The First Muslim Institution of Higher Education in America

American Islamic College’s undergraduate program, well rounded and grounded in a solid Liberal Arts & Science framework, prepares the students for more than just a career; it prepares the students for a life of purpose and impact. Careers in government, education, international relations, law enforcement, foreign service, diversity and inclusion, translation, social service administration, chaplaincy, spiritual care and religious leadership, military, international business or relief work, further graduate or professional study and many other fields will be within reach with an AIC bachelor’s degree. Statistics show that these occupations will continue to be in high demand in a changing world.

AIC is now just one of two independent Muslim colleges in America that have achieved academic accreditation on their own merits.

History

American Islamic College was incorporated in September 1981 as a private, not-for-profit, four-year institution of higher education meant to offer especially strong programs in Islamic Studies and the Arabic Language. In November 1982, AIC received authority from the Illinois Board of Higher Education (IBHE) to operate as a postsecondary institution. The search for suitable premises led to the purchase of its present property in March 1983.

The College first opened its doors to students in September 1983 and in May 1984, IBHE bestowed degree-granting authority on AIC for the B.A. in Arabic Studies and the B.A. in Islamic Studies.

Beginning in 2009, American Islamic College embarked upon a new phase of significant reorganization and the installation of a reformed governance structure and a new administration. In 2010, the campus buildings and grounds underwent extensive renovation and remodeling. It was then that AIC reemerged as a revitalized resource of the Muslim community, hosting two consecutive international conferences on Islam in America, organizing public lectures and offering a variety of non-credit and non-degree classes in subjects such as Islamic History, Islamic Art, and Arabic. In the Fall of 2013, after being granted IBHE operating authority once again, the College reopened its doors to undergraduate students and—for the first time—graduate students.

American Islamic College was granted Candidacy Status for Accreditation with the Higher Learning Commission (HLC) in February 2020 and Initial Accreditation in March 2024.

Vision

Welcoming students of all faiths and backgrounds, American Islamic College (AIC) is a Chicago-based institution of higher learning grounded in Islamic values and steeped in Islam’s rich and diverse intellectual and cultural traditions. AIC promotes appreciation for the scope and richness of Islamic history and civilization both in and beyond the classroom by means of significant research, impactful teaching, and informative public events highlighting Islam’s intellectual, artistic, and cultural expressions. Through rigorous scholarship and a commitment to social justice, the collective good, civic involvement, interfaith understanding, and intercultural engagement, AIC prepares students to become critical thinkers, visionary leaders, and responsible global citizens.

Mission

To be a fully accredited university that will serve the diverse American Muslim community and the nation as a whole in perpetuity; to offer rigorous and professionally sound programs that prepare students to take up educational, leadership, and policy-making roles in American society; to serve as a resource for American institutions and individuals seeking academically anchored and culturally competent knowledge about Islam and Muslims.

Academic Programs

• Bachelor of Arts in Islamic Studies

The Bachelor of Arts in Islamic Studies is a four-year sequence of instructional coursework that culminates in the Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree. The Islamic Studies component of the Program features content and pedagogy commensurate with the disciplines of Islamic and Religious Studies, Qur’anic and Hadith studies, Islamic legal theory, classical Islamic theology and philosophy, Islamic spirituality, and allied social science, economic and political theories.

Students must also fulfill standard Bachelor’s level requirements in general education, imparting a solid foundation in the humanities as well as the social and physical sciences. Upon completion, graduates will be prepared to pursue academic, occupational and career options, which are appropriately aligned with this field of study. The Bachelor of Arts in Islamic Studies Program requires 120 semester hours.

• Master of Arts in Islamic Studies

The MA degree program is designed to provide students with a rigorous background in both traditional and analytical approaches to Islamic Studies. The program offers two distinct areas of concentration: Islamic Theology and Islam and Global Studies. The Islamic Theology concentration will train students in such disciplines as Qur’anic studies, Hadith studies, Islamic Jurisprudence (al-Fiqh), and Islamic Spirituality. The Islam and Global Studies concentration will focus on Islamic history, international studies, and critical theory. Students in both tracks will take the same core courses, thus ensuring that students acquire a well-rounded foundation in both areas.

