Shaikh Abdalla Idris Ali is a founder and senior advisor of the Council of Islamic Schools in North America (CISNA). He is a well-known North American Muslim public speaker, Imam, and community leader.
Shaikh Abdalla’s academic background combines both International Relations from the University of Toronto as well his Islamic knowledge in the areas of tafseer, shariah, and counselling. As a community leader, he served as the ISNA President for 5 years and as the ISNA Canada Islamic School principal for over a decade, where he was integral in implementing Islamic and Arab studies syllabi for elementary and junior high students. He is currently a board member on the Board of Trustees for the Islamic Teaching Center and North American Islamic Trust. Shaikh Abdalla is currently the Executive Director of ISNA Canada, where he holds weekly Tafseer classes and contributes monthly to ISNA Lanterns – ISNA Canada’s online publication
Ahmed ElHattab has been an active participant in the Islamic Philanthropy and Nonprofit sector in the United States since 1978.
He joined the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) full time in 1983 for 37 years, where he served as the Executive Director of ISNA Development Foundation (IDF) for 26 years, as well as ISNA Interim Secretary-General for several years. He was the President of the Muslim Arab Youth Association (MAYA) for two terms (86-87). He has been a board member of the American Islamic College in Chicago (AIC) since 2012. In 2020, Br. Ahmed received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Muslim Community Foundation. Currently, he is the Director of Development at Sterling Charitable Gift Fund (SCGF).
Necva Ozgur is the founder and Executive Director of MERIT and the founding School Head of New Horizon School Pasadena, NHSP.
Necva obtained an M.S. degree from the School of Pharmacy at the University of Istanbul and later, an M.A. degree in Human Development from Pacific Oaks College in California, where she wrote her thesis on Strategies to Achieve Excellence in an Islamic School. Necva played a pivotal role in establishing NHSP and led the school to get its accreditation from WASC and CAIS. With the leadership of Necva and a skilled administrative team, NHSP earned the Blue Ribbon recognition from the Department of Education. Necva was also instrumental in launching New Horizon School Irvine and Minaret Academy in an advisory role. After serving NHSP for twelve years, Necva established a resource center called MERIT, Muslim Educators, Resource, Information and Training Center in 2005. She provides Islamic schools with board training, principal coaching, accreditation, school establishment, development, evaluation and consulting. Necva joined a group of dedicated Muslims to establish Bayan Islamic Graduate School in California to educated Muslim American Leaders.
Salman Syed is a Senior Leader in Data and Analytics and has worked with many large institutions around the world in solving their complex data problems.
Salman currently serves as the chair of the school board for Al Salam Day School in St Louis Missouri, a member of the shura of the foundation and a founding member of American Islamic Montessori Association.
Salman is a father of three very young children who are a part of the Islamic education system. Salman is very passionate about problem solving, bringing corporate style efficiencies in processes within our educational institutions and creating sustainable financial models.
As a Data professional, he plans to bring Data and Analytics into the realm of Islamic Educational Institutions. Digital Transformation is the need of the hour for any institution globally and Salman’s vision is to develop a framework for our Islamic schools to transition into the digital age.
Safaa Zarzour is an educator, attorney, and community activist. He is the President of ISNA and the Superintendent of Universal Schools in Illinois and Indiana. He has served as the Secretary General of ISNA, General Counsel and Chief Operations Officer of Zakat Foundation, Chief Executive Officer of IQRA International Foundation, and adjunct law professor at Loyola Law School. Recently, Br. Safaa was elected to the board of Oak Lawn High School District 229 in Illinois.
In all his personal and volunteer work, Mr. Zarzour, has always focused on supporting various Muslim communities throughout the country by strengthening vital community institutions that include families, mosques, schools, and organizations that are involved in civic and social services. However, cultivating Islamic schools remains his passion because it is schools that produce capable graduates that lead all other institutions.
CISNA is honored to introduce the members of CISNA’s Advisory Council. Each member brings a wealth of knowledge and experience in the field of Education, Islamic Studies, Quran & Arabic, Non-Profit Governance and Financial and Organizational Sustainability. The Advisory Council is committed to CISNA’s mission and vision.
Every Islamic school student has equitable access to high quality education within an Islamic framework.
CISNA advocates for Islamic schools, provides accreditation services, professional development, and resources to ensure institutional effectiveness that leads to student success.