ISB Atlanta
ISB Atlanta News Special Edition                                                                        March 2013
Honoring American Muslims During Women's History Month

Greetings!  

 

March is Women's History Month, a time to honor the work and accomplishments of women world wide. In this special edition newsletter, the ISB celebrates leading Atlanta Muslim women -- who hail from diverse backgrounds -- and recognizes their achievements in the areas of leadership, sports, academia, law, medicine, media and social influence (see below). 
 

As a reminder, the ISB offers a presentation titled, "Muslim Women in the U.S. and Around the World," about the role of women in Islam and important Muslim women in history and the modern world. This presentation is suitable for courses related to women studies, world religions and civil rights. 

 

Sincerely, 

 

Soumaya Khalifa-One Nation 

Soumaya Khalifa

Executive Director

ISB Atlanta   

Kulsoom Abdullah

Kulsoom Abdullah, Pakistani-American computer engineer, has been Olympic Weightlifting and Crossfitting for three years. Abdullah started competing in Olympic Weightlifting competitions in March 2010 and obtained the Crossfit Level I Trainer Course certification the same year. 

 

She launched http://www.liftingcovered.com/ to document her experiences weightlifting in an effort to compete at U.S. national competitions.  She attended her first U.S. national competition in Iowa in July 2011. 
 

Abdullah earned a doctorate in electrical/computer engineering at the Georgia Institute of Technology, where she is currently conducting research as a visiting scholar. Follow her on twitter @liftingcovered

Zaynab Ansari Abdul-Razacq
Zaynab Ansari Abdul-Razacq is a wife, mother, and native Atlantan. She spent nearly a decade studying Farsi, Arabic, and traditional Islam in the Middle East. Upon her return to the U.S., she earned degrees in History and Middle Eastern Studies from Georgia State University, graduating summa cum laude. She is currently working on her M.A. in World History at Georgia State University, where she was awarded the Joseph O. Baylen Fellowship in History. 
 
Ansari Abdul-Razacq is a freelance writer for Azizah Magazine, a certified speaker with the Islamic Speakers Bureau of Atlanta, and a frequent contributor to online Islamic educational portals. 
Ruba Alhenawi
Ruba Alhenawi, a Palestinian-Kuwaiti, is a freelance journalist with CNN specializing in Arab and Middle East affairs. From the capture and execution of Saddam Hussein to the Syrian revolution, she has monitored and worked on some of the most critical events of the last decade. 
 
Alhenawi earned a degree in Journalism from the University of Colorado at Boulder in 2003 and moved to Atlanta in 2004. She is married and a mother of three.
Fatima El-Amin, Esq.

Fatima El-Amin, Esq., is a native of Atlanta, and one of the pioneering students of the Mohammed Schools of Atlanta. In 1993, El-Amin graduated as Co-Valedictorian of W. D. Mohammed High School's second graduating class and later completed her collegiate studies at Harvard University, where she graduated cum laude with a dual B.A. degree in Psychology and Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations.  

 

El-Amin, a graduate of Emory University Law School, is a Senior Child Advocate Attorney in Decatur, Georgia.  El-Amin serves on the school board of the Mohammed Schools of Atlanta, and she sits on the executive boards of ForeverFamily and Camp Butterfly. She co-hosts a local television talk-show on the Atlanta Interfaith Broadcasters (AIB) cable network featuring discussions from both spiritual and womanist perspectives. El-Amin is also a part-time Field Reporter for DeKalb County Television (DCTV). She is the loving mother of a nine-year-old son, Sultan. 

Amani Felfela Elghoroury
Following her passion for helping those in need, Amani Felfela Elghoroury went back to school to become a nurse, and now works in the ICU at Piedmont Fayette Hospital. She remembers as a child growing up in Egypt, her parents helped in their own way by providing countless meals to the needy, especially during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.  As a mother, Elghoroury has sought to pass the lesson of altruism to her two sons, Tarek and Karim, and lead by example. Throughout their various residences around the U.S., the family has been active participants in charitable causes, including  the Civil Air Patrol, Boy Scouts of America and Habitat for Humanity.
 

Here in GA, Elghoroury is an active and engaged member of the Islamic Speakers Bureau, and has high praise for the organization's work in educating others and building bridges within the community. Her activism includes participation in the Fayette County Summer Lunch program, Thanksgiving  Dinner Program, Police and Fire Department Appreciation Baskets,  leading the Muslim Community  Food Drive, and the Atlanta Community Food Bank Hunger Walk/Run. Elghoroury is grateful to her husband whose love, support, and involvement enabled her to be an active community participant throughout the years.

Huma Faruqi
Quran
Huma Faruqi is a special needs teacher by profession and has been in the field of education for over 25 years. Born in Pakistan, Faruqi studied in the United Kingdom and worked as a special needs teacher in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Presently, Faruqi volunteers at two mosques in the Atlanta area teaching numerous classes including the interpretation of the Quran, Arabic and Tajweed (elocution).
 
