In an email sent Aug. 27 by Melanie Stein, provost and senior vice president for academic affairs, and Vikki Levine, Ithaca College’s registrar, it was announced that the college will not have classes on Yom Kippur and Eid al Fitr during Fall 2025 and Spring 2026, respectively. To make this possible, the usual breaks fall during the dates the holidays occur. 

The email also included highlights of the 2025–26 academic calendar, like having no April Break in Spring 2026 and having no reading day in each semester because there is a weekend between the time finals start and end. 

The decision was made by the Academic Calendar Committee, which evaluates each year’s calendar and analyzes other university and college calendars.

“The [Academic Calendar Committee] has thoroughly reviewed multiple versions of the calendar and has unanimously recommended the following versions for the Fall 2025 and Spring 2026 semesters to the provost who has accepted the recommendation,” the email said. 

The updates to the calendar were suggested to the committee by the task force of antisemitism and hate symbols on campus, according to the email. The email also said the college will mark other important holidays on the calendars and suggested using the Ithaca school district as an example. 

“We have also adopted the recommendation from the task force to include a set of important religious holidays that will be listed on the academic calendar to raise awareness for everyone using the calendar,” the email said. 

The holidays that will be marked on the college’s calendar are: Easter, Christmas, Good Friday, Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Passover, Eid al Fitr, Eid al Adha, Diwali, Holi, Lunar New Year, Winter Solstice, Spring Equinox and Kwanzaa.