Raising up the next generation

At the Islamic Academy of Alabama (IAA), each school day is similar to those in other schools. However, it’s the differences that are important.

IAA students not only study math, science and English, but also Arabic and Islam. They compete in spelling bees and field days in addition to an Arabic spelling bee and an Islamic quiz competition. They play soccer and create newspapers, and later they gather for prayers and learn to read and memorize the Koran in its original language.

“The kids see themselves as Americans and as Muslims,” said Monica Khalaf, a former IAA teacher whose children attend the school. “They are proud to see where they are from and their heritage, as an American and as a Muslim.”

The school, located in the old Shades Valley RLC building (and former Rosedale High, a segregated school) in Rosedale, opened its doors in 1996 for just under 40 students up through sixth grade.

This year more than 200 students attend the school and represent 18 different countries, drawing in students from around Birmingham and surrounding counties. This is its first year to have a class of graduating seniors.

In the afternoon, most of the school gathers for the third of the six daily prayers Muslims practice – an opportunity they don’t have in other schools. It was this opportunity for corporate prayer that Khalaf said her son most missed when he attended public high school for a year.

The school also draws from traditions in other countries. Each school day begins with an assembly for all students, which is common overseas. There they hear announcements and say prayers.

“We teach them lifelong skills and habits, not just calculus and chemistry and Arabic,” Khalaf said. “We want our students to learn to be strong Muslims who are contributing to the local community and global community.”

Male students learn to respect their female classmates and teachers, said Khalaf. When girls start covering their hair at puberty, they are not alone.

“The school gives them a more comfortable environment to start wearing [a scarf]; they might be self conscious elsewhere,” Khalaf said.

During spring break this year as part of their curriculum, IAA high school juniors and seniors will travel to Mecca in Saudi Arabia on a small Hajj, the name for the Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca that most Muslims carry out during their lifetime. Back in Birmingham, younger students participate in a miniature version of Hajj each year at the school.

“You don’t really understand [Hajj] until you get there, so I think it’s fantastic that they get to do that,” Khalaf said.

At their annual Culture Day, each classroom represents a different country where students at the school have heritage. The children dress up, bring in special food and present facts about the area.

The school follows the core curriculum for the state of Alabama and works closely with Homewood City Schools. Homewood has helped point them to resources over the years, and IAA teachers observe Homewood classes and participate in Homewood teacher workshops.

“We just think of ourselves as another Homewood school, and I hope [the school system] does too,” Khalaf said.

IAA generally follows the Homewood City Schools calendar but takes off Islamic holidays like Ramadan, which fell in October on the lunar calendar last year.

Learning about the students at IAA also says a lot about Birmingham’s Islamic community.

When Khalaf, who was raised in Pinson, first converted to the religion at age 21, Birmingham’s Muslim community was mostly college students. Since then, it has welcomed converts and lifelong Muslims from all over the world, including many American-born Muslims. Many, like Khalaf, have married within the community, moved abroad and have now returned to Birmingham. The community has grown to include three mosques, one of which is in Homewood.

“One of the community’s biggest strengths is diversity,” Khalaf said.

To learn more about the Islamic Academy of Alabama, visit iaaschool.net.

On the school’s annual Culture Day, Alley and Ilma Uddin representing Bangladesh, left. Right, pre-K and kindergarten students make a “tawwaf” around the Kaaba during the annual re-enactment of the Hajj ritual at the school.  Photos courtesy of IAA.