bengali Student Organization and the Indian Student Association. Ali attended several of these communal iftars, which he said made Ramadan less stressful and instead more enjoyable.
“Almost every night, I went to some sort of iftar led by some sort of student organization,” Ali said. “It was really nice that I wouldn't really have to worry about where I'm going to eat or when I’m going to eat … because all these clubs were hosting.”
Saleh similarly expressed gratitude toward the student organizations for coordinating iftars to bring the Muslim community together.
“Another thing I love about U.Va. is that all the student [organizations] around had Ramadan events almost every day, which has been great,” Saleh said.
Celebrating his first Ramadan away from home, Ali described Ramadan as a time to focus on his religion and connect with the Muslim community.
“[Ramadan] is the month of dialing in on your religion … For me it’s really important because I think sometimes I get so caught up in everything else,” Ali said. “I get so worried about school … so it was really nice for me to be able to … fully dial in one month on our religion, and having people around me do the same.”
Initially, Saleh was worried about missing the sense of community that comes with being around family during the holy month. However, Saleh said she never felt isolated because of the unity she has found at the University through the Muslim community.
“I think the one thing I miss is that family aspect. When I'm at home, we have family come over, or we'll get invited to other people's houses,” Saleh said. “But it's kind of the same deal here … You have these community iftars where literally you see so many of your Muslim friends around.”
Despite initial nerves, Ali said he thoroughly enjoyed his first Ramadan away from home, especially with the support from the University community.
“Everything that I was able to do back home, I was able to do here — I was able to go to the mosque, I was able to eat suhoor and iftar, I was able to get the full experience,” Ali said. “Everyone was very accommodating, not just like staff, but honestly, everyone around me … It was just an amazing experience.”
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