Imam Abdullah A. Madyun is the Imam of Masjid Al-Ihsan and the director of the Islamic Institute of Urban Affairs in Chicago. He received his Islamic education at the Islamic University of Medina, Saudi Arabia. He was selected to be among a group of Imams from America to study in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates. He is the former Imam of Masjid Al-Amin in Gary, Indiana, in addition to his service as Imam and Coordinator of Islamic Studies for the Indiana Department of Corrections.
Ahlam Jbara is the Associate Director at the Council for Islamic Organizations of Greater Chicago, where she was recently appointed. Previously, Ahlam served as the Outreach and Interpretation Program Director at the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights (ICIRR).
At ICIRR, Ahlam directed the Outreach and Interpretation Program (O&I), a partnership between immigrant serving organizations, ICIRR and the Illinois Department of Human Services (IDHS) to assist immigrant and refugee families in Illinois to access much needed services in order to become economically self sufficient, independent and to ease the integration process.
Ahlam was born in Palestine and immigrated with her family to Chicago in 1974. Before joining ICIRR, Ahlam was the Family Empowerment Program Director at the Arab American Action Network, a 12-year-old Arab grassroots, community-based organization on the southwest side of Chicago.
Reynaldo “Rey” Ty, is the Training Coordinator and Senior Training Assistant in the International Training Office (ITO) and Center for Southeast Asian Studies at Northern Illinois University (NIU). Rey is also a Co-instructor in the Department of Counseling, Adult and Higher Education, where is a doctoral candidate for Spring 2011. In his role at ITO, Rey coordinates and implements several programs focusing on youth advocacy, intercultural relations, and social issues, including the Philippines Youth Leadership Program (PYLP), now entering its eighth year.
PYLP includes three major phases: a five-week U.S.-based Exchange Program, implementation of community service action plans, and follow-on activities for the alumni. The goals of this exchange program are to build knowledge and skills in civic responsibility, leadership, community activism, and to introduce the participants to the broad nature of civil society and diversity in the United States.
NIU has recognized Rey for overall excellence in scholarship and social contributions. He has published. His academic interests lie in areas of popular education, social justice, human rights, and peace.
After graduating from Harvard with an A.B. in the comparative study of religion, Scott went on to Columbia University in New York where he earned the M.A. and Ph.D. in the history of religions, with a concentration in Islamic studies. From 1986 to 1990, Scott taught courses on Islam and the history of religions at Columbia, Fordham, and Princeton Universities, and in 1991 he took a position on the religious studies faculty of Indiana University in Bloomington where he taught as an assistant professor of Islamic studies from 1993 to 2000. He is currently Associate Professor of Islam at Catholic Theological Union in Chicago, where he is also director of the school’s Catholic-Muslim Studies Program. Scott sits on the advisory boards of the Lake Institute for Faith and Giving (Indiana University) and is a member of the scientific committee of the Centro Internazionale di Studi e Ricerche Oasis of the Marcianum (Latin Patriarchate of Venice, Italy). He is also a member of the Faiths in the World Committee of the Catholic Association of Diocesan Ecumenical and Interreligious Officers (CADEIO) and is a regular consultant on Christian-Muslim relations for the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (Washington, D.C.). Scott is the author of a number of articles on Islamic history and religion published in scholarly journals and encyclopedias such as the Encyclopedia of the Modern Middle East (Macmillan, 1996) and the Encyclopedia of the Qur’an (E.J. Brill, 2001-2005). In addition to sitting on the editorial board of the Journal of Islamic Law and Culture, Scott is the editor of a forthcoming collection of essays entitled, Sisters: Women, Religion, and Leadership in Christianity and Islam (Rowman and Littlefield, forthcoming 2009). His most recent book project, funded in part by an Association of Theological Schools Lilly Foundation Faculty Fellowship, is entitled The Race to Goodness: An End to Triumphalism in Christianity and Islam. Scott lives in Hyde Park with his wife Karen Lewis Alexander and their son, Myles where the family are members of St. Thomas the Apostle Catholic Church.
Marci Zinke is an Account Relations Manager at the American Red Cross Biomedical Services in Chicago. Marci works with high schools, colleges, community organizations and large corporations to partner with the American Red Cross in sponsoring on-site blood drives. Samples of her duties include business and relations development, event management and health education. She earned her B.S. in Biology from Northern Illinois University. Marci has an extensive background working with elite companies in business development, sales and marketing, and team management.
Marci finds her passion in involving and educating the Muslim community to practice our deen through her everyday work. She is committed to heighten awareness within the Muslim community to the benefits of blood donation, ensuring blood is available when needed. Marci is a revert to Islam and works diligently throughout the Muslim community to bridge the gap between native Muslims and reverts to Islam. She is enthusiastic in opening the lines of communication to address the needs of each demographic. She posses a strong desire to unite us all as one Ummah and live out our purpose on earth to serve Allah (SWT).