MDiv students, or MA students who wish to go on for the Master of Divinity in Islamic Studies must select the Islamic Theology concentration.

All MA students are expected to complete 36 credit hours. Students at the graduate level are required to take 21 credit hours as part of the core requirements and 15 credit hours in their concentration. As part of the MA program, students are required to complete a MA Thesis which is counted as a 3 credit 500-level course within the chosen area of concentration.

• Master of Divinity in Islamic Studies

The Master of Divinity in Islamic Studies, which composes our Muslim Chaplaincy Program, is a 72-credit degree program designed specifically for students who wish to become professional and credentialed Muslim leaders, spiritual caregivers, or chaplains. AIC’s MDIV curriculum in Islamic Studies lays the groundwork for learning the foundational Islamic knowledge that equips students with training in fields—such as religious history, theology, scriptural studies, Islamic spiritual counseling, and ethics of professional practice—that parallel for Muslim chaplains much of the seminary or rabbinical school training that many future chaplains from other traditions undergo as part of their spiritual formation and preparation to serve as faith representatives in public settings.

AIC’s Muslim Chaplaincy Program curriculum also fulfills national standards for equivalencies in religious training and leadership set by the Board of Chaplaincy Certification, should Muslim chaplaincy students seek this form of certification in the future. Additionally, AIC’s Muslim Chaplaincy Program partners with equivalent graduate programs in the network of the Association of Chicago Theological Schools that allows cross course registration and the expansion of interfaith experience that Muslim students will need as future chaplains in secular and multi-faith public settings.

Finally, Muslim Chaplaincy Program students are required to complete Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE), Field Education, as well as courses related to counseling, spiritual care, and applied leadership skills as a part of their holistic preparation to serve as Muslim faith leaders in multi-religious and/or secular public institutions such as hospitals, prisons, the military, and universities.

AIC’s Master of Divinity in Islamic Studies program has affiliate status with the Association of Theological Schools (ATS).

Contacts

• Address: 640 W Irving Park Rd, Chicago, IL 60613, US
• Phone: +1 (773) 281-4700
• Email: info@aicusa.edu
• Website: https://aicusa.edu/

“RESOLVED, That the American Bar Association urges federal, state, local, territorial, and tribal governments in the United States to condemn Islamophobia and to develop and implement comprehensive strategies to combat Islamophobia,” the resolution stated.

The recommended strategies mentioned in the resolution include creating awareness campaigns to educate Americans about Islam and Muslims and also new mechanisms for reporting incidents of Islamophobia and hate crimes.

The resolution also urges US Congress to adopt a bill introduced by Congresswoman Ilhan Omar to establish an office in the State Department that monitors Islamophobia – similar to the one that exists for monitoring antisemitism.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations, which has tracked and worked on issues of hate crimes against Muslims in the US, commended the ABA’s adoption of the measure.

Source: Middle East Eye

Author: Keith Matthew Miller

University: Indiana University

Date of Award: April 2023

Abstract:

This study aims to examine American Muslim well-being and social capital in the face of Islamophobia. Ecological frameworks and social capital theory were synthesized to provide an approach for research, analysis, and social work practice. A mediation analysis was conducted to test the mediating effect of cognitive social capital on the relationship between structural social capital and distress. The paths of structural social capital, cognitive social capital, and distress were conceptualized using the ecological framework of Berkman and colleagues. Special attention was paid to how experiences of Islamophobic discrimination affect cognitive social capital and distress. Structural social capital was operationalized as the number of active memberships in civic organizations; Cognitive social capital was operationalized as trust in major institutions such as schools and the local police and Distress was operationalized using the Kessler Distress Scale. It was hypothesized that an increase in structural social capital would show a decrease in distress with cognitive social capital mediating the path. Results showed that cognitive social capital mediates the relationship between structural social capital and distress. However, an inconsistent mediation was found where an increase in cognitive social capital shows a decrease in distress, but higher levels of structural social capital show an increase in distress. Lastly, the results of the analysis were interpreted to inform current interventions with the American Muslim community through a social work lens.

