ABOUT THE TEACHERS
IMAM TAHIR ANWAR is an American Muslim Imam who has been around Imams since the day he was born. Namely his father and grandfather (his first teachers), and his two brothers, who are also both Imams in California.
Born in London, Imam Tahir moved to the San Francisco Bay Area in 1983 and made San Jose his home. Upon completing his religious studies in India, he has been serving as the Imam of one of the oldest masjids in the country, the Islamic Center of San Jose, since 2001. He is also the head of the Islamic Studies Department, and a teacher at Granada Islamic School in nearby Santa Clara, an institution in its 26th year.
After serving on the Human Rights Commission for the City of San Jose for over 5 years, Imam Tahir now serves on the Human Relations Commission for the County of Santa Clara. He also sits on Zaytuna College's Management Committee as well as other panels and boards.
Imam Tahir has been leading a group to perform Hajj for several years, with CNN twice covering this pilgrimage. These days, he travels around the globe to deliver the message of Islam to the masses, and currently resides in San Jose, California with his wife and two sons.
More information at ImamTahir.com.
DR. ALTAF HUSAIN holds a doctoral degree from the Howard University School of Social Work in Washington D.C. His research interests include the integration of immigrant and refugee families, and especially Muslim adolescents, in the United States. He serves as Executive Assistant for Academic Affairs in the Office of the Provost at Howard University and is a double alumnus of Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio. Altaf is a former two-term national president of the Muslim Students Association, a current executive committee member of the Muslim Alliance in North America, and a board member of the Peaceful Families Project. He is married and has two sons.
DR. JIHAD TURK is the Director of Religious Affairs at the Islamic Center of Southern California. Born to a Muslim-Palestinian father and a Christian-American mother, Turk spent his college years traveling the Muslim world, exploring his Islamic roots. He spent time in both the Islamic University of Medina, where he studied Arabic and Islamic Studies, and Iran, where he studied Farsi at the University of Tehran and in Qum. He received his B.A. degree in History and Arabic from the University of California, Berkeley and his Master's degree in Islamic Law and Arabic from the University of Texas, Austin in Islamic Law and Arabic. In 2000, he and his wife moved to Southern California, where they have been ever since. In addition to his work with the Islamic Center of Southern California, Turk has been working to complete his PhD at UCLA in Islamic Studies, while teaching courses in Arabic and Islamic religion and culture through the UCLA Extension program. In addition to serving the religious needs of his community, he focuses much of his attention on interfaith work. Additionally, Turk serves as the Vice President of the Interreligious Council of Southern California, and, together with Gwynne Guibord, an Episcopal Priest, Turk founded and currently serves as Co-Chair of the Christian-Muslim Consultative Group, comprised of major Christian and Muslim denominations and organizations intent on understanding each other and working together on common goals. He is also a Religious Director at the University of Southern California.
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