What is the UMA Heritage Month Calendar?
As part of the Fostering Inclusion objectives of its 2021-25 Strategic Plan to create a more inclusive and equitable educational environment, the University of Maine at Augusta has taken the initiative to introduce a dynamic Heritage Month Calendar. This calendar showcases various days of importance across cultural and religious traditions, provides additional resources for community members to learn about one another’s heritage, and shares ongoing online and in-person events at the university, local, and state level that anyone can participate in.
The goals of this calendar include:
- giving institutional recognition to the value each member of the university community adds to the institution
- highlighting the rich tradition and history of various demographics marginalized based on economic, ethnic, gender, national, religious, sexual, and other identities and abilities
- emphasizing the central and essential role of diversity, equity, and inclusion in any pedagogical project
- helping schedule university events and classroom instructions mindful of the needs of everyone
- highlighting which identity groups might be in need of greater efforts to be included in the community through more inclusive event planning and institutional efforts
The calendar, featuring 91 holidays at present, is not meant to be comprehensive, and members of the university community are encouraged to utilize the submission form at the bottom of this page to suggest ongoing events pertaining to the different holiday traditions featured in the calendar as well as contribute information about holidays that are currently not included. The learning resources provided with each holiday are chosen based on the renown and potential reliability of a source and should not be considered as endorsements from UMA.
How to Navigate the UMA Heritage Month Calendar
The first section of each month shows the heritage months, followed by various weeks and days of significance. Each of the holidays has descriptions, learning resources, and event details associated with them that you can access by clicking on the name of each month.
- 7th January: Christmas (Eastern Orthodox)
- 16th January (Third Monday): Martin Luther King Jr. Day
- 22nd January: Lunar New Year
- 27th January: UN International Holocaust Commemoration Day
Black History Month
- 2nd February: Candlemas/Imbolc (Wiccan & Pagan)
- 5th February: Lantern Festival (Chinese)
- 15th February: Nirvana Day (Buddhism)
- 18th February: Maha Shivaratri (Hinduism)
- 21st February: Mardi Gras/Shrove Tuesday (Christianity)
- 22nd February: Ash Wednesday (Christianity)
National Deaf History Month
Women’s History Month
Irish-American Heritage Month
- 7th March: Purim (Jewish)
- 8th March: International Women’s Day
- 8th March: Holi (Hinduism)
- 17th March: St. Patrick’s Day (Christianity)
- 20th March: Farm Workers Awareness Week
- 20th March: Spring Equinox/Ostara (Wiccan & Pagan)
- 21st March: Nowruz (Persian, Kurdish, Zoroastrian, Baha’i)
- 23rd March-21st April: Ramadan (Islamic)
- 31st March: Cesar Chavez Day
Arab American Heritage Month
National Sexual Assault Awareness Month
- 2nd April: Palm Sunday (Christianity)
- 5th April: Vesak Day (Buddhism)
- 6th April: Passover (Judaism)
- 7th April: Good Friday (Christianity)
- 8th April: Hanamatsuri (Zen Buddhism)
- 9th April: Easter (Christianity)
- 16th April: Easter (Eastern Orthodox)
- 18th April: Yom Hashoah (Judaism)
- 21st April: Ridvan (Baha’i)
- 22nd April: Eid al Fitr (Islam)
- 24th April: Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day
Jewish American History Month
Asian Pacific Islander Desi American Heritage Month
Haitian Heritage Month
- 1st May: May Day/International Workers Day
- 1st May: Beltane (Wiccan & Pagan)
- 5th May: Cinco De Mayo (Mexican-American)
- 27th May: Buddha Day (Buddhism)
LGBTQIA+ Pride Month
- 19th June: Juneteenth
- 20th June: World Refugee Day
- 21st June: Summer Solstice/Litha (Wiccan & Pagan)
- 29th June: Eid Ul-Adha (Islam)
- 3rd July: Dharma Day (Buddhism)
- 3rd July: Guru Purnima (Hinduism)
- 18th July: Nelson Mandela International Day
- 19th July: First Women’s Rights Convention
- 19th July: Al Hijra/New Years Day (Islam)
- 1st August: Lammas/Lughnasadh (Wiccan & Pagan)
- 6th August: Hiroshima Day
- 9th August: Nagasaki Day
- 9th August: International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples
- 26th August: Women’s Equality Day
Hispanic/Latinx Heritage Month (September 15th-October 15th)
- 5th September (First Monday): Labor Day
- 22nd September: Autumn Equinox/Mabon (Wiccan & Pagan)
- 26th-27th September: Rosh Hashanah (Judaism)
- 26th September-5th October: Navaratri (Hinduism)
LGBTQIA+ History Month
Disability Identity & Culture Month
Domestic Violence Awareness Month
National Bullying Prevention Month
Italian-American Heritage and Culture Month
Polish American Heritage Month
- 2nd October: International Day of Non-Violence
- 4th-5th October: Yom Kippur (Judaism)
- 8th October: Mawlid-Al-Nabi (Islam)
- 11th October: National Coming Out Day
- 10th October (Second Monday): Indigenous Peoples’ Day
- 24th-28th October: Diwali/Deepavali (Hinduism, Sikhism, Jainism)
- 27th October: Birth of Baha’u’llah (Bahai’i)
Native American Heritage Month
- 13th-19th November: Trans Awareness Week
- 1st November: Halloween Samhain (Wiccan & Pagan)
- 1st-2nd November: Día de Muertos (Mexican)
- 20th November: Transgender Day of Resilience
- 25th November: International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women
- 1st December: World AIDS Day
- 3rd December: International Day of Persons with Disabilities
- 8th December: Bodhi Day (Zen Buddhism)
- 8th-15th December: Chanukah (Judaism)
- 10th December: International Human Rights Day
- 18th December: International Migrants Day
- 21st December 2023-1st January 2024: Yule (Wiccan & Pagan)
- 25th December: Christmas (Christianity)
- 26th December-1st January: Kwanzaa (African American)
Heritage Month Calendar Submission Form
Please use the following form to suggest holidays currently not featured here or submit upcoming or past events at UMA, in Augusta, or in Maine pertaining to specific holidays that you want to see reflected on the Heritage Month Calendar.