Read the full text HERE.

Source: ProQuest

Coming together on Saturday at Frontier Park, Naperville, attendees had the opportunity to indulge in a rich array of experiences, including food, traditional attire, arts, culture, and more.

“This organization needs to support and help and connect between the Muslim businesses so that they can grow,” said ILMCC President Shafeek Abubaker.

“Food vendors, over here, we have around 20 food vendors to give them an opportunity so that they can present their products, their food to the larger community,” he added.

Opening doors to people of all faiths and backgrounds, the festival aimed to foster community unity and promote interfaith dialogue.

With thousands of attendees participating in the event, organizers of the Naperville Halal Fest plan to hold the event annually.

Naperville City Councilman Benny White was among attendants to support the inaugural event.

Similar events usually bring people together, sharing food and conversation.

Earlier this year, the North Carolina Muslim Festival brought hundreds of people together to build bridges with community members.

Last December, the Islamic center of Cambridge, Ontario, invited neighbors for a fun night of games, gifts, prizes and more in the annual Family Fun Night.

Also in Greater Lansing, the Islamic center hosted Salaam Peace Festival to bring different cultures together through exhibits and food.

Source: AboutIslam.net

Islamic Law and Society: The Practice of Iftā’ and Religious Institutions

By Emine Enise Yakar

Publisher: Routledge

Publication Date: May 31, 2023

ISBN: 9781032103808

This book places context at the core of the Islamic mechanism of iftā’ to better understand the process of issuing fatwās in Muslim and non-Muslim countries, thus highlighting the connection between context and contemporaneity, on one hand, and the adaptable perception of Islamic law, on the other.

The practice of iftā’ is one of the most important mechanisms of Islamic law that keeps Islamic thought about ethical and legal issues in harmony with the demands, exigencies and developments of time. This book builds upon the existing body of work related to the practice of iftā’, but takes the discussion beyond the current debates with the intent of unveiling the interaction between Islamic legal methodologies and different environmental contexts. The book specifically addresses the three institutions (Saudi Arabia’s Dār al-Iftā’, Turkey’s Diyanet and America’s FCNA) and their Islamic legal opinions (fatwās) in a comparative framework. This demonstrates the existence of complex and diverse ideas around similar issues within contemporary Islamic legal opinions that is further complicated by the influence of international, social, political, cultural and ideological contexts. The book thus unveils a more complicated range of interactive constituents in the process of the practice of iftā’ and its outputs, fatwās.

The work will be of interest to academics and researchers working in the areas of Islamic law, Middle Eastern studies, religion and politics.

Table of Contents:

• Chapter 1: General Presidency of Scholarly Research and Iftā’ (Dār Al- Iftā’) In Saudi Arabia
• Chapter 2: Presidency of Religious Affairs (Diyanet) In Turkey
• Chapter 3: The Fiqh Council of North America (FCNA) In America
• Chapter 4: A General Comparison Related to Madhhab Affiliation and Social Values
• Chapter 5: A General Comparison from The Point of Legal and Political Systems

About the Author:

Emine Enise Yakar completed her BA in the Faculty of Theology, Ankara University, Turkey, in 2010. She received her MA and PhD from the Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies, the University of Exeter, UK, in 2014 and 2018, respectively. She is specifically interested in the interaction between Islamic legal methodologies and social context to provide insight into the flexible, practicable and applicable dimensions of Islamic law in both Muslim and non-Muslim countries. Currently, she is Assistant Professor of Islamic law at Recep Tayyip Erdogan University, Turkey.

