Bridgewater, Va.- The Muslim Student Association is preparing members, and the campus community, for the holy month of Ramadan that happens now until the end of March.

“The month of Ramadan is finally upon us,” said senior Salim Solayman. “This month is a very important holiday for Muslims all around the world, and while Muslims, in my opinion, love this time of the year, it gets a little hard with fasting to go about our daily activities.” 

“The exams are coming soon too, and it gets hard to study for exams while not eating or drinking, so we want to make sure that our Muslim students are well prepared for it,” added Solayman.

Ramadan is a Muslim holiday that lasts a Lunar month (29 or 30 days). During Ramadan, Muslims fast from dusk until sunset in an attempt to show their perseverance and also to experience what the poor might feel when they don’t have food. Muslims fast on food, water and sins during this month. 

“Like Salim was saying, I think it will be tricky this year for Muslim students to maintain this lifestyle of Ramadan during exam times,” said sophomore Mohammed Qudaih. “The least we could do in my opinion is to work with Parkhurst so that we have food available for Muslims during Suhoor and Iftar times, which are when they start their fasting in the early morning and break it at sunset. I believe this should not be hard to do as we did the same thing last year, but it is very important to make the arrangements so that food is available.”

MSA wants to make sure Muslim students are supported throughout the holy month of Ramadan to make it as smooth of an experience as possible and to serve as one of the main resources for Muslims on campus. Further information is available from the Office of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion.

Editor’s Note: Story was updated with link to information from the Office of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion post publication on March 28, 2023.