(COLUMBUS, OH, 12/07/22) – On Wednesday, Nov. 30, CAIR-Ohio Community Relations Assistant Shireen Shaaban presented testimony to the Ohio Senate Workforce and Higher Education Committee as a proponent for House Bill 353, the Testing Your Faith Act.
House Bill 353 would require higher education institutions to provide students with religious accommodations, creating an inclusive environment for Muslim students who can practice their faith freely and achieve academic success. Most importantly, this law would set a uniform standard across classes and campuses without relying on the discretion of each professor or school. While HB 353 has passed unanimously in the house, it now resides in the Senate Workforce and Higher Education Committee.
As a recent graduate from The Ohio State University, Shaaban was able to share her personal difficulties in requesting religious accommodations from her professors when exams, presentations, and classes conflicted with Ramadan or Eid.
In her testimony, she emphasized how having the accommodations and regulations outlined in HB 353 would not only minimize the challenges and barriers that Muslim students often experience as minorities on campuses, but it would also significantly improve the performance of students in their academic endeavors.
“While we must continue to do more to ensure equity for religious minority students, HB 353 is a necessary first step to ensure college students can practice their religious belief and academic success,” said Shaaban.
Our office frequently receives religious accommodation requests from students, who feel that their rights are being infringed upon. Moreover, some complaints point to the challenges that students face when attempting to self-advocate through institutional bureaucracies. Also, we see the inequity presented when requests are left to the instructor or institution’s discretion.
CAIR-Ohio believes that all colleges and university officials must take responsibility to ensure the well-being and needs of all students on their campuses are met.
Watch Shireen Shaaban’s full testimony here.
