Who We Are – Shura Council

Our Mission & Vision

Mission: The Islamic Shura Council of Southern California represents the consensus of Southern California Muslims, promotes communication and service among member organizations and society-at-large, advocates on behalf of its members, and advances leadership development.

Vision: Excellence in Leadership and Strength in Unity.

Our History

The Islamic Shura Council was formed on April 20, 1995, by the Muslim leadership as a community-based nonprofit – 501(c)3 organization. This was a response to fill the need for an umbrella organization representing and advocating on behalf of the growing number of mosques and Muslim organizations in Southern California. It now has an impressive membership of 60 mosques and Muslim organizations. The organization also coordinated outreach campaigns and workshops on relevant issues for its constituencies. The linguistic meaning of Shura is the procedure of making decisions by mutual consultation and consensus

Our Board Of Directors

DR. AHMED SOBOH, BOARD CHAIR

Islamic Center of Yorba Linda

Dr. Soboh currently serves as the religious director of the Islamic Center of Yorba Linda. He served as the chairman of the Islamic shura council of southern California until 2020 and served on the board of the shura council several times since 2008, under the leadership of Dr. Muzammil Siddiqi and Dr. Maher Hathout. He is the co-founder, trustee, and religious adviser at the chino valley Islamic center.

Dr. Soboh has served on the boards of several Islamic organizations including CAIR LA, Minaret Academy Islamic school, and Olive Foundation. He is also a guest speaker and youth adviser at several Islamic Centers nationwide.

Dr. Soboh is active in interfaith work and served on the interfaith committee for peace in the Middle East. He is a graduate of the Islamic scientific college in Amman, Jordan, and the dental school at the University of Jordan. He also holds an executive MBA from Pepperdine University in Malibu, California.

DR. AZEEM SYED, VICE CHAIR

Institute of Knowledge

Dr. Azeem Syed is a Pharmacy Supervisor with Kaiser Permanente in Orange County, where he lives with his wife, Zainab Hussaini and children, Haneefah and Huzaifa. He grew up in SoCal and attended both undergraduate and graduate schools in the area. He has spoken at different venues from Mosques to universities on various topics.

He was blessed to further his Islamic studies abroad as well as locally and is privileged to serve in a capacity of community direction, most actively being involved as Board Chair at the Islamic Shura Council of Southern California and a member of the Strategic Planning Committee at the Institute of Knowledge.

MUNIR SHAIKH, SECRETARY

Bayan Islamic Graduate School

Munir Shaikh serves as Vice President of Operations and Academic Affairs at Bayan Islamic Graduate School, headquartered in Southern California. He has nearly 30 years of experience as a non-profit executive, program manager, and public educator. He holds an M.A. in Islamic Studies from the University of California, Los Angeles, and certificates from academic programs in Morocco, Egypt and Spain.

He has taught undergraduate and graduate courses on Middle Eastern history, Islam, and world history, and has contributed to the efforts of numerous Muslim American and interfaith organizations. He participates in national gatherings such as the Council on Foreign Relations workshop on Religion and Foreign Policy and the Chaplaincy Innovation Lab, and has overseen grant projects funded by the John Templeton Foundation, the Henry Luce Foundation, and the Wabash Center for Teaching and Learning in Theology and Religion. He is an advisor for projects addressing Islam’s place in world history, interreligious and religious leadership issues, and Muslim American community developments, and leads academic world heritage tours various countries.

DR. FAHD JAMIL, TREASURER

Chino Valley Islamic Center

Dr. Fahd Jamil currently serves on the Board of Trustees at the Chino Valley Islamic Center. He is also a serving board member of CAIR-CA PAC, an independent, non-partisan group concerned with domestic issues that affect the American Muslim community. Dr. Jamil has nearly two decades of practical experience in managing operations and developing global supply chain strategies. He recently stepped into the world of academia and teaches cutting-edge business topics to postgraduate students at a local university. Dr. Jamil holds a master’s degree in management and a doctorate in business administration with an emphasis on organizational crisis response strategies from the UK.

DR. OMAR LATIF, BOARD MEMBER

Islamic Center of Irvine

Dr. Omar Latif lives in Irvine with his wife and son. He previously was on the board of the Islamic Center of Irvine (ICOI). He is inspired by the Shura Council’s work to unite the diverse work in our vibrant community.

NASSER KARAM, BOARD MEMBER

Islamic Center of Southern California

After relocating from Boston to Los Angeles in 1996, Dr. Nasser Karam and his family were thankful to discover and join the Islamic Center of Southern California (ICSC) community. It is here that his family grew and learned about the New Horizon School Pasadena (NHSP) and MPAC. The NHSP is where his daughters, Yasmeen and Shereen, both graduated. Dr. Karam’s wife, Hala, joined the New Horizon School Pasadena team, and later continued her engagement with MPAC and the ICSC. Overall, Dr. Karam is thankful for the blessings of our community “family.”

At the ICSC, Dr. Karam has led the ICSC Satellite task force that established the ICSC Satellite Guidelines (currently Pasadena and Santa Monica locations). These guidelines were approved by the ICSC Board in 2022. He has served on the ICSC Membership Committee and has been an active member of the ICSC khateeb program since 2018. He has also served as a member of the Interfaith Study Group planning committee since 2019 and as the ICSC liaison to the Shura Council since 2020.

AZIZAH ALI-REGAN, BOARD MEMBER

ISLAH-LA

A founding board member and the current Principal of Islah Academy in Los Angeles, California, Azizah received her undergraduate degree from Virginia State University, completed the distinctive UCLA- Urban Teaching Credential Program, and received her Masters Degree from Pepperdine University in Education Administration. Azizah is a doctoral candidate at the University of Laverne in Organizational Leadership and she has been an educator for over 20 years. For sixteen of those valuable years, she worked as a middle school teacher in South Los Angeles concurrently mentoring new teachers and training staff on Culturally Responsive Teaching Methodology.

Much of her career has been educating other teachers and parents on nurturing to the ‘whole child’. Her expertise includes serving students who, in spite of experiencing family and environmental trauma, learn to excel in school and to emotionally thrive. She has avidly invested in South Los Angeles communities since her pre-teens working with youth and senior adults.

She is excited to continue serving her community as a board member of the Islamic Shura Council of Southern California and helping to empower underserved children and their families through education.

SHEIKH TARIK ATA, BOARD MEMBER

Orange County Islamic Foundation

Shaykh Tarik pursued his higher education at Northern Illinois University where he attained a BA in psychology. After graduating from NIU, Shaykh Tarik went to Jordan in pursuit of Islamic knowledge. While in Jordan, Tarik studied at the World Islamic Science and Education University (also called the Islamic University) where he achieved a BA in Islamic jurisprudence and its foundations as well as an MA in Islamic jurisprudence with a specialty in Islamic commerce and finance. Shaykh Tarik continued his academic career at Bayan Claremont Islamic Graduate School and obtained a Masters degree in Islamic Studies. He now serves as the Imam of the Orange County Islamic Foundation and a full-time Seminary Instructor with the IOK Seminary.

DEANA HELMY, BOARD MEMBER

ICNA Relief SC

Deana Helmy is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, and the Director of Counseling Services at ICNA Relief’s Crescent Counseling Center in Fullerton. She also works for the County of Orange in Mental Health and Recovery Services. Deana holds a Master of Science in Counseling from California State University, Fullerton, and a Master’s in Business Administration from the University of California, Irvine’s Paul Merage School of Business.

Deana’s passion is in positive psychology and personal development, and she uses her skills to promote strengths-based, growth mindsets that empower the community to challenge biases and practice humility, resiliency, and connectedness.