Imam Zaid Shakir is an African-American Muslim scholar and intellectual. His formative years were spent in housing projects. These early experiences instilled in him a compassionate and realistic work ethic, as well as an unshakeable desire for social change and economic justice. His purposeful goal to work for the common good of all, led him to earn a BA in International Relations from the American University in Washington, DC in 1983. After a sabbatical year in Cairo, Egypt where he studied the Arabic language, Imam Shakir accepted the position of Professor of Political Science and Middle East Studies at Southern Connecticut State University. Imam Zaid is not only an accomplished artist and published poet, but also has contributed extensively to several Islamic publication as well as important translations including Adab li Hamala al Qur’an (Etiquettes for the Recitation of the Qur’an) and Al ‘Ulama’ Waratha al Anbiyya’ (The Scholars are the Heirs of the Prophets). Zaid brings both sensitivity about African-American and poverty issues and scholarly discipline to his faith-based work.
Rummana Hussain is a general assignment reporter, editor and occasional columnist at the Chicago Sun-Times. Here she recently served as an editorial board member, writing on a variety of national and international subjects, including immigration and Pakistan’s tumultuous political landscape. Rummana was recently honored by local journalism groups for her work on breaking stories with her Sun-Times colleagues. She was also chosen as a Jefferson fellowship at Honolulu’s East West Center in 2006. During that fellowship, Rummana traveled to India and Pakistan to study the rising economy in South Asia with several American and foreign journalists.
“Keith Maurice Ellison, born August 4, 1963 is an American lawyer and politician belonging to the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party. He broke ground by becoming the first Muslim to be elected to the United States Congress when he won the open seat for Minnesota’s 5th congressional district. He started his law career with the firm of Lindquist & Vennum before becoming the executive director of the Legal Rights Center before later returning to private practice. Besides practicing law, Ellison was active in the community and public service. In his short time in office, Ellison has supported stem cell research and raising the minimum wage. He has also voiced his opposition to President George W. Bush’s plan to increase the number of troops fighting the War in Iraq
“Rami Nashashibi is the Executive Director and one of the original founding members of IMAN, the Inner-city Muslim Action Network, located in Chicago. He is currently a Sociology PhD candidate at the University of Chicago and an adjunct professor teaching in the sociology department at St Xavier University. He is a recipient of the Davis Putter Student Activist Grant and lectures frequently on a range of topics relating to Islam, Muslims and community activism.
Ahmed Rehab is a Muslim-American Activist, writer, and speaker. He is currently employed as CAIR-Chicago’s Executive Director and CAIR’s National Strategic Communications Director. Rehab is a regular contributor to the Chicago Tribune and Chicago Public Radio. He has been interviewed over 200 times by newspapers, radio, and TV venues, both national and international. Rehab lectures at various University campuses in Chicago and around the nation. Prior to joining CAIR in August of 2004, Rehab was a freelance speaker, writer, and activist in the fields of interfaith collaboration, education, and community outreach. Between 1999 and 2002, Rehab served as a consultant for Arthur Andersen LLP – a global consulting firm. Rehab serves as a board member of the Illinois Coalition of Immigrant and Refugee Rights (ICIRR). He is a board member and secretary of the Egyptian American Society, a member of the Chicago Council on Global Affairs’ (CCGA) Muslim task force, an Eisenhower fellow of the American Assembly, and alumnus of the FBI Citizen’s Academy. A software engineer by trade, Ahmed is also co-founder & president of Ibex Computers based in Des Plaines, IL. Ahmed can be reached at arehab@cair.com.
Gerald Hankerson is CAIR-Chicago’s Outreach Coordinator. Gerald recruits and coordinates CAIR-Chicago interns, externs, and volunteers. A native of the Oakland and Hyde Park neighborhoods, he is a graduating President’s Scholar of the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) and is currently completing a Bachelor’s degree in Communications with a minor in Theater. Gerald is a freelance journalist, author, writer, actor, debater, instructor, and performer. He also serves as the New Program Development Coordinator for the National Association for Urban Debate Leagues (NAUDL), in collaboration with Chicago Public Schools. Gerald also served as an UIC Ambassador through the African American Action Network (AAAN), a member of the Black Student Union, and was inducted into the National Society of Collegiate Scholars. Gerald is committed to bringing his experiences with mentoring youth, volunteerism, research and social critiques to bridging gaps between interfaith and diverse communities. Gerald can be reached at ghankerson@cair.com.
