The City University of New York’s 25 campuses will be closed to students this Wednesday, January 29, in observance of the Lunar New Year – the first of four religious and cultural holidays to be celebrated across CUNY since the University added them to its official academic calendar.

With the vote of its Board of Trustees last year, CUNY became one of the first universities in the nation to designate the Lunar New Year, the Muslim holidays Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha and the Hindu celebration of Diwali as instructional holidays. The move was largely driven by student leaders and aligns CUNY with the New York City Public Schools holiday calendar.

“Recognizing the significance of these four holidays to many members of our diverse community makes an important statement about our continued commitment to advancing equity on our campuses and our city,” said CUNY Chancellor Félix V. Matos Rodríguez. “CUNY is a community comprising scores of cultures and heritages, but one thing we can all celebrate is the idea that everyone is welcome and respected no matter their background or which holidays they celebrate.”

WATCH: Chancellor Matos Rodríguez and Salimatou Doumbouya, former chairperson of the CUNY University Student Senate, celebrate the addition of these four holidays to the CUNY academic calendar.

There will be no classes on the added holidays to allow students to celebrate with their families and communities without concern about falling behind their classmates while making up missed work.

Lunar New Year, which this year marks the start of the Year of the Snake, is celebrated at the turn of the traditional lunisolar calendar, an important cultural holiday for many Asian communities. This spring, CUNY will observe two Muslim holidays: Eid al-Fitr (March 31), which marks the end of Ramadan, the holy month of fasting, and Eid al-Adha (June 5) known as the Feast of Sacrifice. The fourth new holiday on the CUNY calendar will be Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights, on October 20.

CUNY’s Spring 2025 semester began January 25 on most campuses and runs through May 22. At Guttman, Kingsborough and LaGuardia community colleges, the semester runs from March 6 through June 16.