Servant Leadership Personified: Dr. Patricia Salahuddin
Some individuals know how to get the work done. No glitz, no glam, no need for the showy thanks. That’s Dr. Patricia Salahuddin. A true servant leader, she is ever-aware and reminding others of the One whom we need to focus on pleasing is always first and foremost: Allah, Al Malik al Mulk.
Dr. Patricia has served on the ISLA board since 2009. She has held many important roles in the organization and has always stepped up whenever and wherever needed. In 2018, she was voted in as the ISLA Vice Chair, which is a position she held until December 2025. Under her leadership, ISLA has grown to connect a diverse and growing number of Islamic schools around the nation. Her keen attention and care for cultivating sustainable organizations has ensured that ISLA continues to focus on its governance, policies, and board expansion. In fact, she served as chair of the ISLA Board Expansion Committee, under which Sr. Quran Shakir and Br. Aziz Ahmed join the ISLA.
Dr. Patricia on stage with her son Wali at the ISLA Leadership Retreat surprise award ceremony recognizing her lifetime service.
Dr. Salahuddin has also served on the ISLA Leadership Retreat committee as chair for several years ensuring the retreat meets its objectives of providing both professional and spiritual development for our school leaders. One year, as chair of the ISLA Retreat, Dr. Patricia integrated her love for theatre and the performing arts with the retreat theme, crafting a creative opening play to demonstrate the importance of the retreat theme. She has led dozens of Islamic school leaders at the annual ISLA Leadership Retreat on our signature post-Fajr walks, facilitating powerful moments of reflection and realization for participants.
Dr. Patricia is truly a servant leader, always quietly engaged in the needed work with the utmost professionalism and diligence. At the 2025 ISLA Leadership Retreat, Dr. Patricia Salahuddin was honored with a Lifetime Service Award from ISLA, at which her son, Wali Salahuddin, joined in a surprise reception.
She is a previous board member of Council of Islamic Schools in North America and continues to serve on the Clara Muhammad School Consortium and Coalition of South Florida Muslim Organizations as well. We are grateful that Dr. Patricia will continue to serve as a board member at the ISLA and are incredibly grateful for Dr. Patricia Saluhuddin’s 8 years of service to ISLA in the capacity as vice chair.
