Dr. Shadee Elmasry was born and raised in New Jersey. He began learning Sharia through trips to the Middle East, studying privately, not through any institution. In the meantime, he took a Masters at The George Washington University where his supervisor was Seyyed Hossein Nasr. He then took a PhD from the University of London, SOAS studying da’wa and completing a dissertation entitled Da’wa in the Works of Imam al-Haddad. After graduating, he taught at six colleges including Yale University. Dr. Elmasry is currently the director of religious education at the New Brunswick Islamic Center and the founder of Safina Society.

Imam Mikaeel Ahmed Smith (Michael V Smith) is an Islamic scholar, writer, and activist striving to meet the spiritual and educational needs of the DFW community. Imam Mikaeel previously served as a resident scholar at the Islamic Society of Annapolis and the Islamic Society of Baltimore. He grew up in a deeply spiritual Christian home in Buffalo, NY. At the age of 18, he embraced Islam after reading the Qur’an and the Autobiography of Malcolm X. Within a year after his shahadah, Imam Mikaeel enrolled at the Dar ul-Uloom al-Madania in Buffalo, NY, where he learned to read Arabic and memorized the Qur’an. In 2008, he traveled overseas to study Arabic at the Jami’a Abu Noor in Damascus, Syria.

Upon his return, he continued studying the Islamic sciences at the Dar ul-Uloom al-Madania. In 2012, he completed his studies of the Sihah Sitta (six most authentic collections of Prophetic traditions) and Qur’anic Tafseer (commentary), earning his degree in Islamic Studies at the Dar ul-Uloom Canada in Chatham, Ontario (BA equivalent). Later the same year, he moved to Maryland to become the scholar-in-residence at the Islamic Society of Annapolis. He taught tajweed (Qur’an recitation) and the foundational Islamic sciences at the Makkah Learning Center in Gambrills, MD, and served as a full-time instructor at the Al-Rahmah Seminary in Baltimore, MD.

Currently, Imam Mikaeel is pursuing his BA in psychology, writing translations of classical Islamic texts and articles for MuslimMatters, teaching Alimiyah students, and serving the local Dallas-Ft Worth community.

Shaykh Mohammad Omar Hussaini was born in Park Ridge, IL in 1978. He grew up in the Chicagoland area where he completed the memorization of the Qur’an at the Ma’had Ta’lim ul-Islam in 1996. Upon completing his high school education at the College Preparatory School of America (CPSA) in 1998, he gained admittance to the University of Illinois at Chicago’s (UIC) GPPA Program in medicine.

During his high school and college years, he concurrently began studying Arabic language and classical Islamic sciences at Ma’had Ta’lim ul-Islam. Upon graduating with a B.A. in Psychology in 2000, Shaykh Omar took nearly two years off to study sacred knowledge. In 2002, he matriculated at the UIC School of Medicine. At this time he also began his formal training in the science of spiritual purification.

Prior to his final semester in medical school, Shaykh Omar traveled to Darul Uloom Zakariyya, South Africa to further pursue Islamic studies. There in South Africa, he completed the final year of the Shari’ah course studying under such luminaries as Shaykh Radha ul-Haq, one of the leading Muftis of South Africa. In 2006, he received degrees in both Shari’ah studies and Medicine.

From 2007 to 2013, Shaykh Omar completed his medical residency in Anatomic and Clinical Pathology and fellowships in Hematopathology and Molecular Genetic Pathology at Washington University in St. Louis.  During this time, he was also received formal authorization in the Islamic science of spiritual purification. Shaykh Omar is currently a staff physician at the Moffitt Cancer Center and an Assistant Professor of Oncological Sciences at the University of South Florida in Tampa where he resides.

Shaykh Omar lectures at retreats, I’tikaaf programs, universities, local and national conferences, and mosques throughout the United States and abroad on various Islamic topics. He also teaches weekly online classes in Arabic, Islamic jurisprudence, and spirituality.

