Religious Holidays

Please note that only those holidays that fall within an official academic term, session, or module are listed. Those dates may vary from year to year. For federal holidays or scheduled school breaks please review our academic calendar page.

• Policy Regarding Religious Holidays

  The University is committed to ensuring that every student willhave the right to pursue their education while practicing their faith.  To accomplish this, the Office of the Provost has undertaken the following strategic steps: 

  • Stony Brook University is committed to providing the opportunity for all students to practice their faith.

  • Each spring the Office of the Provost will issue a listing of major religious holidays that will take place during the following academic year.  This will ensure that faculty is aware of the major celebrations of the faiths practiced by our students.

  • All student absences in order to practice their faith will be viewed as an ‘excused absence’, with no negative consequence.

  • Faculty are strongly urged to avoid scheduling examinations, papers, presentations or other assignments to be due on any of the major listed holidays.  When this is unavoidable, students will be given the opportunity for an equivalent make-up.

  • Ten of our largest classrooms/lecture halls are equipped with Stony Brook Capture.  All classes taking place in these rooms will be recorded and students will be able to access high quality MP3 playbacks of the full lecture

  • All courses are registered on Blackboard, an online course management system.  We will request that faculty post their lecture notes for classes taking place on any of the major holidays on their individual course site so that all students can access the material.

  • Students will be expected to notify their professor in advance, but definitely before the final date of the ‘add/drop’ period of their intention to be out for religious observance.  They can discuss with their faculty member at that time how they will be able to secure the work covered.

  • If a student is not satisfied that they are being treated appropriately, they can reach out to the Office of the Provost to have their grievance addressed

  • Faculty who intend to observe a religious holiday should arrange at the beginning of the semester to reschedule missed classes or to make other provisions for their course-related activities

  • The text of the New York State Education Code will be posted on the academic calendar page on the web site of the Office of the Registrar

• NYS Education Law 224-A

  New York Education - Part 1 - § 224-A Students Unable Because of Religious Beliefs to Register or Attend Classes on
  Certain Days
  
  § 224-a. Students unable because of religious beliefs to register orattend classes on certain days.
  

  1.  No person shall be expelled from or be refused admission as a student to an institution of higher education for the reason that he or she is unable, because of his or her religious beliefs, to register or attend classes or to participate in any examination, study or work requirements on a particular day or days.

   2.  Any student in an institution of higher education who is unable, because of his or her religious beliefs, to attend classes on a
   particular day or days shall, because of such absence on the particular day or days, be excused from any examination or any study or work requirements.

   3. It shall be the responsibility of the faculty and of the administrative officials of each institution of higher education to make
   available to each student who is absent from school, because of his or her religious beliefs, an equivalent opportunity to register for classes or make up any examination, study or work requirements which he or she may have missed because of such absence on any particular day or days. No fees of any kind shall be charged by the institution for making available to the said student such equivalent opportunity.
  

   4. If registration, classes, examinations, study or work requirements are held on Friday after four o'clock post meridian or on Saturday,
   similar or makeup classes, examinations, study or work requirements or opportunity to register shall be made available on other days, where it is possible and practicable to do so. No special fees shall be charged to the student for these classes, examinations, study or work requirements or registration held on other days.
  

  5. In effectuating the provisions of this section, it shall be the duty of the faculty and of the administrative officials of each
  institution of higher education to exercise the fullest measure of good faith. No adverse or prejudicial effects shall result to any student because of his or her availing himself or herself of the provisions of this section.
  

  6. Any student, who is aggrieved by the alleged failure of any faculty or administrative officials to comply in good faith with the provisions of this section, shall be entitled to maintain an action or proceeding in the supreme court of the county in which such institution of higher education is located for the enforcement of his or her rights under this section.
  

  6-a. It shall be the responsibility of the administrative officials of each institution of higher education to give written notice to
   students of their rights under this section, informing them that each  student who is absent from school, because of his or her religious beliefs, must be given an equivalent opportunity to register for classes or make up any examination, study or work requirements which he or she may have missed because of such absence on any particular day or days. No fees of any kind shall be charged by the institution for making available to such student such equivalent opportunity.
  

  7. As used in this section, the term "institution of higher education" shall mean any institution of higher education, recognized and approved by the regents of the university of the state of New York, which provides a course of study leading to the granting of a post-secondary degree or diploma. Such term shall not include any institution which is operated, supervised or controlled by a church or by a religious or denominational organization whose educational programs are principally designed for the purpose of training ministers or other religious functionaries or for the purpose of propagating religious doctrines. As used in this section, the term "religious belief" shall mean beliefs associated with any corporation organized and operated exclusively for religious purposes, which is not disqualified for tax exemption under section 501 of the United States Code. 

