A Muslim Students’ Association 2024 iftar dinner, held in the Ohio Union’s Interfaith Prayer and Reflection Room. Iftar is the sunset meal when Muslims break their fast during Ramadan. Credit: Courtesy of Elsa Wani
As the sun sets each evening during Ramadan — the Muslim holy month, marked by daily fasting from dawn to sunset and ending with the Islamic holiday of Eid al-Fitr — many students from various cultural backgrounds gather to celebrate on campus.
Ohio State’s Muslim Students’ Association will host its fifth annual iftar dinners and Taraweeh prayer sessions during this year’s Ramadan, which will begin Friday and end March 30, according to a Sunday post on the organization’s Instagram page. These gatherings — held after sundown, which is when Muslim students break their fast — will take place Monday through Thursday from March 3-27, excluding spring break, in the Ohio Union’s Interfaith Prayer and Reflection Room.
Iftar is the sunset meal when Muslims break their fast, and Taraweeh prayers are special Muslim prayers only performed during Ramadan.
Elsa Wani, a fourth-year in neuroscience and MSA’s vice president, said fostering a sense of community during Ramadan is important, especially for students unable to be home with their families and close friends. She said hosting iftar dinners provides a welcoming space where students can connect, build upon relationships and form new friendships.
“It’s so much more than just eating and food,” Wani said. “It’s about cultivating a community and making people feel like they have a place to come to because Ramadan is a familial time, and students on campus oftentimes can’t just go back to their families, so this is something that we hold as really important to us.”
After iftar, Taraweeh prayers will be led by a student imam, or a designated Muslim prayer leader. Daanish Khan — a third-year in computer science and engineering, as well as MSA’s co-outreach chair — said these imams volunteer to guide the prayers and deliver a lecture, known as a Khutba, in both English and Arabic.
Wani said MSA is grateful to Ohio State and the Ohio Union for reserving the Interfaith Room well in advance, ensuring that Ohio State students observing Ramadan have a dedicated space to eat and pray each year.
“Usually, the Union doesn’t allow outside catering, but they let us because having halal-certified food that doesn’t involve cross-contamination in the kitchen is something that’s really important to us, and it’s important to a lot of the students,” Wani said.
Wani said since Ramadan — determined by the ninth month of the Islamic lunar calendar — overlaps with spring break, MSA will host a total of 14 iftar dinners and Taraweeh prayer sessions, with an expected attendance of 100-180 students per night.
“This year, we introduced a new idea to branch out culturally by collaborating with different campus organizations each night, encouraging them to bring food that represents their culture,” Wani said.
Khan said the organization has secured 13 partners this year, including the Pakistani American Student Association, the North and South Sudanese Association and the Somali Students’ Association.
In addition, Khan said MSA has coordinated sponsorships with Columbus-based, Muslim-owned restaurants such as Halal New York Gyro, Shawarma Bite, Halal China Bistro, as well as with the local mosque, the Noor Islamic Center.
“Over winter break, I made the calendar for Ramadan and started reaching out to restaurants, alumni, parents and anyone who has donated in the past through the Muslim community to fill the schedule for each dinner,” Khan said.
Both Wani and Khan said on average, each iftar night costs about $1,000 to provide enough free food for attendees, even with discounts and the help of volunteers. Khan said this money is raised through virtual donations made through MSA’s Instagram page, along with fundraisers throughout the academic year.
“Most students have class and work while fasting,” Khan said. “Some can’t afford food at the end of the day to break their fast, so it’s mostly charity work that brings in restaurants to give us discounts.”
As Ramadan unfolds this year, Wani said MSA’s goal of collaborating with diverse campus organizations further enriches the experience of Ramadan, showcasing the strength and unity within the broader university community.
“The goal is to create a space where Muslim students feel safe and can celebrate the holy month with a community — not alone,” Wani said. “This creates, essentially, a home away from home for Muslim students.”
More information about MSA’s scheduled dinners and prayers can be found on its Instagram page.