Shaykh Sa’ad Quadri is the imam of Masjid Al-Huda, located in Greenfield, WI, near Milwaukee. He was born in Park Ridge, IL and grew up in the Chicagoland area. He completed his bachelor’s degree in English and History at Northern Illinois University and his master’s degree in Education at DePaul University.

Prior to beginning college, Shaykh Sa’ad formally began studying the Islamic sciences and with local teachers on a part-time basis for almost fifteen years. After completing his master’s, he traveled overseas to Zambia where he completed his `alimiyya degree, receiving license to teach the traditional Islamic sciences. While studying the Islamic sciences, he began training and was formally authorized in the Islamic science of spiritual development (tazkiyah).

Since his time in high school, Shaykh Sa’ad has also been actively involved in his local communities by teaching in the weekend and weeknight school systems, as well as by organizing a variety of youth and community events with local and national organizations.

Prior to serving as an imam, he taught in the Islamic school system as an AP English, Arabic, Islamic studies, and Qur’an teacher for nearly a decade. He spent his free time volunteering as a coach and advisor. He has also presented seminars and workshops on educational theory and practice with High Quality Education Consulting, with whom he has co-authored The War within our Hearts, Parenting…Who Said It Would Be Easy, and Wisdom for the Wise.

Shaykh Akef Habbal was born in Montreal, Canada. He graduated from a six-year program at Madrasah Khusrufiyyah in Aleppo, Syria. Thereafter he earned his bachelor's degree in Islamic Studies from the University of Damascus, where he then continued to study master's level courses in theological and religious studies. Shaykh Akef then went on to study various subjects including tafsir, fiqh, nahw, and usool under various scholars in Aleppo. Upon returning to North America, Shaykh Akef began teaching Arabic and Islamic studies at various institutions. He currently serves as an Arabic instructor at DarusSalam Academy.

Minhajuddin Ahmed serves as the Principal of the Academy as well as one of the institute’s directors. Born and raised in Illinois, he memorized the entire Qurʾān at a young age. Later in life, when he reached college age, he opted to dedicate his life to Islāmic Studies and traveled to South Africa. There, he attended the prestigious Dār al-ʿUlūm Zakariyyā in Johannesburg. He studied the eight-year ʿālimiyyah and iftāʾ program graduating with teaching licenses and the permission to issue fatwā in the Ḥanafī School. He studied this program under one of the greatest scholars of our time, Mufti Rada al-Haqq. He also received authorizations in the Holy Qurʾān’s modes of recitation from al-Qārī Ayyūb b. Ibrāhīm Iṣḥāq.

Upon returning to the United States, he served as the director of the Islamic Foundation of Greater St. Louis for several years before becoming involved at Masjid DarusSalam. He oversees the administration of the institute. His passion for knowledge and dedication to providing a high-quality institute to serve the North-American Muslim community is phenomenal. Along with imparting knowledge to students in the classroom, he envisages creating a brilliant beacon of knowledge that will inspire future generations by offering an opportunity to study Islām in a way that is relevant in contemporary contexts while holding fast to tradition. Along with teaching and overseeing the institute’s administration, he serves as the imām at Masjid DarusSalam.

Azeemuddin Ahmed serves as director of Masjid DarusSalam. He was born and raised in the Chicagoland area. At a tender age, he memorized the Holy Qurʾān. Thereafter, he traveled to South Africa where he studied a rigorous eight-year ʿālimiyyah and iftāʾ course at Dār al-ʿUlūm Zakariyyā. During his studies, he was blessed with the opportunity to spend extensive time in the company of one of the world’s elite jurists and scholars, Mufti Rada al-Haqq. After graduating with top honors from South Africa, he went on to earn a BA in Psychology from Elmhurst College. He served as the director of AIA Masjid in Frankfort, Illinois from 2006 to 2012.

Azeemuddin’s dedication and passion for Islāmic education is unparalleled. He is continuously in the service of both scholars and students. An individual with sincere love for scholarship, he strives to ensure that everyone at the institute is well and benefiting from the program. His love and enthusiasm bring the classes he teaches to life, every class conveys priceless points that enrich and benefit those in attendance. As well, he serves as an associate Imām at Masjid DarusSalam.