• 2022

  DATE	DAYS	HOLIDAY
  January 7	Friday	Christmas (Orthodox Christian)
  February 1	Tuesday	Lunar New Year (Confucianism, Daoism, Buddhism)
  March 1	Tuesday	Maha Shivarati (Hindu)
  March 2	Wednesday	Ash Wednesday/Beginning of Lent (Christian)
  March 16 - March 17	Sundown Wednesday Sundown Thursday	Purim (Judaism)
  March 17- March 18	Sundown Thursday Sundown Friday	Holi (Hindu)
  March 18 - March 19	Sundown Friday Sundown Saturday	Laylat al-Bara’at (Islam)
  April 2 - May 2	Sundown Saturday Sundown Monday	Ramadan (Islam)
  April 15	Friday	Good Friday (Christian)
  April 15 - April 23	Sundown Friday Sundown Saturday	Passover (Judaism)
  April 22	Friday	Good Friday (Orthodox Christian)
  April 29	Friday	Laylat al-Qadr (Islam)
  May 2 - May 3	Sundown Monday Sundown Tuesday	Eid al-Fitr (Islam)
  June 4 - June 6	Sundown Saturday Sundown Monday	Shavuot (Judaism)
  July 9 - July 10	Sundown Saturday Sundown Sunday	*Eid al-Adha (Islam)
  September 26-October 5	Sundown Monday Sundown Wednesday	Navaratri (Hindu)
  September 25 - September 27	Sundown Sunday Sundown Tuesday	Rosh Hashanah (Judaism)
  October 4 - October 5	Sundown Tuesday Sundown Wednesday	Yom Kippur (Judaism)
  October 7 - October 8	Sundown Friday Sundown Saturday	Mawlid al-Nabi (Islam)
  October 9 - October 16	Sundown Sunday Sundown Sunday	Sukkot (Judaism)
  October 16 - October 18	Sundown Sunday Sundown Tuesday	Shemini Atzeret (Judaism)
  October 17 - October 18	Sundown Monday Sundown Tuesday	Simchat Torah (Judaism)
  October 24	Monday	Diwali (Hindu)
  December 18 - December 26	Sundown Sunday Sundown Monday	Hanukkah (Judaism)

• 2023

  DATE	DAYS	HOLIDAY
  January 7	Saturday	Christmas (Orthodox Christian)
  January 22	Sunday	Lunar New Year (Confucianism, Daoism, Buddhism)
  February 18	Saturday	Maha Shivarati (Hindu)
  February 22	Wednesday	Ash Wednesday (Christian)
  February 27	Monday	Great Lent begins, Clean Monday (Orthodox Christian)
  March 6 - March 7	Sundown Monday Sundown Tuesday	Purim (Judaism)
  March 7- March 8	Sundown Tuesday Sundown Wednesday	Holi (Hindu)
  March 7- March 8	Sundown Tuesday Sundown Wednesday	Laylat al-Bara’at (Islam)
  March 22 - April 21	Sundown Wednesday Sundown Friday	Ramadan (Islam)
  April 7	Friday	Good Friday (Christian)
  April 5 - April 13	Sundown Wednesday Sundown Thursday	Passover (Judaism)
  April 18	Tuesday	Laylat al-Qadr  (Islam)
  April 21 - April 22	Sundown Friday Sundown Saturday	Eid al-Fitr (Islam)
  May 25 - May 27	Sundown Thursday Sundown Saturday	Shavuot (Judaism)
  June 28 -June 29	Sundown Wednesday Sundown Thursday	Eid al-Adha (Islam)
  September 6 - September 7	Wednesday Thursday	Krishna Janmashtami (Hindu)
  October 15 - October 24	Sundown Sunday Sundown Tuesday	Navaratri (Hindu)
  September 15- September 17	Sundown Friday Sundown Sunday	Rosh Hashanah (Judaism)
  September 24 - September 25	Sundown Sunday Sundown Monday	Yom Kippur (Judaism)
  September 26 - September 27	Sundown Tuesday Sundown Wednesday	Mawlid al-Nabi (Islam)
  September 29 - October 6	Sundown Friday Sundown Friday	Sukkot (Judaism)
  October 6- October 8	Sundown Friday Sundown Sunday	Shemini Atzeret (Judaism)
  October 7 - October 8	Sundown Saturday Sundown Sunday	Simchat Torah (Judaism)
  November 12	Sunday	Diwali (Hindu)
  December 7 - December 15	Sundown Thursday Sundown Friday	Hanukkah (Judaism)

• 2024

  DATE	DAYS	HOLIDAY
  January 7	Sunday	Christmas (Orthodox Christian)
  February 10	Saturday	Lunar New Year (Confucianism, Daoism, Buddhism)
  February 14	Wednesday	Ash Wednesday (Christian)
  March 10 - April 9	Sundown Sunday Sundown Tuesday	Ramadan (Islam)
  March 18	Monday	Great Lent begins, Clean Monday (Orthodox Christian)
  March 23 - March 24	Sundown Saturday Sundown Sunday	Purim (Judaism)
  March 24 - March 25	Sundown Sunday Sundown Monday	Holi (Hindu)
  March 29	Friday	Good Friday (Christian)
  April 9- April 10	Sundown Tuesday Sundown Wednesday	Eid al-Fitr (Islam)
  April 22 - April 30	Sundown Monday Sundown Tuesday	Passover (Judaism)
  June 11 - June 13	Sundown Tuesday  Sundown Thursday	Shavuot (Judaism)
  June 16 -June 17	Sundown Sunday Sundown Monday	Eid al-Adha (Islam)
  August 26	Monday	Krishna Janmashtami (Hindu)
  September  15 - September 16	Sundown Sunday Sundown Monday	Mawlid al-Nabi (Islam)
  October 3- October 12	Sundown Thursday Sundown Saturday	Navaratri (Hindu)
  October 2 - October 4	Sundown Wednesday Sundown Friday	Rosh Hashanah (Judaism)
  October 11 - October 12	Sundown Friday Sundown Saturday	Yom Kippur (Judaism)
  October 16 - October 23	Sundown Wednesday Sundown Wednesday	Sukkot (Judaism)
  October 23 - October 25	Sundown Wednesday Sundown Friday	Shemini Atzeret (Judaism)
  October 24 - October 25	Sundown Thursday Sundown Friday	Simchat Torah (Judaism)
  November 1	Friday	Diwali (Hindu)

• 2025
  Under Development
• 2026
  Under Development
• 2027
  Under Development
• 2028
  Under Development