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As Connecticut families prepare for another school year, the Connecticut chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-CT) has released its 2025-26 Back to School Resource Guide.

Framed as a helpful tool for Muslim students facing “challenges to their identity, inclusion, and religious accommodation,” the document is far more than a neutral rights pamphlet.

It is a sophisticated advocacy package that pushes special accommodations, encourages school closures for Islamic holidays, promotes a highly selective 9/11 curriculum, and injects a one-sided narrative on Palestine into classrooms—all while positioning CAIR as the indispensable intermediary between families and public schools. This is particularly relevant now that CAIR-CT has also positioned itself as a “partner” to the Connecticut State Department of Education on the development of K-12 Islamic and Arab Studies curriculum resources.

The guide opens with familiar civil-rights language: Muslim students have the right to a safe environment free from bullying, reasonable religious accommodations (prayer space, excused absences for Eid, alternatives during Ramadan fasting, modest dress including the hijab), and protection from discrimination. These are legitimate concerns under existing federal and state law. No serious observer disputes that students of any faith should be free from harassment or should receive reasonable accommodations for sincerely held beliefs.

But CAIR-CT does not stop at equal treatment.

The guide actively organizes parents to demand district-wide school closures for Eid ul-Fitr (and eventually Eid ul-Adha). It boasts that about 14 Connecticut districts already close for Eid and provides talking points and pressure tactics for expanding that list. While excused absences for religious holidays are standard and appropriate, converting a religious observance into a full school holiday for the entire student body elevates one faith’s calendar above others in a public system that is supposed to remain neutral.

More concerning are the curriculum sections. The guide directs readers to a CAIR-NJ/Teaching While Muslim 9/11 curriculum that, according to independent reporting on similar CAIR materials, has drawn criticism for selective framing and questionable recommended resources—which, for instance, include Bin Laden’s “Letter to America” as a teaching resource.

Even more explicit is the “Discussing Palestine in the Classroom” section in which educators are instructed to:

• Focus on “the ethnic cleansing and genocide Palestinians have been subjected to at the hands of the Israeli military and the imbalance of power dynamics involved.”
• “Show students the Palestinian flag”
• “Allow students to express support for Palestine and ensure those calling for Palestinian liberation aren’t accused of supporting terrorism or antisemitism."
• Frame the conflict around “relentless violence the US and Israel have been inflicting on Palestinians for decades.”

There is no equivalent call for balanced treatment of Israeli perspectives, the October 7, 2023 Hamas massacre, hostage-taking, or the use of human shields. The language mirrors activist talking points rather than age-appropriate, historically complete instruction. Public schools are not the proper venue for advocacy groups to script one side of a geopolitical conflict.

The guide further calls for schools and places of employment to “receive cultural and religious competency training that is inclusive of Muslims” and notes that CAIR itself offers such trainings to schools, medical professionals, law enforcement officials, and other employers.

“These trainings, which are a staple of our work here at CAIR-CT, help debunk misconceptions about Muslims and provide a brief overview of relevant Muslim practices to help foster an environment that is inclusive and welcoming to American Muslims,” writes CAIR-CT.

Additionally, the guide offers sample accommodation letters for Eid, physical education exemptions during Ramadan, modest-wear accommodations for uniforms and athletic clothes, sexual education exemptions, and the allocation of space and time for midday prayers.

While CAIR presents itself as a mainstream civil-rights group, several states have formally designated or investigated CAIR as a terror organization over alleged ties and rhetoric. In Connecticut, CAIR-CT has celebrated recent legislative wins adding optional Islamic and Arab studies resources to K-12 materials and has cozied up with lawmakers and even Governor Lamont.

The Back to School Guide continues that project of institutional influence under the banner of “inclusion,” while giving even further insight into what to expect from the state’s forthcoming Islamic and Arab Studies K-12 curriculum resources. Note that State Rep. Maryam Khan, who actively supported and publicly promoted legislation to address “Islamophobia” in Connecticut schools, won the Democrat primary race for State Senate in District 2 earlier this week.

Parents of all backgrounds should read the full document below for themselves.

Religious liberty and protection from bullying are non-negotiable American principles. Using those principles as a vehicle to advance preferential school calendars, contested historical narratives, and political messaging is a different matter entirely. Connecticut’s public schools exist to educate, not to serve as organizing platforms for any advocacy organization—regardless of the faith it claims to represent.

Connecticut families deserve transparency about who is shaping the classroom conversation. This guide makes CAIR-CT’s intentions clear.

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