Source: Routledge

The Islamic Center of America traces its history to the 1940s when the growing number of Muslims in the Detroit region brought Imam Mohammed Jawad Chirri from Lebanon in February 1949. The Islamic Center’s new 120,000 sq. ft. mosque opened in May 2005. It is reputed to be the largest mosque in North America and the oldest Shia Mosque in the United States. The Shia Arab population forms the major worshiping group, but Sunnis also pray there, and people of all faiths are welcome. The mosque has space for 1,000 individuals at prayer time.

The Islamic Center of America is one of North America’s oldest institutions. It has been serving the needs of Muslims in the greater Detroit area and throughout the United States.

Center’s mission is to Provide Comprehensive Islamic Services and Education to the North American Muslim and Non-Muslim Communities; furthermore the Center promotes Understanding and Networking with the Community at Large.

The mosque includes a vast meeting hall that can be divided into several smaller rooms, an industrial kitchen, a spacious prayer room, mezzanine, offices, meeting rooms, and a library. Glazed brick was used to veneer two decorative domes at the main entrance and the round mosque at the center of the building. In addition, two 110-foot towers called minarets were erected.

ICOA’s Goals:

• Perpetuate the social, moral, and religious standards of Islam in the United States

• Help Muslims practice Islam as a belief, a behavior, and a way of life

• Conduct programs and establish facilities to preserve and relate the Islamic knowledge to young Muslims

• Provide and facilitate social services including counseling to those in need

• Cherish the bonds of friendship and understanding between Muslims and non- Muslims within the framework of Islam

The mosque operates the Muslim American Youth Academy (MAYA), an Islamic private elementary and middle school. MAYA is a pre-k through 8th grade private Islamic school located in Dearborn, Michigan. They have been in operation for over 20 years.  MAYA is relatively homogeneous, both culturally and religiously.

Imam Hassan Al-Qazwini led the center in 1997, several years after Imam Chirri’s passing, and assumed the role of religious leader for 18 years. The Islamic Center of America outgrew its original Detroit location and in 2005 moved to its present location on Ford Road in Dearborn. The Detroit Mosque at the center’s original site is now known as the Az-Zahra Center, where prayers services are still offered.

The ICofA is renowned for its wide range of religious, educational, and public programs. It has long been recognized as one of Dearborn’s most vibrant and influential Muslim entities.

Contacts

Address: 19500 Ford Rd, Dearborn, MI 48128, USA

Phone: +1 313 593-0000

Email: contact@icofa.com

Website: icofa.com

Director: Nausheen Dadabhoy

Producer: Sofian Khan, Kristi Jacobson, Heba Elorbany

Duration: 82 Minutes

In “An Act of Worship”, Pakistani-American filmmaker Nausheen Dadabhoy weaves a glorious tapestry of personal stories, verité, archival footage, and home movies together, to open a window into the world of Muslim Americans. Due to their first-hand knowledge and intimate access to the Muslim community, the filmmaking team is able to take charge of the account, which has previously been shaped by outsiders.

The film follows three women activists who have come of age since 9/11 and who are part of a new generation of Muslims in America. One is a community organizer of a sanctuary city initiative in New York, another is a young hijab-wearing activist in Michigan learning how to overcome society’s expectations of her, and the third is a California lawyer advocating for her community while balancing motherhood.

Interwoven with each woman’s tale is a historical timeline that takes a look back at pivotal moments affecting Muslim community, From the Boston Bombing to the Muslim Ban, the film’s chronicle explores the collective memory of the community through a lyrical combination of home videos and re-told stories. The portrait the film creates shows a community that has undergone enormous change as it emerges from the shadows to shape its own narrative and resist further marginalization.

Source: Tribeca Film Festival

Edited by Roberto Tottoli

Publisher: Routledge

Publication Date: February 22, 2022 (2nd Ed.)

