Updating a story from earlier this month, the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences has partially reversed its controversial ban on face coverings including the niqab worn by many Muslim women (including 2 students of the school). The rule went into effect January 1 but was quickly changed.
The Council of American-Islamic Relations announced on Jan. 6 that they were asking the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to investigate the identification policy because of the fear that it would affect Muslim employees unfairly.
A day later, MCPH alerted the press that the identification policy had been amended for religious accommodations.
The new policy will still require face coverings to be removed for security purposes at campus entrances, and during exams. It's unclear whether a religious exemption will apply to these situations. For exams especially, we may not have heard the end of this story.
