From Seattle Times
by Scott Greenstone
Finals at University of Washington have occurred during the holy month of Ramadan, when Muslims fast during the day. Some professors at the Bothell campus are keeping their doors open until midnight to allow students who fast to do their best.
When University of Washington Bothell biology Professor Bryan White met with one of his Muslim students after final exams last year, he asked her about something that puzzled him. Her grades steadily improved throughout the quarter, but dropped sharply on her final exam.
The student told him she’d been having trouble focusing because it was Ramadan, the holy month in Islam where Muslims fast during the day. White was bothered by the notion that there was something he could have done.
This year, when another Muslim student mentioned to him that Ramadan was coming up, White remembered his conversation and decided to do something more.
White held two sessions of final exams on Wednesday for his Introduction to Physiology class: one at the normal time in the morning, and one at 10 p.m., after the sun went down and students got a chance to eat. Two other UW professors have decided to do the same.
“To me, this was a very simple thing,” White said. “It’s not uncommon for me to be at work until midnight anyway.”
But the gesture has meant a lot to his students; junior Zoha Awan said when she first saw the email, she was shocked. All of her Muslim classmates in Bothell and Seattle are talking about it, she said. The test is open to all students, and many non-Muslim students attended.
“This might not seem like a lot to Dr. White, but it really means a lot to us,” Awan said. “To see even something this small … it does make a big difference.”