ISBN: 9780367211783

With new topics and contributions, this updated second edition discusses the history and contemporary presence of Islam in Europe and America. The book debates the relevance and multi-faceted participation of Muslims in the dynamics of Western societies, challenging the changing perception on both sides.

Collating over thirty chapters, written by experts from around the world, the volume presents a wide range of perspectives. Case studies from the Muslim presence in the Iberian Peninsula between the Middle Ages and the modern age are setting off the Handbook, along with an outline of Muslims in America up to the twentieth century. The second part covers concepts around new conditions in terms of consolidating identities, the emergence of new Muslim actors, the appearance of institutions and institutional attitudes, the effects of Islamic presence on the arts and landscapes of the West, and, the relational dynamics like ethics and gender.

Exploring the influence of Islam, particularly its impact on society, culture and politics, this interdisciplinary volume is a key resource for policymakers, academics and students interested in the history of Islam, religion and the contemporary relationship between Islam and the West.

About Author

Roberto Tottoli is a professor of Islamic studies at the Universita di Napoli L’Orientale, Italy. His fields of interest are early Islamic traditions and literature and the Qur’an in European history. His recent publications include Islam: An Advanced Introduction (Routledge, 2021).

Source: Routledge

On Orthodox Christian Easter (April 24), 70 or so passengers took that ride on the Interfaith Trolley, a tour of sacred spaces inspired by this month’s convergence of Ramadan, Passover, Easter, Vaisakhi (celebrated by Sikhs), Ridvan (observed by Baha’is) and Ram Navami (a Hindu holiday).

Perhaps more reminiscent of speed-dating than a comparative religion course, the tour made brief stops at five religious sites across southeast Chicago, hearing from a series of faith leaders and lay people from different religious groups.

Sponsored by local faith institutions such as American Islamic College, the Lutheran School of Theology, Chicago Theological Seminary, the Parliament of the World’s Religions and the Hyde Park & Kenwood Interfaith Council, the trolley was intended to promote interfaith understanding and cooperation.

Continue reading at: Religion News Service (RNS)

But what does that lead to?

As research in the past couple of decades has reflected those drops in behaviors and beliefs, conventional wisdom has lingered on a superficial understanding about what it really means — for our identities, our yearnings for something “bigger than ourselves” and our ideas about the role of religion in politics.

Now, a new crop of books dives into the many shades of gray in growing secularism and its important ramifications.

Deploying new research and theories, these writers go beyond the top-level data and argue that many Americans are, in fact, a mix. Someone may be devout personally, for instance, but strongly believe in church-state separation and the primacy of science and observable facts. They may be completely non-religious but also agnostic when it comes to the role of religion in public life.

The 2021 book “Secular Surge,” by a trio of prominent political scientists, says “secular” core values include freethinking, logic and reason — rather than received authority — human experience and the laws of nature. Secularism, notably, is not defined by opposition to religious identity or practices. By this definition, a quarter of Americans now have a secular worldview, the researchers contest, and events such as the pandemic could speed along the birth of a secular political left, not unlike the early days of the religious right.

“There has been no innovation in secular thought in 50 years, few new policy ideas,” Berlinerblau said in an interview. “There’s no coherence, no leadership, no central movement. They can’t articulate what they want it to do.”

Berlinerblau’s book and others of late look at different parts of personal and public secularism, but they agree that the contemporary terminology is inadequate.

Emma Koonse Wenner, religion editor for Publishers Weekly, said there is a bit of a boom happening on the topic. There are so many people who have left traditional religious structures but are still interested in the “spiritual but not religious” genre, she said, that PW now does a regular feature on the topic of the “nones” — those Americans who tell pollsters they have “no religion.” That group has swelled from 16 percent of the country in 2007 to 29 percent today, Pew Research said last month.

Experts on secularism sometimes call this era the “third wave” for secularism. The early freethinkers were first, then the “new atheists,” such as Christopher Hitchens and Richard Dawkins, who were defined by their angry, direct criticism of religion.

Source: Washington Post