Founder and
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Director of Development
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Director of Engagement
SHAHLA CHOHAN is a fierce advocate for civil rights and social justice issues, a mom to two girls and the next (but better) Hassan Minhaj. Shahla is also a member of The Kansas Chapter of The Citizen’s Foundation (TCF), where she helps lead and organize fundraising events to help educate underprivileged children in Pakistan. Shahla received her Bachelor's degree in Psychology with a minor in Religion from the University of Mary Washington.
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Co-Director of Development |
Manager of Internal Relations |
Manager of External Relations |
Hauwa Abbas, a proud Michigan native, is dedicated to community building, advocacy, and amplifying the voices of the refugee and underserved community. With a Bachelor's degree in Advertising and Public Relations, Hauwa is currently pursuing a Master's degree at American University in Public Policy and Public Administration, with a keen focus on sustainable development and social impact. In 2017, Hauwa founded The Halimah Project, a non-profit organization dedicated to mentoring refugee youth in the mid-Michigan area. With a steadfast commitment to positive change, Hauwa envisions leveraging her expertise in public policy to drive equitable and inclusive initiatives that make a lasting impact on society.
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Mahreen Alam is a policy strategist striving to make cities more sustainable, resilient, and inclusive places to live. With a background in state and local government, community organizing, and policy based research, her interests lie in creating partnerships across sectors and connecting ideas and frameworks from the grassroots up to create long lasting change. Most recently Mahreen worked as an associate at Cityfi, a firm that specializes in connecting the public and private sector on projects related to clean technology, civic innovation, and resiliency and climate adaption strategies. Mahreen holds a bachelors in Political Science from the University of California, Irvine and a Masters in Public Policy from the University of California Los Angeles.
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Rasha Mohamed is a Flint native with a background working in the non-profit space focused on issues related to the widening wealth gap, lack of access to clean water, and food insecurity. With an interest and passion for addressing social inequities Rasha has had the opportunity to interact with people in many capacities whether that is in the form of language development, community development, or political engagement. She holds a Master’s of Public Policy and a Master’s of Urban and Regional Planning from the University of Michigan
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MIPs Advisory Council
SAALIHA KHAN is a Muslim-American bridge builder who is deeply committed to spirituality, service, and social justice. She has worked in education, healthcare, and politics and led various interfaith action, community organizing, and advocacy initiatives since 2010. Saaliha currently serves as the Assistant Director for KIFA- the Kansas Interfaith Action and resides in Shawnee. She is a graduate of Georgetown University and holds a Master’s in Public Policy & Management from Carnegie Mellon University.
Saaliha Khan serves as the Chief Advisory Council Member and is one of the co-founders of Muslimahs in Policy. |
Dr. DILARA SAYEED's life journey winds from Headstart to Harvard, and through public school systems. These experiences have fueled her ambition for equity and access for all our residents, especially in marginalized and often invisible communities. Over the last 20 years, Dr. Sayeed has served as an award-winning teacher/administrator, a nonprofit civic leader, and a social impact entrepreneur. She ran for elected office in an historic race in 2018 to shine a light on social and fiscal inequities in our state and nation. Currently, Dr. Sayeed is President of the IL Muslim Civic Coalition, working with 150 partners and allies of all races, faiths and backgrounds towards Civic Justice. She is also co-founder of vPeer, an online platform and mobile app for virtual peer networking and mentorship. In 2021, Dr. Sayeed was appointed by Governor Pritzker to the IL Commission on Discrimination and Hate Crimes (CDHC), where she serves as the Co-Chair of the Education and Outreach Committee. Dr. Sayeed is on Advisory Councils for Chicago Mayor Lightfoot and Illinois Comptroller Mendoza, and serves on the Field Museum, Women’s March Chicago and IADO Boards.
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Rep. MADINAH WILSON-ANTON was elected in 2020 to represent the 26th district where she grew up. She is an alumna of the University of Delaware and holds a bachelor’s degree in International Relations and Asian Studies and a master’s degree in Urban Affairs and Public Policy. She has formally studied Arabic, Chinese, French, and Spanish. While at the University of Delaware, Rep. Wilson-Anton was actively involved in several campus organizations where she held leadership positions, including the Muslim Student Association, Students for Justice in Palestine, and her sorority Latinas Promoviendo Comunidad/Lambda Pi Chi Sorority, Inc. She worked for two years as a legislative fellow in the state legislature, and an additional year as a legislative aide for the 26th and 27th districts. In these capacities, she researched legislation, staffed committee meetings, and communicated with residents and helped them with a variety of issues. This experience gave her first-hand exposure to the issues and concerns of her fellow community members. As a state representative, Rep. Wilson-Anton is fighting for social, economic, and racial justice for all Delawareans.
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INAS YOUNIS was born in Mosul, Iraq, and emigrated to the United States as a child. She is an independent journalist and commentator and has been widely published in various magazines and websites including the Washington Post and the Kansas City star. Her work, a monologue on the pandemic, was featured by the Unicorn theatre, and she is the co-author of several children’s books featuring children of different faith minorities. She is a monthly columnist for the Kansas Reflector and is a community engagement representative for the Kansas City Beacon. She sits on several boards including SevenDays, the Hasna Sal Foundation and is chair of the advisory board of the Friends of Overland Park Arts. Inas is an alumnus of the American Muslim Civic Leadership Initiative housed at the University of Southern California and is a recent graduate of Leadership Overland Park, a six‐month program that informs and educates the future leaders of the region and prepares them to meet the challenges of today and tomorrow. She lives in Overland Park, Kansas with her husband of 30 years and is the mother of three, not including her two cats, Stonie and Matisse.
