Islamic Education Pioneers: Brother Salahuddeen Kareem

During Dhul Hijjah 1442 (2021), ISLA sought the support of our community for a new project: Islamic Education Pioneers. The purpose of this project is to document and preserve the pioneering efforts of Islamic education in the United States through video interviews with the pioneers and to learn more about their struggles and successes, and to inspire the next generation of Islamic school leaders. We invited you to nominate pioneers (which, by the way, you can still do) and mashallah, we received severallll nominations for Br. Salahuddeen Kareem!

Alhumdulillah, during our Executive Director’s March 2022 trip to Washington, D.C., Dr. Khan was able to meet up with the most nominated pioneer, Brother Salahuddeen Kareem.

 

Muslim Community School and Alim Academy

Br. Salaahuddeen and his wife, Irdah, a PreK teacher at the school, began the meeting with a tour of the beautiful building he helped found, and for which he served as principal, vice principal, and currently as a teacher: Muslim Community School and Alim Academy.

Mashallah, a fully equipped science lab, beautifully painted murals, an impressive brick interior at the entrance spoke to the passion with which the school has been created and nurtured… all in the interest of instilling the love of Islam, Muslims and humanity in their study body and community.

The Interview with Br. Salahuddeen Kareem

Due to the generous support of our community, ISLA was able to hire a professional videographer for this important interview. We asked Br. Salahuddeen about his childhood, what brought him to embrace Islam, and what inspired him to pursue education as a lifelong profession. The interview was awe-inspiring and we cannot wait to finish up edits to share it with the rest of you! We know that you will be as captivated by Br. Salahuddeen’s sincerity, intellect and life story as we were.

Nominations & Support Still Needed

Keep your eyes peeled for the interview in the coming weeks inshallah! In the meanwhile, our work is not done! We hope to interview several more pioneers in Islamic education in the coming months and years. We feel it is imperative to capture the stories, successes and struggles of our pioneers before it is too late! Please help us! Nominate & support this important project!