Faruqi is the book keeper for her husband's aviation company, and is a certified speaker for the Islamic Speakers Bureau of Atlanta. She is a mother of four and a grandmother of four. 
Dr. Rana Hajjeh

Following undergraduate and medical studies at the American University in Beirut, Dr. Rana Hajjeh trained in Internal Medicine and Infectious Diseases at Emory University, Atlanta. In 1993, Dr. Hajjeh joined the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). She is currently the Director of the Hib Initiative, an international project between CDC, Johns Hopkins School of Public Health, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, and the World Health Organization, whose aim is to reduce childhood meningitis and pneumonia in developing countries. Dr. Hajjeh publishes extensively and lectures on topics concerning epidemiology of infectious diseases worldwide. 

 

Dr Hajjeh is involved in many organizations, including the Alif Institute, an Arab American non profit cultural organization, Georgia's Arab American Women Society, the National Arab American Medical Association Atlanta Chapter, and is a supporter of the Islamic Speakers Bureau of Atlanta. She resides in Atlanta with her husband, Dr Imad El-Kebbi and children Nour (20) and Sami (18).

Zohra Kamal
Zohra Kamal graduated with honors from Georgia State University with a B.B.A. in Computer Information Systems and a B.S. in Psychology.  She is currently working as a consultant for Avanade, a business technology solutions and managed services provider.  
In addition to consulting, Kamal has experience in the health care, telecommunications, asset management, and loan servicing industries.  
 
Kamal has been part of the Atlanta community since the 1980's.  She is heavily involved in community outreach and voluntary services.  She currently serves as Vice President on the Board of Atlanta Muslim Young Professionals, and volunteers regularly at the Roswell Community Masjid.  She enjoys traveling, reading, and pursuing knowledge.
 
Dr. Farah Khan

Dr. Farah Khan is a wife, mother and dentist. She is a member of the Board of Directors of Give A Lift Foundation, a non-profit organization that is committed to sponsoring families out of poverty by providing education, food and healthcare to families living below the poverty line. 

 

Dr. Khan also has an interest in supporting Muslims in leadership positions and recently hosted a fundraiser for Representative Keith Ellison, the first Muslim American in the United States Congress. In 2012 she was awarded the Outstanding Georgia Citizen award by the Secretary of State of Georgia.

YaQutallah Ibraheem Muhammad, MS, RD, LD
YaQutullah Ibraheem Muhammad MS, RD, LD received her Bachelor's degree in nutrition and Masters degree in Health Sciences and Nutrition from Georgia State University.  Ibraheem Muhammad is a member of the American Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics and is certified in adult weight management. As part of the primary care team, she provides nutrition education to veterans and their families at the Carl Vinson Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Dublin, Georgia. 
 
Ibraheem Muhammad serves as secretary to the SHARE Atlanta Inc., board of trustees as well as coordinator for the Al-Farooq Women's Committee. Over the past three years, Ibraheem Muhammad has provided nutrition education workshops for the Bermuda Fit Muslimah Summit, which focuses on balancing nutrition, wellness and fitness for Muslim Women. Ibraheem Muhammad is also a contributing writer for Azizah Magazine, a magazine that provides the world a view to Muslim women, their powerful stories, rich images in North America and the world.
Jelena Naim
Jelena Naim has been an educator for over 25 years.  With Bachelor's and Master's degrees from the University of Illinois and certification from Mercer University, she has been an ESL teacher, an instructional coach, an assistant principal, a director of curriculum and instruction, and is currently the principal of a Pre-K to 8th grade school. In these positions, she has worked in public universities, a public charter school, and a private academy.  She was on the founding team of the public charter school and the private academy, as well as one of the founders of the Islamic Speakers' Bureau of Atlanta, an educational outreach organization. 
 
Naim and her husband are committed to Islamic education, having educated all 4 of their children at Islamic schools and volunteering with various Islamic educational institutions in Atlanta. 
Tayyibah Taylor
Tayyibah Taylor is the Founding Editor-In-Chief and Publisher of Azizah Magazine, the winner of two Folio Eddie Awards and a New America Media Award. Taylor has been named as one of the 500 Most Influential Muslims in the World by the Middle Eastern think tank The Royal Islamic Strategic Studies. Through Azizah, Taylor has realized her vision to provide a vehicle for the voice of Muslim American women. 
 
Taylor has worked on several interfaith initiatives and traveled extensively with various groups of Jews, Christians and Muslims. She has been invited to the White House and she was one of eight Muslims to meet His Holiness the Dalai Lama in an Islam-Buddhism Common Ground event. In the last few years, she traveled to Malaysia, Malta, Tajikistan, Afghanistan and Belgium to speak about interfaith relations, women's empowerment and entrepreneurship.  
 

The Islamic Speakers Bureau of Atlanta is a 501(c)(3) non-profit, apolitical educational organization that provides certified Muslim speakers to promote awareness about Islam and Muslims. The ISB is a local affiliate of the Islamic Networks Group (ING).


ISB Atlanta, P.O. Box 2608, Peachtree City, Georgia 30269. Telephone: 404-377-8380