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MAHEEN AHMED currently serves as the Deputy Director for the Office of Community, Awareness, Response, and Engagement (CARE), an office she crafted and established within the Office of Attorney General Rob Bonta last year in order to engage with historically marginalized and underrepresented communities to increase transparency and address barriers to accessing justice. She joined the Department of Justice after serving as then-Assemblymember Rob Bonta’s Legislative Director, where she shaped and oversaw progressive budget and policy priorities. Maheen became the first Muslim legislative director in the history of the California state legislature in 2019, and had joined the state legislature in 2016 as a Jesse M. Unruh Fellow. Prior to joining the state legislature, Maheen worked at the Sacramento Valley chapter of the largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy nonprofit organization, the Council on American-Islamic Relations, for over five years. She serves on the Boards for the Muslim Power Building Project and Faith In Action's local chapter, Sacramento Area Congregations Together (Sacramento ACT), and previously served on the board of the Asian Pacific Islander Capitol Association (APICA).
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REDA A. TALEB is a native Detroiter, and the proud daughter of Lebanese Muslim immigrants. She is a strategic, transformative leader, with a demonstrated history of over 15 years of nonprofit experience that spans civic, legal, entrepreneurial, and social justice movements across the United States. As the Founder/CEO of Dream Catcher Innovations™, Reda serves a national clientele with Nonprofit Development and Management, Program Design and Implementation, Strategy Development and Implementation, Fundraising, Social Impact Movement Building, DEI Advocacy, and Community Building. Reda is a proximate and cross-sector changemaker, rooted in grassroots servant advocacy. She reflects the communities she serves, connects with others across identities, and industries. Reda centers equity and builds trust through her commitment towards collective impact in order to achieve collective liberation in the country we aspire to be. These qualities ground her body of work and the legacy she aspires to create for herself, family, and community. When she is away from serving her clients, Reda is a decarceration advocate, children’s book author, and spoken word poet. She enjoys gardening, hiking/biking, cooking delicious Arabic food, and traveling. Reda currently serves on a number of boards across the country, including the Advisory Council for the CASL Dean’s Office, at the University of Michigan Dearborn. GO BLUE!
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KHYDEEJA ALAM was appointed by Governor Gavin Newsom as the Director of External and Legislative Affairs at California Volunteers, Office of the Governor in 2022. In her capacity she leads statewide initiatives, oversees $185 million in state grants, works closely with Mayors across the state, statewide elected officials, higher education institutions, and other key partners. Khydeeja has over fifteen years of experience in California politics, building relationships, developing state budgets, and policy. Khydeeja has worked on passing major legislation in California, including the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF), the Transitional Kindergarten, the California Dream Act, the College Readiness Block Grant, Safe Schools for Immigrant Students, and many others. Because of Khydeeja’s commitment to children and families, Speaker of the Assembly Anthony Rendon appointed her to the statewide Early Childhood Policy Council. In her personal capacity, Khydeeja is deeply involved in representing her community and causes she cares about. She is an advocate for the Muslim community and strives to make sure our voices are heard, and that our community is involved in the political process. She is the President of Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) Sacramento Valley/Central California chapter and Educare California at Silicon Valley. Prior to her appointment in the Governor’s Office, Khydeeja served as the Senior Director of Policy and Advocacy for Advancement Project California (now Catalyst California). She graduated from the University of California, Berkeley.
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SALIMA SUSWELL serves as National Senior Advisor and Pennsylvania Executive Director for Emgage, the nation’s largest Muslim American civic engagement organization. Salima is a nationally-renowned leader in advocacy and policy initiatives. Salima founded Evolve Solutions, a management consulting firm twelve years ago to address the racial and socio-economic disparities within the black community. Evolve Solutions provides from the ground floor up, political and policy development that positively impacts community engagement outcomes. Salima is engaged in the political process regionally and nationally where her expertise is sought out for advocacy campaigns and policy initiatives. Salima’s noteworthy contributions include her role as Director for the Philadelphia Eid Coalition, who made history by leading a successful campaign to obtain the recognition of the two Islamic (Eid) Holidays on the academic calendar for Philadelphia Public Schools; her role as Chair of the Muslim American Host Committee for the 2016 Democratic National Convention, held in Philadelphia. Salima served as an advisor to the Office of Governor Tom Wolf for affairs pertaining to communities of color, women and faith. Salima has also served as an advisor to the Office of Mayor James Kenney for issues pertaining to Muslim Philadelphians. In 2018, Salima founded the Philadelphia Ramadan & Eid Fund, a nonprofit organization which hosts the annual City Hall Iftar Dinner, Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha holiday celebrations, arts and culture educational programming for youth and families, and advocacy for Muslim students. In 2019, PREF presented its inaugural Ramadan Iftar Dinner at the Please Touch Museum, and the Philadelphia Eid in the Park Festival, which unified over 15,000 community members of diverse backgrounds. Salima also serves on the Leadership Council for the Philadelphia United Negro College Fund; in 2020 Salima was appointed by Mayor James Kenney to the Mayor’s Commission for Faith-Based and Interfaith Affairs; and in 2023 Salima was appointed by Governor Josh Shapiro to the Pennsylvania Commission for Women. Salima has received distinguished honors and awards from the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, Pennsylvania State Senate, Philadelphia City Council, the Women-UP Organization, City and State Magazine, the Muslim Youth Association, The Philadelphia Public Record, The Philadelphia Inquirer, and the prestigious Faatimah Gamble Legacy Award. In November 2019, Salima was honored by The Philadelphia Inquirer as a Diversity and Inclusion Pioneer.
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